Career aspirations

[Freefaller]

I was chatting with some friends talking about career aspirations. One of them asked me, would you ever want to be a CEO?

My initial reaction was "no"... the more I thought about it the more I was quite happy in my decision. I'm happy to be relatively senior with enough authority to have the autonomy I need to do what I want to do - that said I prefer to be a subject matter expert that is needed. I am more of a leader than a manager, and definitely prefer the more strategic activity of work with lots of small discrete pieces of work that tie together.

That said I am exploring the world of NED work as a bit of a pre-retirement plan to help top up salary / life expenses and move towards less full time work.

I know we have a wide range of people here at varying levels of skills and career areas - if someone were to ask you the above question (do you want to be CEO) what would you say? If not where would you like to be from a career perspective? And if you're not after a career, what/where would you like to be from a professional perspective?

 

[Freefaller]

I'd answer no.

Due to my current mental health issues, which create very physical symptoms I find I need to balance my work life carefully. As part of this I'm happy to stay away from senior roles and just be a busy bee. It pays the bills and I have enough left over to enjoy a couple of modest hobbies as well as go away each year. For reference I'm a software developer.

I'm satisfied with my lot and money isn't everything to me.

I agree for me it's not only about money, it's about enjoying the work I do. Mental health is so important and so overlooked as something that careers/work has a huge impact on. We spend a huge amount at work and it has to be somewhere you enjoy.

Sorry to hear about your mental health issues Looking after yourself is absolutely key / more important.

You can earn more than enough being an expert without having that senior leadership responsibility - I think for me it's doing stuff that excites you.

​

 

[Freefaller]

I'd be interested to observe the role in detail and make a more informed decision and suspect the experience will vary massively between organisations especially at places where you have a team of experts working for you doing all the heavy lifting. I do know that I don't want any role between myself and the CEO here though. Each of the jobs is more hassle then its worth.

Yes that's a great point - being able to shadow a day in the life of a CEO in a large corporate vs a smaller business would be really interesting.

Personally at director level (not technically board-level but do go to some) it's more than enough for me. I already work long hours and have a lot of pressure, and whilst I find it thrilling and exciting, I have a good team around me.

This is why the NED roles are interesting, you offer "critical friend" challenges, provide insights, advice, but without needing to make executive decisions.

 

[Freefaller]

A younger me would have said yes, but post covid me no. I’m happy where I am, a good level of autonomy, decently paid without it cutting in to my own time. Financial circumstances have changed and I don’t need to worry about retirement with a significant trust fund covering my later life, so I’m just happy to enjoy where I am now.

It’s becoming a more common viewpoint too, fewer and fewer people are wanting any more responsibility or the top jobs in my field.

Yes I've noticed that too. 20 years ago people would do whatever it took to get promoted (leading to some nasty behaviours), now people seem to be paid enough as a subject matter expert that makes them important to the business without needing a huge amount of extra responsibility.

There is a danger / risk though that you end up with leaders that don't want to be there, or are just awful at it - we need people with the passion to drive change and create en empowered workforce.

 

[Freefaller]

I have to say I feel the same. The extra pressure and responsibility (regardless of the pay) is something I've realised I'm less interested in. I've come to the conclusion that my next step will definitely be a side step or even a step down in perhaps a larger company to enjoy the work more than the effective "admin" that comes with leadership. Don't get me wrong I seem to be a natural people person and I enjoy that side of things, but all the extra bits that lie on top of that is quite draining.

I'd happily take a side/down step for a little less pressure (certainly if financially it wasn't crippling - I'd be happy to take a pay cut if necessary).

 

[Freefaller]

That's why I'm getting myself geared up for more NED positions and networks as I feel that would be a good way to keep my mind active whilst also keeping interested in some sectors that I can have an impact in.

 

[Freefaller]

I think something that I often need to rewire myself with is at board level you want above all else to believe in your company, and want it to succeed with all your heart / mind, but without being a dick about it. If you don't have that passion it'll never happen and you end up just focusing on numbers rather than the core values of the business. Stability sometimes is better than pure growth IMO - if you have a good pipeline of work/projects/framework agreements/etc... and you have good natural turnover of staff (i.e. people retiring or leaving because of reasons that have nothing to do with the culture of the business) then I think that's the "golden ticket".

IF you're able to get enough change/innovation and excitement within a business without needing to do mergers or overly ambitious growth it creates stability and interest to your employees especially if they get well rewarded for their work, recognised and intellectually and professionally challenged.

Such companies do exist but they're rare - I mean when I was at Crossrail (the construction project not the **** up in systems integration) that was probably me at my happiest, we had a common goal/purpose and everyone was collaborating and working to a good drumbeat. Our work was finished on time and on budget and we all felt this sense of communal pride.

If I were a board member (not a NED) for a stable, exciting but ambitious (without unrealistic dreams) business of medium sort of size, I think that would be spot on for me. I'm more of a leader than a manager, I'm good at building teams and making things come together.