Failure in The COO Role
While the role of the COO is crucial to firm success, it can often be a tricky one to master. Any breakdown in trust between the CEO and COO can lead to failure. Additionally, the COO typically has to be a very high level leader who is comfortable not being fully in charge. Many executives with the leadership skills necessary to be a top level COO would prefer to be running their own show as opposed to taking orders from a CEO. For COOs who are expecting to serve their time and be promoted to the top spot, their timelines for such a move can often be out of sync with the CEO’s, causing a breakdown in the relationship. COOs can also find themselves trapped into being labeled an "operations" person or a "Number 2" as opposed to being seen as strategic and top-level leader by the Board of Directors, which causes some executives to steer clear of the position. Harry Levinson, Ph.D., effectively summarized the challenges of the COO position: "The relationship between the chief executive officer and the chief operating officer in any organization is fraught with many psychological complexities. Perhaps it is the most difficult of all organizational working relationships because more than others, it is a balancing act on the threshold of power."
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