The study polled 7,000 senior executives in 13 countries. What they found is not only interesting, but also perhaps a little surprising. These execs tend to stir things up and are ruthless in cutting costs. But Andrew Kakabadse, the project manager of the study, says that younger execs may be ill-equipped to lead companies squeezed by worsening overproduction and rising expectations of quality, balancing acts required in many companies today.
Radicals are great in markets that are growing.
But in conditions of oversupply, it takes maturity and wisdom to keep a company s top leadership team together. Older leaders, by contrast, are able to discuss sore points with stockholders and get resolutions without resentment, he says. They have enough industry and product experience to establish and grow a brand in a time when there is an ever-higher premium on branding. The best leaders are those who can shift styles to match the situation. The disparity in styles between younger and older members of a group can serve the group, depending on what s happening at the moment.