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{{redirect-multi|3|Chief executive|CEO|CEOs||Chief executive (disambiguation)|and|CEO (disambiguation)}}
[[File:Group of Fortune 500 CEOs in 2015 (cropped to remove non-CEO).jpg|thumb|A group of [[Fortune 500]] CEOs in 2015.|alt=]]
'''Chief executive officer''' ('''CEO''')<ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=https://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=2428371|title=CEOs and Presidents|first=Tom C. W.|last=Lin|date=April 23, 2014|publisher=|access-date=June 29, 2017|via=papers.SSRN.com}}</ref> is the position of the most senior corporate officer, [[executive officer|executive]], administrator, or other leader in charge of managing an [[organization]]{{snd}} especially an independent [[legal entity]] such as a [[company]] or [[nonprofit institution]]. CEOs lead a range of organizations, including public and private [[corporations]], non-profit organizations and even some government organizations (e.g., [[Crown corporation]]s). The CEO of a corporation or company typically reports to the [[board of directors]] and is charged with maximizing the value of the entity,<ref name="auto"/> which may include maximizing the share price, market share, revenues, or another element. In the non-profit and government sector, CEOs typically aim at achieving outcomes related to the organization's mission, such as reducing poverty, increasing literacy, etc. Titles also often given to the holder of CEO position include '''president''', '''chief executive''' ('''CE'''), '''managing director''' ('''MD''') (in the United Kingdom)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/managing-director|title=Managing Director|last=|first=|date=|website=Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English|publisher=|access-date=June 14, 2017}}</ref> and '''representative director''' ('''RD''') (in [[Japan]]).<ref name="rd kanjijapanese">{{cite web|url=http://www.kanjijapanese.com/en/dictionary-japanese-english/34807778346%A8%E5%8F%96%E7%B7%A0%E5%BD%B9|title=代表取締役|trans-title=Daihyō torishimaryaku|language=Japanese|publisher=Japanese-English Dictionary|access-date=March 31, 2017}}</ref><ref name="rd goo">{{cite web|url=http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/srch/all/%E4%BB%A3%E8%A1%A8%E5%8F%96%E7%B7%A0%E5%BD%B9/m0u/|title=代表取締役|trans-title=Daihyō torishimaryaku|language=Japanese|publisher=NTT Resonant|access-date=March 31, 2017}}</ref>
In the early 21st century, top executives typically had technical degrees in science, engineering, or law.<ref>{{citation |first=Marianne |last=Bertrand |title=CEOs |journal=[[Annual Review of Economics]] |volume=1 |publisher= [[Annual Reviews (publisher)|Annual Reviews]] | year = 2012 | pages = 121–150 |doi=10.1146/annurev.economics.050708.143301 }}</ref> As of March 2018, there were 26 female CEOs of S&P 500 companies, approximately 5%.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.catalyst.org/knowledge/women-ceos-sp-500|title=Women CEOs of the S&P 500|last=Cheryl|date=2014-12-03|work=Catalyst|access-date=2018-04-18}}</ref>
==Responsibilities==
The responsibility of an organization's CEO are set by the organization's [[board of directors]] or other authority, depending on the organization's legal structure. They can be far-reaching or quite limited and are typically enshrined in a formal delegation of authority. Typically, responsibilities include being a decision maker on strategy and other key policy issues, [[leadership|leader]], manager, and executor. The communicator role can involve speaking to the press and the rest of the outside world, as well as to the organization's management and employees; the decision-making role involves high-level decisions about policy and strategy. As a leader of the company, the CEO or MD advises the board of directors, motivates employees, and drives change within the organization. As a manager, the CEO/MD presides over the organization's day-to-day operations.<ref name="Investopedia">{{cite web |url=http://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/ceo.asp |title=Chief Executive Officer - CEO |work=Investopedia |publisher=Investopedia US, a Division of IAC |access-date=2014-10-23 }}</ref><ref name="BusinessDictionary">{{cite web |url=http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/Chief-Executive-Officer-CEO.html |title=Chief Executive Officer (CEO) |work=BusinessDictionary.com |publisher=WebFinance Inc. |access-date=October 23, 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=The Capstone Encyclopaedia of Business|last=Capstone Publishing|publisher=Capstone Publishing|year=2003|isbn=1-84112-053-7|location=Oxford, U.K|pages=79–80}}<!--| accessdate = 2011-05-17 --></ref> The term refers to the person who makes all the key decisions regarding the company, which includes all sectors and fields of the business, including operations, marketing, business development, finance, human resources, etc. The CEO of a company is not necessarily the owner of the company.
==International use==
In some countries, there is a [[dual board]] system with two separate boards, one [[Board of directors|executive board]] for the day-to-day business and one [[supervisory board]] for control purposes (selected by the shareholders). In these countries, the CEO presides over the executive board and the [[chairman]] presides over the supervisory board, and these two roles will always be held by different people. This ensures a distinction between [[management]] by the executive board and [[governance]] by the supervisory board. This allows for clear lines of authority. The aim is to prevent a conflict of interest and too much power being concentrated in the hands of one person.
In the United States, the [[board of directors]] (elected by the [[shareholder]]s) is often equivalent to the supervisory board, while the executive board may often be known as the [[executive committee]] (the division/subsidiary heads and [[Corporate title|C-level]] officers that report directly to the CEO).
In the United States, and in business, the executive officers are usually the top officers of a corporation, the chief executive officer (CEO) being the best-known type. The definition varies; for instance, the California Corporate Disclosure Act defines "executive officers" as the five most highly compensated officers not also sitting on the board of directors. In the case of a sole proprietorship, an executive officer is the sole proprietor. In the case of a partnership, an executive officer is a managing partner, senior partner, or administrative partner. In the case of a limited liability company, executive officer is any member, manager, or officer.
==Related positions==
{{Main article|Corporate title}}
Typically, a CEO has several subordinate executives, each of whom has specific functional responsibilities referred to as senior executives,<ref>{{cite web|author=Markus Menz |url=http://jom.sagepub.com/content/38/1/45.abstract |title=Menz, M. 2012. Functional Top Management Team Members: A Review, Synthesis, and Research Agenda. Journal of Management, 38(1): 45-80 |publisher=Jom.sagepub.com |date=2011-10-04 |accessdate=2012-11-28}}</ref> executive officers or corporate officers. Subordinate executives are given different titles in different organizations, but one common category of subordinate executive, if the CEO is also the president, is the [[vice-president]] (VP). An organization may have more than one vice-president, each tasked with a different area of responsibility (e.g., VP of [[finance]], VP of [[human resources]], VP of [[research and development]]). Some organizations have subordinate executive officers who also have the word ''chief'' in their job title, such as [[chief operating officer]] (COO), [[chief financial officer]] (CFO) and [[chief technology officer]] (CTO).
===US===
In the US, the term ''chief executive officer'' is used primarily in business, whereas the term ''executive director'' is used primarily in the not-for-profit sector. These terms are generally mutually exclusive and refer to distinct legal duties and responsibilities. Implicit in the use of these titles, is that the public not be misled and the general standard regarding their use be consistently applied.
===UK===
In the UK, ''chief executive'' and ''chief executive officer'', are used in both business and the [[philanthropy|charitable sector]].<ref>
{{cite web|url=http://www.acevo.org.uk/ |title=Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations |publisher=Acevo.org.uk |date=2012-11-16 |accessdate=2012-11-28}}
</ref> {{As of | 2013}}, the use of the term ''[[Director (business)|director]]'' for senior charity staff is deprecated to avoid confusion with the legal duties and responsibilities associated with being a charity director or trustee, which are normally non-executive (unpaid) roles. In the United Kingdom, the term ''director'' is used instead of ''chief officer".
==Famous CEOs==
Business publicists since the days of [[Edward Bernays]] and his client [[John D. Rockefeller]] and even more successfully the corporate publicists for [[Henry Ford]], promoted the concept of the "[[celebrity]] CEO". Business journalists have often adopted this approach, which assumes that the corporate achievements, especially in the arena of manufacturing, were produced by unique talented individuals, especially the "heroic CEO". In effect, journalists celebrate a CEO who takes distinctive strategic actions. The model is the celebrity in entertainment, sports, and politics. Guthey et al. argue that "...these individuals are not self-made, but rather are created by a process of widespread media exposure to the point that their actions, personalities, and even private lives function symbolically to represent significant dynamics and tensions prevalent in the contemporary business atmosphere."<ref>Eric Guthey and Timothy Clark, ''Demystifying Business Celebrity'' (2009).</ref> Journalism thereby exaggerates the importance of the CEO and tends to neglect the harder-to-describe broader corporate factors. There is little attention to the intricately organized technical bureaucracy that actually does the work. Hubris sets in when the CEO internalizes the celebrity and becomes excessively self-confident in making complex decisions. Indeed, there may be an emphasis on the sort of decisions that attract the celebrity journalists.<ref>Mathew L.A. Hayward, Violina P. Rindova, and Timothy G. Pollock. "Believing one's own press: The causes and consequences of CEO celebrity." ''Strategic Management Journal'' 25#7 (2004): 637-653.</ref>
==See also==
* [[CEO succession]]
* [[CEO of public schools]]
* [[Executive officer]]
* [[Glass cliff]]
* [[List of books written by CEOs]]
* [[List of chief executive officers]]
* [[Occupational Information Network]]
* [[United States Department of Labor]]
==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
==Further reading==
* Huang, Jiekun, and Darren J. Kisgen. "Gender and corporate finance: Are male executives overconfident relative to female executives?." ''Journal of Financial Economics'' 108#3 (2013): 822-839. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160721204528/http://www.usc.edu/schools/business/FBE/seminars/papers/F_10-3-08_KISGEN-Gender.pdf online]
* Kaplan, Steven N., Mark M. Klebanov, and Morten Sorensen. "Which CEO characteristics and abilities matter?." ''Journal of Finance'' 67#3 (2012): 973-1007. [http://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/6606747.pdf online]
* Shleifer, Andrei, and Robert W. Vishny. "A survey of corporate governance." ''Journal of Finance'' 52#2 (1997): 737-783.
* Vancil, Richard F. ''Passing the baton: Managing the process of CEO succession'' (Harvard Business School Press, 1987).
==External links==
{{commons category|Chief executive officers}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* [http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos012.htm U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics - Top Executives: Description and Outlook]
{{Corporate titles}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chief Executive Officer}}
[[Category:Management occupations]]
[[Category:Chief executive officers| ]]
[[Category:Corporate titles|E]]
[[Category:Positions of authority]]
[[Category:Leadership]]
[[File:Group of Fortune 500 CEOs in 2015 (cropped to remove non-CEO).jpg|thumb|A group of [[Fortune 500]] CEOs in 2015.|alt=]]
'''Chief executive officer''' ('''CEO''')<ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=https://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=2428371|title=CEOs and Presidents|first=Tom C. W.|last=Lin|date=April 23, 2014|publisher=|access-date=June 29, 2017|via=papers.SSRN.com}}</ref> is the position of the most senior corporate officer, [[executive officer|executive]], administrator, or other leader in charge of managing an [[organization]]{{snd}} especially an independent [[legal entity]] such as a [[company]] or [[nonprofit institution]]. CEOs lead a range of organizations, including public and private [[corporations]], non-profit organizations and even some government organizations (e.g., [[Crown corporation]]s). The CEO of a corporation or company typically reports to the [[board of directors]] and is charged with maximizing the value of the entity,<ref name="auto"/> which may include maximizing the share price, market share, revenues, or another element. In the non-profit and government sector, CEOs typically aim at achieving outcomes related to the organization's mission, such as reducing poverty, increasing literacy, etc. Titles also often given to the holder of CEO position include '''president''', '''chief executive''' ('''CE'''), '''managing director''' ('''MD''') (in the United Kingdom)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/managing-director|title=Managing Director|last=|first=|date=|website=Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English|publisher=|access-date=June 14, 2017}}</ref> and '''representative director''' ('''RD''') (in [[Japan]]).<ref name="rd kanjijapanese">{{cite web|url=http://www.kanjijapanese.com/en/dictionary-japanese-english/34807778346%A8%E5%8F%96%E7%B7%A0%E5%BD%B9|title=代表取締役|trans-title=Daihyō torishimaryaku|language=Japanese|publisher=Japanese-English Dictionary|access-date=March 31, 2017}}</ref><ref name="rd goo">{{cite web|url=http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/srch/all/%E4%BB%A3%E8%A1%A8%E5%8F%96%E7%B7%A0%E5%BD%B9/m0u/|title=代表取締役|trans-title=Daihyō torishimaryaku|language=Japanese|publisher=NTT Resonant|access-date=March 31, 2017}}</ref>
In the early 21st century, top executives typically had technical degrees in science, engineering, or law.<ref>{{citation |first=Marianne |last=Bertrand |title=CEOs |journal=[[Annual Review of Economics]] |volume=1 |publisher= [[Annual Reviews (publisher)|Annual Reviews]] | year = 2012 | pages = 121–150 |doi=10.1146/annurev.economics.050708.143301 }}</ref> As of March 2018, there were 26 female CEOs of S&P 500 companies, approximately 5%.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.catalyst.org/knowledge/women-ceos-sp-500|title=Women CEOs of the S&P 500|last=Cheryl|date=2014-12-03|work=Catalyst|access-date=2018-04-18}}</ref>
==Responsibilities==
The responsibility of an organization's CEO are set by the organization's [[board of directors]] or other authority, depending on the organization's legal structure. They can be far-reaching or quite limited and are typically enshrined in a formal delegation of authority. Typically, responsibilities include being a decision maker on strategy and other key policy issues, [[leadership|leader]], manager, and executor. The communicator role can involve speaking to the press and the rest of the outside world, as well as to the organization's management and employees; the decision-making role involves high-level decisions about policy and strategy. As a leader of the company, the CEO or MD advises the board of directors, motivates employees, and drives change within the organization. As a manager, the CEO/MD presides over the organization's day-to-day operations.<ref name="Investopedia">{{cite web |url=http://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/ceo.asp |title=Chief Executive Officer - CEO |work=Investopedia |publisher=Investopedia US, a Division of IAC |access-date=2014-10-23 }}</ref><ref name="BusinessDictionary">{{cite web |url=http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/Chief-Executive-Officer-CEO.html |title=Chief Executive Officer (CEO) |work=BusinessDictionary.com |publisher=WebFinance Inc. |access-date=October 23, 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=The Capstone Encyclopaedia of Business|last=Capstone Publishing|publisher=Capstone Publishing|year=2003|isbn=1-84112-053-7|location=Oxford, U.K|pages=79–80}}<!--| accessdate = 2011-05-17 --></ref> The term refers to the person who makes all the key decisions regarding the company, which includes all sectors and fields of the business, including operations, marketing, business development, finance, human resources, etc. The CEO of a company is not necessarily the owner of the company.
==International use==
In some countries, there is a [[dual board]] system with two separate boards, one [[Board of directors|executive board]] for the day-to-day business and one [[supervisory board]] for control purposes (selected by the shareholders). In these countries, the CEO presides over the executive board and the [[chairman]] presides over the supervisory board, and these two roles will always be held by different people. This ensures a distinction between [[management]] by the executive board and [[governance]] by the supervisory board. This allows for clear lines of authority. The aim is to prevent a conflict of interest and too much power being concentrated in the hands of one person.
In the United States, the [[board of directors]] (elected by the [[shareholder]]s) is often equivalent to the supervisory board, while the executive board may often be known as the [[executive committee]] (the division/subsidiary heads and [[Corporate title|C-level]] officers that report directly to the CEO).
In the United States, and in business, the executive officers are usually the top officers of a corporation, the chief executive officer (CEO) being the best-known type. The definition varies; for instance, the California Corporate Disclosure Act defines "executive officers" as the five most highly compensated officers not also sitting on the board of directors. In the case of a sole proprietorship, an executive officer is the sole proprietor. In the case of a partnership, an executive officer is a managing partner, senior partner, or administrative partner. In the case of a limited liability company, executive officer is any member, manager, or officer.
==Related positions==
{{Main article|Corporate title}}
Typically, a CEO has several subordinate executives, each of whom has specific functional responsibilities referred to as senior executives,<ref>{{cite web|author=Markus Menz |url=http://jom.sagepub.com/content/38/1/45.abstract |title=Menz, M. 2012. Functional Top Management Team Members: A Review, Synthesis, and Research Agenda. Journal of Management, 38(1): 45-80 |publisher=Jom.sagepub.com |date=2011-10-04 |accessdate=2012-11-28}}</ref> executive officers or corporate officers. Subordinate executives are given different titles in different organizations, but one common category of subordinate executive, if the CEO is also the president, is the [[vice-president]] (VP). An organization may have more than one vice-president, each tasked with a different area of responsibility (e.g., VP of [[finance]], VP of [[human resources]], VP of [[research and development]]). Some organizations have subordinate executive officers who also have the word ''chief'' in their job title, such as [[chief operating officer]] (COO), [[chief financial officer]] (CFO) and [[chief technology officer]] (CTO).
===US===
In the US, the term ''chief executive officer'' is used primarily in business, whereas the term ''executive director'' is used primarily in the not-for-profit sector. These terms are generally mutually exclusive and refer to distinct legal duties and responsibilities. Implicit in the use of these titles, is that the public not be misled and the general standard regarding their use be consistently applied.
===UK===
In the UK, ''chief executive'' and ''chief executive officer'', are used in both business and the [[philanthropy|charitable sector]].<ref>
{{cite web|url=http://www.acevo.org.uk/ |title=Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations |publisher=Acevo.org.uk |date=2012-11-16 |accessdate=2012-11-28}}
</ref> {{As of | 2013}}, the use of the term ''[[Director (business)|director]]'' for senior charity staff is deprecated to avoid confusion with the legal duties and responsibilities associated with being a charity director or trustee, which are normally non-executive (unpaid) roles. In the United Kingdom, the term ''director'' is used instead of ''chief officer".
==Famous CEOs==
Business publicists since the days of [[Edward Bernays]] and his client [[John D. Rockefeller]] and even more successfully the corporate publicists for [[Henry Ford]], promoted the concept of the "[[celebrity]] CEO". Business journalists have often adopted this approach, which assumes that the corporate achievements, especially in the arena of manufacturing, were produced by unique talented individuals, especially the "heroic CEO". In effect, journalists celebrate a CEO who takes distinctive strategic actions. The model is the celebrity in entertainment, sports, and politics. Guthey et al. argue that "...these individuals are not self-made, but rather are created by a process of widespread media exposure to the point that their actions, personalities, and even private lives function symbolically to represent significant dynamics and tensions prevalent in the contemporary business atmosphere."<ref>Eric Guthey and Timothy Clark, ''Demystifying Business Celebrity'' (2009).</ref> Journalism thereby exaggerates the importance of the CEO and tends to neglect the harder-to-describe broader corporate factors. There is little attention to the intricately organized technical bureaucracy that actually does the work. Hubris sets in when the CEO internalizes the celebrity and becomes excessively self-confident in making complex decisions. Indeed, there may be an emphasis on the sort of decisions that attract the celebrity journalists.<ref>Mathew L.A. Hayward, Violina P. Rindova, and Timothy G. Pollock. "Believing one's own press: The causes and consequences of CEO celebrity." ''Strategic Management Journal'' 25#7 (2004): 637-653.</ref>
==See also==
* [[CEO succession]]
* [[CEO of public schools]]
* [[Executive officer]]
* [[Glass cliff]]
* [[List of books written by CEOs]]
* [[List of chief executive officers]]
* [[Occupational Information Network]]
* [[United States Department of Labor]]
==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
==Further reading==
* Huang, Jiekun, and Darren J. Kisgen. "Gender and corporate finance: Are male executives overconfident relative to female executives?." ''Journal of Financial Economics'' 108#3 (2013): 822-839. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160721204528/http://www.usc.edu/schools/business/FBE/seminars/papers/F_10-3-08_KISGEN-Gender.pdf online]
* Kaplan, Steven N., Mark M. Klebanov, and Morten Sorensen. "Which CEO characteristics and abilities matter?." ''Journal of Finance'' 67#3 (2012): 973-1007. [http://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/6606747.pdf online]
* Shleifer, Andrei, and Robert W. Vishny. "A survey of corporate governance." ''Journal of Finance'' 52#2 (1997): 737-783.
* Vancil, Richard F. ''Passing the baton: Managing the process of CEO succession'' (Harvard Business School Press, 1987).
==External links==
{{commons category|Chief executive officers}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* [http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos012.htm U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics - Top Executives: Description and Outlook]
{{Corporate titles}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chief Executive Officer}}
[[Category:Management occupations]]
[[Category:Chief executive officers| ]]
[[Category:Corporate titles|E]]
[[Category:Positions of authority]]
[[Category:Leadership]]
