As CEO of Alibaba, China’s biggest e-commerce company, Zhang sees it as his personal duty to only sweat the tough decisions. And when it comes to making them, he says acting swiftly and decisively is more important than always being right.
“You can always course-correct if things don’t work out,” Zhang wrote this week in Fast Company. “The real fear is in the state of paralysis that results when you can’t make a decision at all.”
So is this a good piece of advice for other CEOs to follow? Sure, making quick decisions can help companies stay ahead of the pack in an ever-changing digital world. But the reputation of many a business leader has been marred by a bad call. Just ask former Blockbuster CEO John Antico, who passed on an opportunity to buy Netflix in 2000 for $50 million.
To be fair to Antico, he had his reasons for rebuffing Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings’ offer and quickly realized the importance of establishing an online presence, as outlined in this personal account.
Indeed, for the most part, the general consensus among management experts appears to back Zhang’s advice: decisiveness is what makes CEOs special.
Writing in the Harvard Business Review, Nick Tasler, the CEO of consultancy Decision Pulse, said less-confident leaders are more likely to delay decisions before settling on a “compromised Frankenstein solution” that leaves staff moderately enthused and ultimately fosters mediocrity.
He cites a 2010 study by George Potworowski at the University of Michigan, which found that decisive people are more likely to possess positive personality traits such as emotional stability and social boldness.
Of course, that doesn’t mean leaders should abandon collaboration or forget about conducting research. It just means, at the end of day, they’ll need to take their organization in a clearly-defined direction.
“I’ve found that if you have resolve, almost anything is possible—all roads really do lead to Rome, even if some turn out bumpier than others,” writes Alibaba’s Zhang. “The key is just to keep moving forward.”
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1:00 - 5:00 pm
Over 70% of Executives Surveyed Agree: Many Strategic Planning Efforts Lack Systematic Approach Tips for Enhancing Your Strategic Planning Process
Executives expressed frustration with their current strategic planning process. Issues include:
Steve Rutan and Denise Harrison have put together an afternoon workshop that will provide the tools you need to address these concerns. They have worked with hundreds of executives to develop a systematic approach that will enable your team to make better decisions during strategic planning. Steve and Denise will walk you through exercises for prioritizing your lists and steps that will reset and reinvigorate your process. This will be a hands-on workshop that will enable you to think about your business as you use the tools that are being presented. If you are ready for a Strategic Planning tune-up, select this workshop in your registration form. The additional fee of $695 will be added to your total.
2:00 - 5:00 pm
Female leaders face the same issues all leaders do, but they often face additional challenges too. In this peer session, we will facilitate a discussion of best practices and how to overcome common barriers to help women leaders be more effective within and outside their organizations.
Limited space available.
10:30 - 5:00 pm
General’s Retreat at Hermitage Golf Course
Sponsored by UBS
General’s Retreat, built in 1986 with architect Gary Roger Baird, has been voted the “Best Golf Course in Nashville” and is a “must play” when visiting the Nashville, Tennessee area. With the beautiful setting along the Cumberland River, golfers of all capabilities will thoroughly enjoy the golf, scenery and hospitality.
The golf outing fee includes transportation to and from the hotel, greens/cart fees, use of practice facilities, and boxed lunch. The bus will leave the hotel at 10:30 am for a noon shotgun start and return to the hotel after the cocktail reception following the completion of the round.
