The Ceo: An Analysis of the Cnn Telecast ‘Pinnacle’
Sirmmary.-The present study investigated leadership characteristics of Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) from major corporations in the USA. The sample was obtained from 80 verbatim interviews on the CNN broadcast "Pinnacle." 30 interviews were randomly selected and rated on 25 personalityfifestyle dimensions. The analyses indicated some consistent trends, namely, CEOs exhibited clear values, high tolerance for frustration, egalitarian attitudes, and dedication to the "work ethic." Several surprising findings were noted, such as inadequate family life and low social visibility. Implications for research on the executives' personalities were discussed. Most studies on "leadership" usually investigate managers or at best upper-level administrative personnel (see Bass, 1985b; Kotter, 1988; Kouzes & Posner, 1987; Peterson, 1987). However, there has been a growing interest in leadership development and executive succession (Bass, 1985a; Hall, 1986; Margerison & Kakabadse, 1987). Unfortunately, there are a dearth of studies of characteristics of actual Chief Executive Officers' (CEO) characteristics, personalities, or profile. Levinson and Rosenthal (1984) reported in-depth analysis of six CEOs from major U.S. corporations from interview data. Many interesting insights were gained into the personality, lifestyle, and executive functioning of these prolific business leaders. Recent research studies at the Center for Creative Leadership, in ongoing investigations of executive development, utilize an extensive test battery in assessment, including the California Psychological Inventory, FIRO-B, Managerial Job Satisfaction Questionnaire, Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, and the StrongCampbell Interest Inventory (see Campbell & Velsor, 1985). The study of leadership has been plagued by theoretical, definitional, and methodological difficulties; the impetus for the present study reflects, in part, this last concern. The perennial problem in the study of CEOs is one of "accessibility." The current investigation circumvented this problem by conducting a content analysis of data from televised interviews. An ideal opportunity arose when CNN Broadcasting2 began the weekly half-hour telecast "Pinnacle" on cable network several years ago. Primarily, the program is a semistructured interview of leading CEOs of major firms in the USA. The interviews encompassed such areas as family background, childhood influences, educational and mhtary experience, philosophy of life, management style, organizational goals, and personal idiosyncrasies.