Management and Leadership As CEO, what do you see as your most important function?

As the founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of my company, I am responsible and accountable for everything at the organization. My accountability for everything at the company emanates from the fact that I am the founder and not necessarily because of my position as CEO. As a result, I have several responsibilities and functions that are geared towards ensuring effective operations and productivity of the company. My most important function as CEO is to set company strategy and direction, develop and lead the organization's top management, build organizational culture, and allocate resources to the firm's priorities. These are important responsibilities that I cannot delegate to other stakeholders in the company. I also think that this is the most important function because it helps towards ensuring everything in the company is geared towards realization of established business goals.

What are the most critical factors that influence how you delegate authority to others?

Despite handling some major responsibilities that I cannot delegate, my role as the company's CEO does not imply that I cannot delegate authority to others. However, delegating authority to others requires me to consider several critical factors. The most critical factors that influence such decisions include duties to be delegated as well as the individual's leadership experience, ability to work under pressure, team spirit, and coordinating skills.

3. How are limited resources distributed amongst staff in completing projects?

Resource allocation is an issue that I consider as an important aspect towards effective organizational operations and enhanced productivity. In this company, the allocation of limited resources amongst staff in completing projects usually follows a series of steps. First, the management works in collaboration with the staff to identify the specific job tasks that need to be carried out and the necessary resources to perform them. Once these tasks and resources are identified, the management develops a list of organizational priorities based on the information gathered in the previous step. This list of organizational priorities is classified into two categories i.e. short-term and medium-term actions. The limited resources are then distributed amongst staff based on the urgency of their tasks i.e. beginning with the short-term actions...

Are you able to turn breakdowns into breakthroughs? If so, how is this accomplished?
Yes, I am able to turn breakdowns into breakthroughs. This is accomplished through recognizing that there is a breakdown and obtaining as much information as possible about the situation. The next step usually entails determining factors that caused the breakdown and assessing organizational objectives and priorities. Once this is done, organizational processes and activities are re-arranged in a manner that is consistent with desired goals and objectives as well as the company's vision and mission.

5. Is trust an issue for you (in relationship to staff) when making major decisions for the company?

Trust is an issue for me and an important consideration when making major decisions for the organization because it plays a major role in the company's operations. Without trust it is difficult to assign tasks to the staffs and believe that they will them out effectively.

6. What have you found to be the strongest motivators when working with employees?

Employee motivation is one of the most important factors for the company to achieve its desired business goals. Some of the strongest employee motivators that I have found out when working with employees in this company include engaging work, strong corporate/work culture, involvement in decision-making processes, good salaries and benefits, and opportunities to grow.

7. What, in your experience, are the greatest obstacles to communication? To productivity? To high morale?

In my experience, the greatest obstacles to communication, productivity, and high morale in the workplace include poor corporate/work culture, poor compensation and benefits policies, stressful working environment, lack of effective communication channels, and inconsistent enforcement of organizational policies.

8. What has proven to be the best method of recruiting new employees?

The best for recruiting new employees in my company is through employee referral programs and databases. The company mostly relies on its current employees for referrals of new employees and collects and retains applications from all previous job postings, which are utilized when there is need to hire new employees.

9. What has been your career path?

My career path started with volunteering at a non-profit…