Sorry CEO’s. We know it has a been a tough few years with all the scandals and talk about excessive pay. Now just when you’re starting to feel good again we’re throwing this at you. I know it doesn’t seem fair but stick with us for a minute and you’ll see how we can all gain. And don’t worry….nobody’s even suggesting you can’t keep the town car or fly the corporate jet.

Now…ten solids reason why You…in the trenches… are More Valuable than Your Companies CEO.
1 – You know how stuff really gets done. Let’s face it. Org charts mean very little when in order to get your PC up and running again buying a muffin for Oscar in IT is much faster that filling out a online work order.
2 – You know what motivates individuals. You’re with them everyday. Sometimes its cash, time off for a kid’s event or just some recognition. Whatever the case, you’re in a position to help and motivate more than anyone else.
3 – You know the customer well enough to get the truth. You are them, they are you and there’s a special bond. More than anyone, the customer will tell you exactly what they need and how to sell to them.
4 – You know the Vendors and what’s going on inside Competitors. All that shooting the bull with Marvin, who supplies the whole industry, really pays off when he tells you that your biggest competitor is never going to get that new launch off the line. With some tweaks your firm can make a killing!
5 – You don’t have to defend the original strategy. This is big. Since you didn’t devise the strategy you won’t lose you job over it. Instead you can tell it like it is. Do tell brother and sisters…do tell!
6 – You have the skills to get people of diverse backgrounds to work together. That’s because you live with it everyday. There’s a big difference in telling people what to do and really working it out. You know how to work it out.
7- You know exactly what point you’re company is in the movie. You’ve been living it with the team and more than anyone else you know if the team is ready to take the hill or go back and lick their wounds.
8 – You know the believers. When the team needs to get fired up you know who they look to and importantly you know what lights those people up.
9- You can motivate with humor. You’ve got their trust and therefore you can joke a bit and have some fun. Fun is a great motivator and you’re the one best positioned to get them all laughing.
10- You have the power to heal. When things go wrong your best positioned to get people on the path the recovery and vision for the future.

In a business world where everything is changing overnight and entire industries are being reshaped from Manufacturing to Music, Transportation to Telecom it’s quite likely that the next great business model won’t come from you but rather from us.

So….let’s make a deal right now. You CEO’s keep doing what you are doing…but when it comes to strategy, policy and employee recognition and benefits we’d like to be talking more. Deal?