Whereas mediocre presidents usually spend the day alone or meeting with direct reports, effective presidents spend most of their time gathering people from all levels of the organization to share information and dispersing them to find more information, then repeating that pattern over and over. Effective presidents practice management by walking around, and not just for show. Effective presidents spend much of the day talking with people at all levels of the company, engaging them by asking specific and relevant questions about their work, exchanging information, and acting on the information received. Effective presidents are adept at acknowledging an individual's good work without slighting others. In meetings, they are able to praise an individual without alienating the rest of the group.
Effective presidents explain their decisions.
They place a priority on making sure that everyone at all levels of the organization understands the reasons behind their decisions and the decisions of their direct reports. Effective presidents are approachable. Presidents rated as mediocre are often described in their performance assessments as aloof. Effective presidents hold a group meeting early in the day. Whereas mediocre presidents often hold only the obligatory full-organization meeting at the end of the day, effective presidents tend to gather everyone in the company in the morning to set the initial direction and priorities.