1. Bad perception can kill careers
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Despite excelling
in terms of share price, profits and sales, CEOs are never secure in their
jobs. More than 70% of the CEOs analyzed in a study
recently conducted by Roland Berger Strategy Consultants were fired due to
perception problems.
Some examples of these problems are the stakeholders’ loss of confidence in the
leaders’ vision and strategy or a general loss of trust in the CEOs’ moral
compass and integrity. Perception has
become increasingly
important in the course of the transformation
of the media, the press and the public. An executive's effective management of his or her perception can be
existential.
2. Perception management is an asset
It is not only the CEOs themselves who suffer
from bad perception but so too the businesses that they lead. An executive's perception
is no longer his or her private problem; it
has become a liability for the company
and needs to be treated as an asset. Today CEOs are living in increasingly unreliable
and challenging circumstances in which they not only need to perform well, they also need to be the
company’s guiding light,
integral persons who lead the way and
provide orientation, convey a clear and strong vision and are trusted by their
stakeholders to make the right decisions for the company. Thus every executive
should make perception management a key task on his or her personal agenda and
an integral part of the core business, involving
the best communication minds in the firm.
3.
The 360-degree reputation is outdated
Today
a tiny slip can lead to shitstorms or a
full-blown scandal. A thoroughly
constructed image can be destroyed on the spot, while a long-cultivated reputation may well be worthless tomorrow.
This is exactly why it is fundamental to strategically manage perception –
beyond the 360-degree approach. What a CEO needs is quick-(re)action-force-style tactics: the creation of many isolated
encounters providing a specific image – which can change very fast – rather
than the continuous communication of the same message.
4.
Develop a personal perception plan
Nowadays
CEOs need personal perception plans tailored to situational use that can be a guide
for their communication specialists to step in at any second and provide help with
unforeseeable problems. This plan, after an assessment of a CEO's current
standing, directly and accurately helps to counter the deficiencies based on
the situation and efficiently implements when, where and how to act and react to the challenges of
today's VUCA-world. Three channels,
of which each possesses a particular effect, help to operationalize it. Bought,
earned and owned channels can quickly infuse influence and create the desirable
picture on the spot when the appropriate channel for the specific aim is
applied.
5. Maximize your
perception systematically
Roland Berger Strategy Consultants is
currently developing a model that dissects the most important values on which
perception is based – trust and strategy – and translates them into a list of
indicators that are easy to grasp and measure. It allows clients
to identify a CEO's current perception
and the key challenges through
qualitative media analyses and to align them with the strategy of the company and the
executive. The indicators –
conceptual expertise, self-reflection, adaption, continuity, reciprocity and
social engagement – can be influenced through the three above mentioned channels.
This systematic approach can save a successful career from failure through perception.
Read
more about the study here
Image credit: pixabay.com
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