Kevin Roberts is the global CEO of advertising giant Saatchi & Saatchi.
“You must believe that the further up a company you go, the more stupid you become,” says Roberts. “As the CEO, your job as the leader is to create leaders. For God’s sake, stop taking decisions away from others.”
People who should be making decisions for your company are not in cushy offices but rather on the front line — the people who are interacting most intimately with your consumers and who understand, firsthand, what goes into the day-to-day labours that make your company tick.
The word employee seems demeaning to Roberts. He thinks of the people who work at Saatchi & Saatchi as teammates, or his “people.”
“To sustain a company, you have got to have leaders at every level of that company, not just Steve Jobs or Richard Branson,” says Roberts. “A leader for us is someone who inspires everyone they touch to be the best they can be.”
Are you a boss managing your employees, or are you a leader coaching your team?
[Original:entrepreneur]