CEOs

I picked up an old copy of Fast Company magazine yesterday. It is the 2012 March edition featuring the world’s top 50 most innovative companies. Apple was first, with Facebook, Google, and Amazon topping out the list. Now six years later—aside from a few new editions like Tesla, Airbnb, and Uber—there are no established companies stepping up to challenge the original four.

There's been a lot of talk and press about Andrew Mason leaving (OK, getting fired from) Groupon. I didn't pay much attention to it until I came across this post over the weekend about The 13 Best Resignation Letters of All Time. His really stood out to me for a variety of reasons.

This comes as no surprise – levels of social media adoption inside brands can be much lower than among their consumers, or indeed among their newer employees. But when you do engage a senior team with the opportunities that can come from social you tend to find that they become some of the most vociferous enthusiasts.A recent study by IBM found that only 16% of global CEOs are taking part in social media, and only 1 of the more than 1,700 CEOs interviewed had their own blog.

In the second half of 2012, IBM issued its fifth biennial Global CEO Study titled Leading Through Connection.  IBM says this study is based on face-to-face conversations with more than 1,700 CEOs in 64 countries.  I have been reading it and want to share with you what I make of it.

There’s a misconception that everybody ‘gets’ social media. That everybody is taking part. And that business, in particular, are all developing social media strategies. This just isn’t true. Whilst we have witnessed a monumental rise in social media use over the last 18 months or so, there are still some who are significantly more innovative than others.

by: Jennifer Rice

In reading PWC's 12th Annual Global CEO Study, I found the chart on "drivers of long-term success" during the downturn to be insightful on how CEOs view corporate social responsibility.

Specifically, while 63% rate brand strength and reputation as critical to success, CSR falls to the bottom of the pack with only 20% perceiving it as critical.