Search the phrase ‘what makes a great CEO’ and you’ll find no shortage of answers. Most are variations on a theme – strategic thinking, vision, resilience, communication, confidence and adaptability. The expected list of executive competencies appears time and again across leadership articles, consultancy websites, and AI-generated summaries.
These traits form the foundation of effective leadership and a capable CEO must possess them. But being competent and being great are two different things.
This article explores the distinctions between ‘good’ and ‘great’ and looks at the role of CEO coaching in helping leaders reach that ‘great’ level.
Table of Contents
The Limits of the Checklist
There’s nothing inherently wrong with the standard ideal CEO attributes tick box list. These characteristics are certainly all essential for being a good CEO and delivering results.
But those qualities are not so rare, and many leaders meet those standards.
In our experience, what makes a really great CEO is not just their skillset, but also the way in which they use it.
The exceptional CEOs (and their equivalent counterparts) we’ve worked with – in corporate boardrooms, government agencies and high-pressure environments like the prison service and armed forces – all share a quality that’s difficult to quantify but immediately recognisable: they lead with integrity.
Integrity not as a PR exercise or for personal branding, but as a matter of personal principle.
The Real Mark of Leadership
Exceptional CEOs are not defined solely by their capabilities, but also by how others experience them. Their employees, teams, partners and even critics tend to describe them in human terms – fair, principled, trustworthy. People want to work for them and loyalty is freely given, not enforced by contract or hierarchy.
This loyalty has little to do with charisma or charm. It comes from a deeper source – a sense that the leader acts honourably. That their decisions are not purely transactional and that their power is exercised with responsible purpose.
People follow some leaders because they’re told to and others because they’re inspired to. The difference lies in trust – and the belief that the person at the top genuinely wants to do the right thing, even when it’s really difficult to do so.
Honour and Responsibility
In some circles, the idea of noblesse oblige – the notion that privilege and power carry with them a responsibility for others and an obligation to serve them – is considered outdated. But the sentiment behind the principle remains relevant, especially for those in positions of huge corporate influence. Rightly or wrongly, in today’s world corporate power is often immense.
Great CEOs understand that their decisions reach beyond immediate stakeholders. They’re not solely focused on profitability. They consider people. They weigh the consequences of expansion, automation, restructuring or cost-cutting not just in terms of efficiency, but also in terms of impact – on staff, communities, and the wider world.
This isn’t about being idealistic but about exercising sound judgement. Great CEOs understand the weight of their influence. They don’t just ask, ‘Can we do this?’. They stop to ask, ‘Should we?’.
What Makes a Great CEO? The Difference between Good and Great
You can be a good CEO by hitting your targets, managing risk well and growing shareholder value. Plenty do. But what makes a great CEO is someone who creates something more substantial – a legacy, a culture, a loyalty that isn’t just contractual.
In CEO leadership coaching, this distinction comes up all the time. We look at how a leader’s values translate into behaviour, how they treat people and how they respond when the easy option conflicts with the right one. Crucially, we look at how they act when things go wrong – and how they show up when nobody’s looking.
Leadership at scale is tested daily in even the smallest of decisions. We’ve seen CEOs treat junior staff with as much attention and respect as C-suite executives. One, in particular, hosted a summer party at his home. Every member of his team, from administrators to directors, attended. They spoke of him with genuine warmth. They described the ways he had personally influenced their careers, supported them during difficult periods and valued their input regardless of title.
There was no performative leadership – just consistent, quiet integrity. No one there doubted whose side he was on.
This approach doesn’t only apply to internal culture. We’ve seen CEOs make difficult decisions against the commercial grain because they believed a different path was right. These moments often pass without fanfare, but they shape entire organisations as well as often having more general global impact.
Types of Authority
In extreme environments – such as the prison service or the armed forces – authority on paper means little if people don’t trust the judgment of the person behind it.
Officers will only go beyond the minimum requirement of following orders if they believe the person issuing them understands the risks, shares the consequences and would not ask them to do anything they wouldn’t do themselves. We have seen situations where people literally put their lives on the line because of the strength of their conviction and trust in their leader.
The same underlying principles hold true in corporate settings. In a crisis, people look not just for direction but for reassurance. They want to know that decisions are being made by someone who cares about the entire picture and who fully feels the burden of responsibility for all outcomes.
That kind of moral authority is earned. It doesn’t come part and parcel with the job title.
Commercial Success and Ethical Leadership
There is a common misconception that ethical leadership almost always comes at the cost of commercial performance. In our experience however, the reverse is often true.
Several of the most commercially successful organisations we’ve seen are led by CEOs who create cultures of trust and shared purpose.
Such companies are so successful because these leaders don’t rely on fear, pressure, contract clauses or manipulation to get results. Their teams are motivated, loyal and committed to them. The people who work for such leaders stay through thick and thin, and they always go the extra mile. They build reputations that attract others like them.
In competitive industries, this becomes a differentiator. In a world where brand, perception and purpose matter more than ever, the culture a CEO creates has direct commercial value.
When people genuinely have trust, confidence and belief in their leader, you will rarely see the all too common tactics used in the competitive scramble to the top such as undermining, sabotaging or deliberately subverting the work of those at the helm.
If you are interested in improving as a leader, you may wish to read our article ‘5 Unique Tips for How to Be a Better Leader’ Explore how to further enhance your leadership skills by reading our article ‘Leadership Development Coaching’ Explore how coaching can help prepare for a significant promotion in our article ‘Executive Interview Coaching’. |
Influence, Responsibility and the Role of CEO Leadership Coaching
Modern CEOs operate in a landscape where their decisions often reach well beyond the boundaries of their business. With the scale and speed of globalisation, technological advancement and market consolidation, many corporate leaders now hold more practical influence than elected officials.
This influence carries responsibility. Decisions made in boardrooms can affect employment markets, education systems, public infrastructure and the environment. The development of AI is a clear example. A small number of executives are driving changes that will shape entire industries, often without robust regulation or public consultation.
These leaders need more than just good commercial acumen. They need outstanding judgment, foresight and a clear understanding of their broader impact.
This is where CEO leadership coaching becomes an invaluable investment. Coaching is not only about improving performance or driving results.
At the most senior levels, coaching creates space to think strategically, consider ethical implications and make long-term decisions with clarity. It helps leaders focus not just on how they lead, but also on the consequences of their leadership – for their teams, their organisations and the wider world.
Coaching that concentrates solely on targets and outputs risks missing the bigger picture. Effective CEO coaching should support leaders in navigating complexity, developing moral clarity and making decisions with both commercial and societal implications in mind.
To gain a detailed understanding of what CEO coaching entails, read our article ‘What is CEO Coaching?’ Assess whether CEO coaching is the right strategic support for you in our article ‘Does CEO Coaching Deliver Real Value?’ To discover what the highest levels of executive coaching can provide, see our article ‘Advanced Executive Coaching’. |
Coaching for CEOs who Understand what Great Leadership Really Demands
Most CEO coaching focuses on listening, questioning and action-planning. Whilst useful, it rarely provides the depth or originality required by CEOs operating at the highest level.
At Mary Taylor & Associates, our advanced CEO coaching is designed for senior leaders who want more. We work with CEOs and C-suite executives looking for targeted solutions, inventive thinking and demonstrable results – in other words, what makes a great CEO.
Mary Taylor is a qualified psychologist, accredited coach, and corporate lawyer with more than 20 years of experience. She has worked with CEOs across many industries, from high-growth start-ups to global organisations. Her approach is tailored, pragmatic and focused on measurable outcomes – not just reflection for its own sake.
Our coaching helps CEOs find creative solutions to problems, sharpen their decision-making and lead with confidence and clarity. It also creates space for ethical consideration – something that becomes harder to prioritise the higher you rise and the greater the demands that are placed on you.
Great CEOs do more than just successfully lead businesses. They steward culture, influence society and shape futures. They make decisions with a clear sense of responsibility and a grounded understanding of their impact. They also understand that trust is earned not just by performance, but by principle.
If this is the kind of leader you aim to be – or are already on the journey to becoming – our CEO coaching services are built to support you.
We provide a full satisfaction guarantee for all of our coaching and consultancy sessions. If for any reason a session does not meet your expectations, just tell us within 48 hours and we will refund the full session fee with no caveats or conditions.
