NEW YORK CITY - The Javits Center hosted the YPO Edge event bringing the largest collection of CEOs ... [+]
YPO’s Edge conference brought together nearly 3,000 CEOs for a deep dive into the growing list of learning needs for a generation of executives faced with new challenges. The Javits Center served as the classroom for conversations and case studies centered on ESG playbook models, leadership development journeys, inclusive culture building, and expanding profits through purpose-driven initiatives.
The learning and development space continues to invite CEOs and leadership up and down the corporate ladder into iterative and responsive learning environments making a once forbidden fruit of personal and professional development open for business.
Executive coaching, 360-evaluations, human capital management departments and corporate board assessments are combining to support a new and more comprehensive job description for those at the table of our global economy.
YPO began in 1950 and to date has 30,000 global members representing 142 countries. The combined workforce of member-run companies exceeds 22 million employees with over $9 trillion in revenues.
Xavier Mufraggi, CEO of YPO and former CEO of Club Med North America and Europe, believes one of YPO’s enduring qualities is the approach to leadership development and learning throughout the history of the nonprofit.
“We recruit members who are still eager to learn, listen, and be vulnerable. Ultimately, we want CEOs that understand the learning and development power of the position and the resulting impact on their respective workforce.”
Is Happiness at Work Really Attainable?
The geopolitical landscape continues to evolve for CEOs looking to successfully navigate fragile economies and workforce attitudes steeped in independence rather than traditional loyalty.
Simon Cohen, CEO and cofounder of Henco, a Mexican logistics company, finds that emotional competence builds loyalty up and down the corporate structure. Known as the “Happy CEO,” Cohen has shared his approach with Harvard Business Review and recently authored FulFilled: The secrets of an entrepreneur who, in search of success, found happiness.
“When I started my business, I was completely devoted to making money. A health scare changed everything in my life and I realized I had to change my approach personally and professionally. I decided to actively bring happiness into my home and throughout my business. I am very proud that Henco has been named the top company to work for in Mexico for 12 years in a row.”
Geopolitical Winds Impact Workforce Demands
Former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Larry Summers under President Clinton and the NEC Director under President Obama, and current President Emeritus of Harvard University is rooted in the realities of the global economy.
“If you ask me not about what scares me most right now but where I think the greatest longer-term challenge is, I think that lies with respect to the United States and China finding a mode of coexistence,” stated Secretary Summers. Many CEOs could be heard whispering at YPO Edge about how to find opportunity amid a litany of burgeoning crises across the globe.
Secretary Summers finds a balanced approach has the potential to even out the opportunities for international businesses. “Events are 75% bad and trends are 75% good. It's that nature of things that we tend to glom onto events and forget about trends.”
Admiral James Stavridis, former Supreme Allied NATO Commander and four-star U.S. naval officer, concurs with Cohen that humor and engagement impact leadership interactions and relationships.
“I look back on the many, many bosses I’ve had, and two of them really standout–coincidentally, both were secretaries of defense and both were directors of the CIA. One was Bob Gates, a Republican; the other was Leon Panetta, a Democrat. I spent a lot of time around both of them. What I learned from both was that there were no shortcuts - [leadership] requires stepping every day into that battle. I never saw either complain, I never saw them visibly look tired, I saw both of them use humor in the most dire of circumstances, and both were endlessly resilient.”
The YPO Edge event at the Javits Center in New York brought 3,000 CEOs from across the world under ... [+]
Assessment Not Relegated To Traditional Populations
Monica Lagercrantz, CEO of BoardClic, a leading Board and CEO evaluation firm based in Stockholm, Sweden, sees an insatiable need for global leaders to have comprehensive data and feedback. Not just about their respective workforces but for the individuals charged with setting the strategic course. “Evaluations of corporate talent are not new. The reflective focus of day-to-day leaders and their respective Boards is exploding in demand. Leaders from the boardroom recognize that purpose driven leadership starts at the top,” states Lagercrantz.
The international community sees the relationship between corporate boards and the c-suite as essential to the success of the individual leader and the companies they lead.
“There are a rapidly increasing number of countries with corporate codes and legal requirements overseeing that organizations have high corporate governance standards, strong engagement with stakeholders, and structure for sound governance,” said Lagercrantz.
Tailwinds Supporting A Healthy Global Economy
Heather McGowan, author of The Adaptation Advantage, unearthed workforce trends impacting CEOs from ... [+]
It can be easy and somewhat lazy to lean into the challenges faced by the planet and the economies that prop up communities across the globe. Each pass of the news ticker presents a runway for news that has the potential for a global shakeup of epic proportions.
The CEO community appears to be leveraging the variability and, more importantly, the volatility of international markets to assess previous assumptions about their respective sectors, businesses, talent pool, and corporate governance structures.
Heather McGowan, author of The Adaptation Advantage, sees the impact of Covid-19 resulting in the “Great Reset” for employees across the globe. McGowan notes that the 8-hour work day only began when Henry Ford found that accidents on the assembly line occurred after the 8-hour mark by a given employee. Tradition and history inform McGowan, while data and decades of trench warfare guide her work with corporations. Work, states McGowan, is a form of self-expression that leaders need to be hyper-focused on to support sustainable workforces.
“This is an empowered workforce and you have to lead it differently. It's not about where work takes place; it's about where work fits into their lives.”
“You cannot run an organization today and have all the knowledge. You can’t be an expert in cybersecurity, data analytics, machine learning, and then whatever your company actually does. We have to harness collective intelligence. And that's a different way of leading.”
Philosophy of Leadership Evolving
Dov Seidman is a successful entrepreneur, CEO, best-selling author, writer, and teacher. As the founder and CEO of LRN and the Executive Chairman of The HOW Institute for Society, he aims to interject questions into the practice of leadership.
He has devoted his life and professional career to making philosophy and philosophical frameworks practical in the business arena and across all sectors of society on a global scale.
Seidman is the author of the New York Times best-seller “HOW: Why HOW We Do Anything Means Everything,” which offers a philosophical framework for individual and organizational behavior in a world that is increasingly interconnected and interdependent.
“There is no moral leadership if it is not preceded by and enabled by a pause. And I’m here to say that there is so much expected of leaders today, especially post-pandemic, that hearing the call of leadership cannot be more consequential during these consequential times,” stated Seidman.
Seidman, unafraid to share his beginnings as a student with dyslexia, believes that trust, at all ages, is the conduit to successful professional relationships for a diverse and global workforce.
“Trust is a virtue when you give it away because when I give you trust, I give you the power to do right by me or let me down. Nothing inspires people more than a leader who doesn’t expect trust but gives it away.
I’m fond of saying that trust is a legal performance enhancing drug. When somebody is trusted, oxytocin is literally released in their brain and makes them reciprocate. It's really important for moral leaders to know what they can insist on and what they must inspire,” an impassioned Seidman extorts.
Flexibility of leadership and professional and personal development headlined the conversations at the Javits Center. And, while many CEOs wrestle with isolated experiences and decision-making trees, nearly 3,000 global leaders left the boardroom to break bread and stories with one another to establish new paths to success.
Former Secretary Summers dips into a tried and true adage for corporate leaders. “Hope for the best, plan for the worst, recognize there is a wider range of possibilities than you can possibly imagine,” he says.
The stakes continue to rise for CEOs across the globe trying to stabilize profits. Cohen proves that learning starts with engagement and a smile. The Javits Center was ripe with a community feel among the leaders of over $9 trillion in collective revenue who shared concerns, stories, and optimism for new engagement methods in a turbulent and surprising world.
This group is putting imagination into the art of actual practice.
Interviews have been edited and condensed for clarity.
