For a long time the role was known as ‘Deputy Chief Executive’. Now, the title of COO or Chief Operating Officer is cropping up in every company’s organization chart, from SME to international group. What does the position cover? What does it bring to the company? What are the conditions for successful integration? Executive recruitment firm Exec Avenue has the answers.
It is usually on the initiative of the Managing Director or CEO (Chief Executive Officer), or the Board of Management itself, that a company decides to recruit a COO. The motivation behind it? To alleviate the increased work load resulting from company growth, to support the management team in the next step of the company’s development, to manage the teams on a day-to-day basis or to make working practices more efficient – as well as to broaden the range of skills on the Executive Committee.
Second-in-command
Directly linked to the profile of the CEO, the role of COO differs widely from company to company. One may be an expert in the field of technology or finance, while another member of the senior management team may specialize in marketing or have international experience. But in all cases, the COO is a hands-on individual involved in the day-to-day workings of the company, whose leadership and management skills are essential for the teams. The first point of contact for the CEO, the new COO intercepts the historical line of reporting. His successful integration into the company depends therefore on his ability to establish a healthy culture of communication, both with those above him and with the troops below, who may be frustrated that they are no longer able to communicate directly with their former boss.
Executive manager
The COO is responsible for making operational decisions and putting them into effect, while responsibility for the long-term strategic vision remains with the CEO. The latter is still the key decision maker on major issues: he is in touch with the market, deals with mergers and acquisitions, and manages external relations. The COO, on the other hand, focuses on internal matters, working with the employees on the ground. He builds bridges between R&D and Sales, establishes a presence in foreign markets, manages contact between partners and strengthens customer relationships. He puts into effect the decisions taken jointly with the CEO. The expected results? Continual growth in turnover due to the efficient use of human, financial and technical resources.
A corporate solution
From innovative SME to major international group, the need for a management team with two heads is clear in a number of scenarios: breaking into new territories, supporting rapid development – or compensating for a lack of presence. Whether the problems are of a human, strategic, financial, marketing or technical nature, it’s down to the COO to get things back on track by reviewing the organization and decision-making processes, and bringing the teams together.
Conditions for the success of a COO
How do you find the missing piece of your organizational puzzle? Based on the definition of the strategy to be implemented and on the client’s expectations, Exec Avenue gets involved at a very early stage to map out the various skills covered by the company’s executive committee, along with the gaps. An evaluation of the CEO and management board gives an understanding of the corporate culture, the company’s operational methods, the executive committee’s motivation and its commitment to the strategy adopted. This enables us to make the COO profile much more relevant and reliable.
But be warned, hiring a COO is not a miracle cure. It involves alerting the board of management to potential problems with the operational workings of the executive committee. The CEO needs to have a clear understanding of the situation. In the end, the Chief Operational Officer has to win over the trust of both the teams and the CEO in order to be able to implement the company’s development plans.
“People’s egos are often the reason behind the failure of organizations that have been set up!”
Thierry Mercier
“The role of ExecAvenue is to ensure that the COO is successfully transplanted. The management team is monitored in the months following the arrival of the second-in-command.”
Anita Pouplard
“The role of the COO is something of a ‘catch-all’, unless the role is being built from scratch.”
Yannis Mercier
