Executive or Leader? Is One Always the Other?

I would imagine you are already asking, “What does he mean by that?” Well, in my fifteen years in the marketing industry I’ve found that there are far too many “executives” who definitely are not leaders. Conversely, I’ve found a lot of leaders who don’t hold a “C” title: CEO, COO, CFO, CMO, you get the idea.  These executives are really just managers. They manage tasks. Unfortunately, they don’t have the skills to inspire and lead people.

It amazes me how many executives will spend hundreds of thousands, if not millions, on external marketing efforts and forget the most important marketing asset they have: their people. I consistently ask, “If you can’t lead your company’s team and gain their trust, how do you intend to bring customers to trust your brand?” That question is usually met with a blank stare or profanities.

Understand that decision making, communication, confidence, resolving conflict, holding people accountable, these are all skills a leader must possess to help a leader move his team to success. However, all of these skills are of little value if they are not founded in honesty and trust. If your team (whether that be two people or two-hundred people) cannot firmly believe that you have their best interests at heart, you will have very little chance of being seen as a leader, possibly a dictator, but not a leader.