The CEO Role—Beyond Fundraising Engagement
With the writing of my book, I've become ingrained in the process of the CEO's engaging with philanthropic activity. And while important, a recent article that talked about a study reminded me that there is a lot more about being a CEO than just fundraising.
The Nonprofit Times recently discussed a report from Gallup that talked about the CEO's importance when it comes to the office environment. As the world continues to vacillate between remote work and the importance of “in person” collaboration, more and more is being realized about the importance of the CEO, and general leadership, being highly engaged with employees.
CEO's, and other executive leaders, have not been immune to the changing role of office work. According to a study by Gallup throughout the United States, managers, directors, and other leaders are in the office physically only 2.8 days per week. That compares to employees being in the office currently about 2.5 days per week. Many offices have embraced this hybrid model about being in either three days per week with other remote or establishing certain days when most people will try to come into the office.
But this begs the question, which the article clearly indicates in quotes the Gallup report, how can workers/employees feel as if they have to come into an office setting if the CEO and other executive leaders don't?
Leadership by example.
I'm certainly old school. I believe in getting up, taking a shower, heading to the office, and working. But I'm not unaware or ambivalent to the changing nature of the workforce. Younger generations are consistently saying how important work life balance is… and like it or not we're going to have to work with younger and younger people if you happen to be older like me. Thus, how do you make a round peg fit into a square hole?
While I don't have all of the answers, I can guarantee you one thing. It's the same thing I tell my children. If I tell you one thing, and I do another, that's not a very good example of what you should be doing. It seems so elemental, but if you want more in person work environments, the management, leaders, and CEO have to lead by example.
