A question we always ask CEOs is:
What does success look like for you one year from now, five years from now, and twenty years from now?
99% of the responses we get back describe reaching major company milestones: IPOs, revenue targets, global expansion, new product launches, and growth narratives that contrast today with tomorrow.
While it’s, of course, important to know and understand your company goals (you should always be able to articulate them to your team, board, investors and customers) it misses the mark in unpacking what your personal goals are.
Most of the time there’s very large overlap between company goals and personal goals, but the real focus of the question is on outcomes for you as an individual, not your company. What do you want and why do you want it in one year, five years, or twenty years?
There’s no right or wrong answer to what your personal goals should be and they will certainly change over time, but it’s important to realize that your personal goals are separate and distinct from your company goals. Take stock of of your personal goals and periodically ask yourself if they are still the right ones as you journey.
Example: CEO Compensation
CEO compensation is a great example where your personal goals and company goals intersect. Is your current cash compensation inline with market norms for a company of your size and scale? Once you’ve raised institutional capital and investors join your company board of directors, you’re no longer setting your own compensation — you’re permitted to provide input, but your company board has to vote on changes to your compensation excluding you. Moreover, it can often feel awkward discussing your personal compensation with your board members, particularly if you’re just getting to know them, which makes it all that much more likely your personal compensation gets ignored or forgotten about.
Understanding that you have to advocate for yourself and understanding best practices in doing so is critical because if you don’t build a case for yourself, nobody else will. And from the company’s perspective, while paying you less may help manage the company’s expense line, no board of directors intentionally wants their CEO to feel undervalued.
Sign up here to apply for a coaching engagement with Hilltop.