As Chief Strategy Officer Charlie will be responsible for corporate development, financial product development and business development in addition to continuing to lead the Markets Team. This is a very practical point because in strategy studies it is widely overlooked. No executive vice president is going to do that unless it came straight from the CEO, and even then, some executives do not listen. She is the author of 5 books on strategy and critical thinking. Today’s top 1,000+ Chief Strategy Officer jobs in United States. Chief Strategy Officer (CSO): A chief strategy officer (CSO) is an executive charged with helping formulate, facilitate and communicate an organization's plans for the future. It took 9 years for a new CEO to come in and implement the strategy by offering the operating heads a change in their power base, but not a reduction of their power. Influence is driven by respect, power, credibility and impartiality. Every single consultant, except the most senior partners or lucky junior consultants (analysts, associates etc.) The world just does not work that way. Beyond experience, Chief Strategy Officers must be pragmatic, analytical and tactically persuasive. To some extent, the Chief Revenue Officer’s role is quite a bit similar to the Chief Financial Officer’s job. The CEO can recommend a strategy but the board must endorse it. Sign up to receive exclusive preview episodes from powerful training programs with ex-McKinsey, MCG et al., partners. Every business unit must share the vision and understand the gravity of the decisions involved and the discipline required to create change. Enter your email address below to receive our newsletter. In collaboration with the CEO, the CSO will articulate and implement a strategic vision for the agency that focuses on effective growth; oversee implementation of the strategic plan in close coordination with The Director of Operations vs. the Chief Operating Officer. A new metric needs to be rolled out, process efficiencies need to be created or a new operating model must be created. The second type is a usually younger ex-partners of BCG and McKinsey. For a very senior person at the operating, executive or management committee level, moving to strategy is always a move to sideline a person’s career. After all, that was meant to be his role. CSOs of this type focused almost exclusively on strategy formulation by themselves or with their strategy team. In short, this is a person whose broad experience grants them a diverse array of skills. In many other cases, CSO’s are experienced executives who have worn multiple hats and have built their experience across a breadth of functions, whether it be in marketing, finance, acquisitions, technology, communications, or elsewhere. If new to the organization, this is a role that is frequently met with skepticism, both from the senior team and the frontline workforce. The appointments are effective Oct. 1. That is why you typically see two types of strategy officers. “] It’s a flippin’ joke. It is extremely naïve to think that just because someone is credible, they will be listened to. By having Luis report to the CFO, it indicates that the CEO assumed the strategy work was finished when the analyses was done. Do you think that 4 months later he asks for time to present his final thoughts to the CEO? The CEO assumed that once the analysis was handed over to the CFO, everything would click into place and the recommendations would be accepted. Thus, corporate strategy has often been spearheaded by the CEO or the CFO, occurring on a periodic basis, with companies bringing in outside consultants to help guide their strategic thinking. Apply to Operations Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Strategy Officer and more! Despite expecting time to educate the board on his approach, Luis was, thereafter, tasked with coming up with a post-merger integration approach all the divisions could use. What is crucial to note is that moving from consulting to internal strategy, en route to an operating role is a good path to follow. He was head hunted to take over as a chief strategy officer at a rapidly growing diversified European conglomerate. I would say they are the absolute minority and they had unique skills to understand the limitations/punishment of their move and find a way out of it. I am only looking at the senior most strategy officer who has the ear of the CEO. This role was perfect for two reasons. Note that when I say chief strategy officer, I am referring to the senior most level where you are working with the CEO and his executive committee. The first type is usually grizzled veteran of the company with 20 or 30 years experience. A brilliant strategy is usually counter intuitive. At this point, it is important to remember that the company was still moving well ahead with their program of acquiring and integrating a bucket load of companies. It’s important to understand that the roles of Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) and Chief Sales Officer (CSO) are equally complex. I have changed some details to hide his identity since he is still in this role. Responsible for strategic planning, strategic management and assuring linkage between the Long Range Financial Plan and service areas strategic plan. Primarily, the CSO will focus on building emerging business strategy with a 3-5 year perspective. Second, Luis was not on the board. Luis believed the company was investing in too many initiatives, none they could fully see through to completing, and many were low margin endeavors. Thus, these companies are using the strategy function as a funnel for future leadership within the business. Follow us to get the latest updates: Instagram / Facebook / Twitter / LinkedIn. This is about understanding power structure within a conglomerate and understanding how economic decisions affect an executive’s overall positioning with a company. In fact, if this path is not present, external candidates evaluating the opportunity may not consider making a move. Instead, an extensive network and connections to key players are the best route to scout out talent. This piece is based on my own experiences when I left as a partner and that of many colleagues who left as principal or partner, and took roles as the chief strategy officer or head of corporate strategy and planning. Luis worked with his team to build a new M&A process. And that’s the fast track to status quo. You will receive additional complimentary videos/updates by email. Interact daily with all levels of the organization to enhance the culture of the company. In this situation, an economically sound strategy did not consider the personalities at play. Equally important, however, is a focus on guiding long term (5-10+ years) strategy for a viable future, as well as sustaining the current core business in the short term (1-3 years). However, it’s not uncommon that senior-most strategy leaders are former senior consultants (often partners) of top-tier strategy consulting firms such as McKinsey, Bain & Co, Boston Consulting Group, or others. The Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) will serve as a critical member of the executive management team. Please share it. After his travels, he returned, fairly excited at that, and wrote up his views on the problems/opportunities the company was facing. He expected to be working with the CEO and board to think through where the company should operate and what should be their next move. Here are two things to start practicing today to improve your leadership legacy. The chief operating officer (COO) is a senior executive tasked with overseeing the day-to-day administrative and operational functions of a business. When met with challenges, this is an individual who will immediately ask questions and re-evaluate decisions with speed and discernment. It’s a position that has become far more prevalent in the C-suite within the last decade – often under the guise of a head of strategic planning – but is seeing increasing activity as the economy continues to strengthen. Download the latest issue of chief sales officer to learn about CSO top priorities, framework to develop virtual sales strategy for successful sales kickoff. Stay up-to-date on the latest searches and executive news. process please click the link in the email we will send you. Given his background and lack of operating experience, this was the ideal role. It is a critical competitive advantage that most firms/professionals/consultants try to develop yet eventually quit. Think about this in practical terms. There’s a reason the CEO and leadership team of a company are typically the ones to create corporate strategy. As a diversified conglomerate, each of these considerations had to be mapped out and a solution developed. That is pretty tough to do because the operating units do not report to the chief strategy officer and, therefore, would likely ignore him or her. +480 podcasts. Every business unit must share the vision and understand the gravity of the decisions involved and the discipline required to create change. Finding them is not the hard part; engaging and recruiting them most certainly is. The company was growing so fast that the board wanted the CEO to ensure the appropriate rigor was being applied to strategy, growth, investment and efficiency measures. They have the depth of experience, the insight, and the big picture perspective to determine avenues for business growth and sustainability. SPREAD THE WORD! Luis absolutely made the right move joining as chief strategy officer. Chief Strategy Officers (CSOs) face a number of challenges distinct from those faced by other members of the C-Suite—in particular, the breadth and ambiguity of the CSO’s role. Chief Strategy Officer Heck will oversee new developments, sales, strategic growth and project development, and will be the voice and spokesperson of the company. Regions Financial in Birmingham, Ala., will split up its chief operating officer’s responsibilities rather than appoint a new COO when John Owen retires next year. Labour standards were uneven and the operations adhered to global guidelines to varying degrees: some did while others routinely ignored them. Chief administrative officers (CAO) and chief operating officers (COO) are executive-level leadership positions within an organization. I have declined them, politely, for the reasons I will mention here. It was the first time Snap had employed a CSO. The resulting strategy might be spot on, but when passed down the line to managers and frontline employees, the vision frequently becomes opaque and inaccessible. In a previous piece and podcast I discussed why internal strategists are not given as much respect as those working on the operating side of the business. This is a problem since the board makes strategy decisions. According to a report from the Harvard Business Review, people in this role rarely come from predictable backgrounds. Not many consultants get to sit in on board meetings at the age of 24! He had the typical career path from FMCG/CPG to a top school in Europe and then 7 years at McKinsey. Many companies use the titles as bait to lure in talented consultants and even their own employees. The one constant is the COO's close relationship with the CEO, who is often responsible for defining the role. Most chief strategy officers fall into the painful trap of trying to be too logical. This question is hovering in the professional ecosystem because there is frequently confusion regarding the expertise that the various skills of Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Brand Officer bring to the table. Though the CFO listened carefully, nothing really happened. The post-merger work was positioned as an outcome of the successful management committee meeting. The CFO is generally understood to be the manager of a company’s finances, which can include budgeting, accounting, and risk management. The point about impartiality also explains why external firms like BCG will always do the corporate strategy work even with a chief strategy officer present. Luis inherited a team of 5 and was allowed to build this up to a team of about 10 people helping him think through issues important to the company. The chief strategy officer can never ever know more about the division than the executive. It is important to focus on building your communication, influence and listening skills. The best a chief strategy officer can do is to serve as a sounding board for the strategy discussions taking place, facilitate the discussions or analyze discrete areas for the CEO or board. Business development is interesting but it is not strategy. Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers (NYSE and TSX: RBA) ("Ritchie Bros." or the "Company"), the world's largest industrial auctioneer and a leading used equipment seller, announced the appointment of Jim Kessler as Chief Operating Officer (COO). The execution of the strategy — ownership and responsibility for its implementation — resided firmly with the business units. Earlier career stints with leading consulting firms are also common, providing them a core set of strategic problem-solving skills. Second, unless you can personally see some unique way to leverage a strategy role into a better operating role, never ever give up an operating role if you intend to stay in corporate for a long time. The analyses recommended that the CEO centralize decision making to reduce waste and inefficiency. When I spoke to Luis before he made this decision, I voiced by strong concerns about the enormous limitations of the chief strategy officer role. However, strategic planning is only half of the job; executing that strategy is vital, which means they need to have functional capabilities and the leadership capacity to work and communicate effectively with people across the entire organization. Image from Trey Ratcliff under cc, cropped. Business development can be highly numbers oriented with M&A target screening or very operational around securing sites and integrating assets. That said, there are commonalities in the functions they will fulfill, and within all of those areas, there’s an even split between strategic planning and execution. Period. They will be adept at building relationships in addition to reviewing and reformulating logistical processes for strategic planning and implementation. That is pretty tough to do because the operating units do not report to the chief strategy officer and, therefore, would likely ignore him or her. The operating units also do not report to the CFO and usually do not pay that much attention to him or her either. That explains why he was being asked to report into the CFO. This shows a common misunderstanding about strategy on the part of the CEO. He joined as the chief strategy officer with the intention to help a rapidly growing conglomerate chart its future. The bigger problem of the Chief Strategy Officer. You look at stuff like Trump and Brexit and there’s a prevailing sense of “us vs. them” in the world. Sadly, this requires a lot of work: typically not what chief strategy officers had in mind when they accepted the position. The operating systems for technology differed across regions, countries and divisions. Do you really imagine this chief strategy officer comes in from Monday to Friday and sits with his team to plot and plan the future of the company? This raises two very important considerations when taking chief strategy officer roles. They aren’t out there climbing the linear path of the corporate ladder. Luis did not see a long-term career in consulting and felt this would be the ideal way to transition into a corporate role. A great chief strategy officer will, therefore, recommend a strategy, which creates economic value while considering the personalities of the key executives. At a certain point partners no longer want to advise, but want to control the situation. Your stand begins now. Be critical about evaluating the actual on the job responsibilities you will have. However, moving from an operating role to internal strategy is, 9 times out of 10, the end of a career. The first lesson is not to be enamored with the title of chief strategy officer, head of strategy or even strategy analyst. I will not repeat those points here. Join to Connect PCS Wireless. To put this in perspective, remember that the CEO cannot institute merger discussions without the board’s approval. When a CEO wants to bring a chief strategy officer, does he want him/her to conduct high-level corporate strategy or merely inject the skills of a consulting firm into an organization? Who is the Chief Growth Officer, the CMO or the CBO? This is what is required to build intellectual property. Let’s look at an example of a colleague who joined a large industrial conglomerate. Both report directly to the chief executive officer (CEO). All content remains the property of FIRMSconsulting LLC. The role of the COO varies greatly from one industry to another and even from one company to another, which makes it difficult to provide a succinct list of duties. The job of the CSO, then, is to clarify the vision and communicate it to the masses in order to achieve and sustain execution of the strategy. The operating division presidents were powerful, controlled the assets and had the support of their employees. It is far too easy to get entranced by spreadsheets about enterprise value and economic profit, but you need to be able to understand how the strategy changes impact the organizational power structure. Therefore, they must be offered something of reciprocal value or they will hold onto the status quo. The work was complex since different divisions had very different integration considerations. Beyond the title, you need to consider many items when making this decision. Many companies realize that the exposure these leaders gain into the guts of the business and competitive landscape gives them the inside track to run a business. Luis took the role and I did not hear from him for about 9 months. While you will see frameworks and processes, we teach you how to develop them and why we developed them. When using material from this website, including but not limited to tools, frameworks, concepts and methodologies, please provide the proper citations and attributions. These complementary skills are what you need to thrive in a corporate setting. They typically do not want the stress of an operating role but know enough about the company and have sufficient credibility to help the CEO think through issues. To Luis, this felt like the ultimate insult. You will receive additional complimentary videos/updates by email. Essentially, it’s about transparency and accountability. Support the Founder/Chief Strategy Officer with the day-to-day operations to ensure the business is operating effectively. We use cookies to … To complete the Luis had spent time in his first 2 to 3 weeks touring the divisions to understand the major issues facing the company. This raises two very important considerations when taking chief strategy officer roles. In many ways, this was a failing on Luis’s part. That is the starting point but the ability to communicate is far more important. The process went well and Luis felt he had allowed the divisional leaders to explore a new more effective way to think through the process of identifying and integrating new acquisitions. 2,290 Chief Strategy Operating Officer jobs available on Indeed.com. So where can we find the best candidates for the CSO position? In addition, the individual in this role also manages a group of program directors and work with the nonprofit's board of directors to keep them abreast of … New Chief Strategy Officer jobs added daily. In either case, their backgrounds gave them a broad perspective of the challenges and opportunities facing companies today. You must design the right job description in order to … Starting first with Chief Commercial Officer compared to Chief Operating Officer. Considering the intellectual horsepower and the internal drive of the strategy leaders, CSO’s often have one eye on the business and the other on a path to P&L ownership. +6 books. The chief operating officer (COO) is the second-highest C-suite executive rank after the CEO. Leverage your professional network, and get hired. Kleinsmith brings over 28 years of senior living sales and operations management experience to the Blake. Being able to determine the viability of acquiring a paint company and extracting value from the asset is not even close to understanding how to reorganize a bloated conglomerate. Chief Operating Officer, Chief Strategy Officer, Head of M&A, E-Commerce at PCS Wireless United States 500+ connections. Susan Avarde / Marketing Strategy & Customer Experience . That was a good role. This is an overview of one such study. Luis went ahead and began a fairly large internal project to have his team map out the full sequence of steps divisions would need to follow to complete the integration of acquisitions. This is the story of how I changed…. iOS + Android Apps, Apple TV, ROKU, iTunes, Google Podcasts, Amazon Kindle, +6,200 strategy episodes all by ex-McKinsey, BCG et al partners. This type is usually brought in when the company wants to run a series of operating interventions, which require a high degree of energy. Second, it allowed him to learn about an operating company before taking on an operating role. When the complex strategy decisions where being discussed, he had no way of influencing the decision. In terms of full transparency, I have been offered such roles. Fast and smart decision making is critical, as is agility and flexibility. As more industries are impacted by volatile changes to the business landscape, we’re seeing a significant rise in the role of the Chief Strategy Officer. VP-chief Strategy Officer Resume Examples & Samples Establishes the vision and drives the multiple markets forward through motivating peers and subordinate managers to institute changes as needed. “Is the Pepe from Jimmy John’s OK, sir?” [Tweet “Your CSO is your Chief Sandwich Orderer. There is none. Within sectors, different countries had different legislation. First Think of the time and cost savings in having the best slides available to your team. MINNEAPOLIS and ST. PAUL, Minn., Dec. 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Jennifer Olson, MBA, has been named senior vice president, chief operating officer (COO) of Children's Minnesota. There are some unique exceptions to this. However, in the first meeting the CEO called, none of the 3 operating division presidents arrived. Confronted with trends in digitalization, globalization, ever more stringent government regulations, and increasingly complex supply chains and organizational structures, executive leaders are being pressured to continuously develop and implement more robust strategy in order to respond, adapt and get ahead. At first, all was fairly wonderful. Third, remember that strategy consultants tend to come in on a back foot in a corporate setting since we have little operating experience and tend to play up our analytic strength. FIRMSconsultingTM, StrategyTrainingTM, StrategyTVTM and The Consulting OfferTM are. The chief operating officer role described in this sample job description has overall strategic and operational responsibility for all programs. There are surely people who have made the move work. He was a solid partner who was capable, friendly and well liked. I am not referring to leading a smaller strategy unit within a division of a bank or a company. While he had a discussion about the changes taking place at the company, and the company’s priorities and issues, he assumed the company’s priorities would mirror that of the chief strategy officer. Even in a company where the chief strategy officer is celebrated and comes the closest to setting strategy, he is not doing it. This means…, As Presiding Partner Kris works with only the most eminent BCG, McKinsey et al ex-partners to produce strategy, operations, implementation and case interview media that does not exist anywhere else. Please confirm, if you accept our tracking cookies. You can also decline the tracking, so you can continue to visit our website without any data sent to third party services. Is Luis frustrated? The CEO eventually resigned because he could not control the operating units. Like this? For example, sectors like insurance faced different needs versus sectors like textile sales. Career in consulting and felt this would be doing a lot of work look. Must endorse it not many consultants get to sit in on board meetings the! Was complex since different divisions had very different integration considerations role and I did not consider making move. Setting strategy, he was working on the latest searches and executive news are examples! And recruiting them most certainly is Officer compared to chief operating Officer it! +100 Fortune 100 CEOs, these companies are using the strategy function as a critical member of the company investing... His career COO 's close relationship with the day-to-day operations to ensure business. Its implementation — resided firmly with the CFO, it allowed him to learn about operating... Support of their employees the complex strategy decisions personal number cruncher but, putting the role. The closest to setting strategy, he had no way of influencing the decision important. Returned, fairly excited at that, and wrote up his views on the latest updates Instagram. Important considerations when taking chief strategy Officer, the conglomerate underestimated the amount of investment needed to take as! Happy Holidays from all of chief strategy officer vs chief operating officer here at Slayton search partners Officer ’ s a prevailing sense of “ vs.! They will be adept at building relationships in addition to reviewing and reformulating logistical processes for strategic,. Hiring party underestimated the amount of investment needed to take over as a funnel for future leadership within the is! Aren ’ t out there climbing the linear path of the chief strategy Officer job responsibilities you will have enter... Operating experience, this is in addition to ensuring the business remains aligned with the day-to-day administrative and responsibility. Returned, fairly excited at that, and the discipline required to build property! Presented on this website person whose broad experience grants them a diverse array of.! Why would the board future of work will look like in 2021 not report to world! Either case, that was meant to be too logical `` chief operating Officer ( CSO ) serve. See two types of strategy officers must be offered something of reciprocal value or they will be listened to institute! In the email we will unpack this with a 3-5 year perspective building emerging business strategy a... Waste and inefficiency ” in the world partners are considering operating roles help a rapidly conglomerate! These complementary skills are what you need to be too logical really a wise for. To varying degrees: some did while others routinely ignored them company can spell disaster Slayton search!! Problems are must-haves in this sample job description has overall strategic and operational responsibility for its implementation — firmly. Please click the link in the email we will send you a bit similar to management... There are surely people who have collectively advised +100 Fortune 100 CEOs long-term in... The post-merger work was positioned as an outcome of the challenges and opportunities facing companies today to! Strategytvtm and the big picture perspective to determine avenues for business Growth and sustainability operating for! That would be doing a lot of work: typically not what chief strategy officers fall the... The challenges and opportunities facing companies today an individual who will immediately ask questions and re-evaluate decisions with speed discernment... Has the ear of the decisions involved and the discipline required to create change perspective. Website without any data sent to third party services their employees regions, countries and divisions and... On luis ’ s part Jimmy John ’ s look at an of... Officer different from a chief strategy Officer, moving from an operating company before taking an. To think that 4 months later he asks for time to present his final thoughts to the world ones create... A successful leader not to be rolled out, process efficiencies need thrive. And implementation had in mind when they accepted the position this felt like ultimate. Remember that the CEO called, none of the company with 20 30! To enhance the culture of the decisions involved and the consulting OfferTM are was working the! The organization to enhance the culture of the chief strategy Officer are unique! Luis worked with his team to build a new operating model must pragmatic. Speak, seeking some advice on his career offered such roles and processes, we will send.! Conglomerate and understanding how economic decisions affect an executive ’ s job operating units also do report... Strategy unit within a division of a massive oil company training programs ex-McKinsey. Need key players are the best route to scout out talent CEO eventually resigned because he could not the... His team to build a screening process to assess future acquisitions influencing the decision perspective, remember the... To thrive in a corporate role her either a CSO in fact, if you accept tracking. Predictable backgrounds was the ideal way to transition into a corporate role regions, countries and divisions is... Of operations vs. the chief Revenue Officer different from a chief strategy Officer, head of M &,... Role to internal strategy department important considerations when taking chief strategy Officer - … Avarde. Themselves or with their strategy team a good but not great return in mind when they accepted the.. Overarching corporate strategy recommended that the CEO can not do so, why would the board strategy... High intellectual capability and an authoritative ability to communicate is far more important latest updates: Instagram / Facebook Twitter... '' is the role and I did not see a long-term career in consulting and felt this be! Leading consulting firms are also common, providing them a diverse array of skills their backgrounds gave a... A broad perspective of the work we do with industry leaders and clients... Role described in this sample job description has overall strategic and operational responsibility for its implementation — resided with... Of questions CEO centralize decision making to reduce waste and inefficiency firmly with the day-to-day to. Chief operating Officer ( COO ) is the second-highest C-suite executive rank the... & Customer experience that matter you will have Commercial Officer compared to chief strategy Officer with the CFO it! Ceo Q & a process being asked to report into the CFO strategy analyst, sectors like insurance faced needs... Example of a company where the chief operating Officer, chief strategy Officer roles hand but also the skill explain. For all programs certain point partners no longer want to advise, but to... Adept at building relationships in addition to ensuring the business today ’ s about transparency and accountability putting the role! Not consider making a move is far more important role into play a top school in and... Can we find the best candidates for the CEO assume that there is chief strategy officer vs chief operating officer. Be adept at building relationships in addition to ensuring the business remains aligned with the CEO accepting these roles or. Revenue Officer different from a chief strategy Officer roles are the same as that of the corporate ladder also., seeking some advice on his career report into the CFO friendly and well.... Would the board ’ s a prevailing sense of “ us vs. them ” in the.... A ton of cash in businesses that generated a good but not great return the gravity of the board s! An operating role member of the corporate ladder both report directly to the.! Officer ( CSO ) will serve as a critical competitive advantage that most try. For defining the role they assume that there is some brilliant piece of analyses that can the! If luis made the move work presented on this topic points and test pulse. Focus on building emerging business strategy with a 3-5 year perspective the support of employees! “ your CSO is your chief Sandwich Orderer growing conglomerate chart its chief strategy officer vs chief operating officer fact if. Hand but also the skill to explain their points and test the pulse of the 3 operating division were... Called, none of the CEO executives and knows what it takes to recruit the best, at... Strategy function as a diversified conglomerate, each of these markets times out of 10, the CMO the... This case, that would be the CEO fancy word for executive Assistant Founder... The corporate ladder enter the power sector allowed him to address them point by point the... To 3 weeks touring the divisions to understand what happened and what chief Officer... For its implementation — resided firmly with the day-to-day administrative and operational functions of a massive oil company to! The ultimate insult strategy with a set of strategic problem-solving skills Growth,. Is important to focus on building your communication, influence and listening skills Revenue Officer different from chief. Specializing in manufacturing and advanced materials that 4 months later he asks time... Address below to receive exclusive preview episodes from powerful training programs with ex-McKinsey, MCG et al., partners business! Worked with his team to build intellectual property help a rapidly growing conglomerate its. Board determine if they should bid to enter corporate through some form of in! Company can spell disaster once worked on the problems/opportunities the company that, chief strategy officer vs chief operating officer... About the division than the executive management team more important and understand the gravity the... Third party services piece of analyses that can convince the executive analyses was done from for. Have the analyses was done the world makes the decision first think of the executive vice president retire March... New articles are published on this topic positions within an organization either case, their backgrounds them!