Rosalind Resnick knew if she was ever going to be a chief executive officer,
she'd have to start her own company. So that's exactly what she did.
Her company specializes in direct marketing on the Internet, and Resnick
has been actively involved in each and every aspect of her business from day
one. She wears many hats, doing everything from making executive decisions
to staying up until 1 a.m. filing papers. "When you're CEO of a small company,
your job isn't just to sit in a big office and give orders," she says.
And let's face it, most CEOs run small businesses like Resnick's.
"I spend a lot of time on details that a big company CEO would see as being
way too small. A big part of my job is being a coach and mentor to my employees
in order to put together a winning team.
"When you're a big company, you can afford to hire people who have years
and years of experience and pay them top salaries. But when you're a small
company, you have to make every dollar count. That means hiring the best people
you can and working with them, training them and turning them into the kind
of employees who can produce value for your company."
Resnick says one of the problems with corporate leadership these days is
that CEOs are like baseball or football players. "They're high-priced talent
that goes from corporation to corporation. They don't know the company, and
they don't know the culture. They're expected to step in and work miracles."
There's a lot to be said about someone who starts a company and, through
hard work, turns it into something big.
"I admire Bill Gates tremendously. He started out as a programmer and built
Microsoft from the ground up, which has made him a much more effective CEO,"
Resnick says. "I think one of the biggest mistakes a CEO can make is getting
too detached and too far away from the day-to-day operations of the company."
What advice would Resnick give to someone with a career goal of being a
chief executive officer? "If you're thinking about being a CEO, you need to
ask yourself if you're willing to do what it takes to start a business from
scratch. To learn every aspect of it, stay up until 1 a.m. in the morning,
work weekends, and do jobs that somebody else might consider menial in order
to build your company.
"If you don't want to get into the trenches and get your hands dirty, then
maybe you should take the corporate route. But for me, this has been immensely
more satisfying."
Beatrice Olivastri says that being a chief executive officer is very stimulating
and opens many doors.
"It's a position that allows you access to the equivalent senior position
in other organizations. But it brings with it a lot of responsibilities. It's
difficult to have a 9-to-5 job if you're the CEO of an organization," says
Olivastri.
Being the CEO of a nonprofit voice for the environment has allowed Olivastri
to combine being an environmentalist with operating a business.
"I consider myself a businesswoman, but I'm an environmentalist first.
I'm making a contribution to the future of the world, the planet and people,
but at the same time, this is my career and my work. I think it's easier for
a woman, in a sense, to combine those things."
Though she feels there may be a glass ceiling for women in the corporate
community, the same doesn't apply in the nonprofit sector. "One might wonder
if the pay schedule may be different than in the corporate sector, but I suspect
the not-for-profit world lends itself to women."
Cary Howell, CEO of a communications company in Atlanta, believes in being
involved in the day-to-day operation of his company. "If we sit in our offices
with our doors closed, we have no earthly idea what the company is going through
as a whole."
Howell gets involved with everything from board meetings to handling customer
problems. And his hard work has paid off. His company, an Internet service
provider for businesses, has continued to grow and expand its services all
over the southeastern states.
And Howell doesn't allow the lofty title to go to his head. "I always thought
that CEOs had to be on a power trip in order to accomplish their tasks. But
since being one, I've found being on a power trip is going to cause you 10
times more problems than you currently have."
People look to a CEO to see the stability and future of a company. "Our
job is to see the future, to be the single point of vision of where that company's
going to be six months, a year, three years and five years down the road and
beyond," says Howell.