Executive leadership is the directing of activities toward the accomplishment of corporate objectives.
Executive leadership is important because it sets the tone for the entire corporation.
A strategic vision is a description of what the company is capable of becoming. It is often communicated in the company’s mission and vision statements (as described in Chapter 1).
People in an organization want to have a sense of mission, but only top management is in the position to specify and communicate this strategic vision to the general workforce. Top management’s enthusiasm (or lack of it) about the corporation tends to be contagious. The importance of executive leadership is illustrated by Steve Reinemund, past-CEO of PepsiCo: “A leader’s job is to define overall direction and motivate others to get there.”