Responsibilities of the CEO of Brisbane Powerhouse
Position Study Analysis with regard to the scope and significance of the position

The essay intends to provide a detailed analysis of the scope and significance of the responsibility of the Brisbane Powerhouse’s Chief Executive Officer through a brief outlook on the relevant legal background of the position as part of a corporate governance structure.

Furthermore, the author identifies the key characteristics that a successful CEO should possess and demonstrate and provides evidences relevant to the Brisbane Powerhouse. Finally, the main requirements of the position are identified.

When defining the position Managing Director or Chief Executive Officer (CEO), s198C of Corporations Act, 2001 can be referred to, however it does not provide an exact definition. According to s198C, the CEO plays a crucial role on the board of directors of an organization, since being the most senior employee in the organisation, the CEO in not only accountable for all its operational activities, but has the same stewardship, monitoring and strategic responsibilities as other board directors. “The CEO should be able to have a ‘finger on the pulse’ understanding of the organisation and should be able to provide a communication link between the strategic thinking of the board and the operational achievement of those strategies.” (Psaros, 2009)

In order to ensure complete accountability for all operational activities of the company, the position of the CEO is part of the organization’s corporate governance system which, according to the Australian Securities Exchange Corporate Governance Council (2007), is “the framework of rules, relationships, systems and processes within by which authority is exercised and controlled in the corporation. It is a system of the mechanisms by which companies and those in control are held to account.

“Corporate governance influences how the objectives of the company are set and achieved, how risk is monitored and assessed and how performance is optimised. Good corporate governance structures encourage companies to create value (through entrepreneurialism, innovation, development and exploration) and provide accountability and control systems commensurate with the risks involved.” (Psaros, 2009)

Besides their responsibilities determined by jurisdiction, CEO’s major operational responsibility is developing and communicating the organizational strategy in an efficient and effective way. The CEO, therefore, works in cooperation with middle and upper line managers, typically representing finance, marketing, operations and sales towards the elaboration or the organization’s corporate mission and strategy. Basically, the CEO along with the operating managers decides how to make profit, so that grow and improve the value of the business.
The final determination of the mission and the key strategies is the main responsibility of the CEO.

To ensure the efficient implementation of the organizational strategy, the CEO develops an understanding among the employees at all organizational level, so that the business strategy provides guidelines that need to be implemented in everyday decisions. The better the internal communication the more efficient is the strategy implementation, as employees develop ownership and commitment to the strategy and its implementation as they acknowledge their roles within the organization and how these roles are interrelated and contribute to accomplish the overall organizational strategy and, therefore, mission.

As a CEO plays a vital role in the performance of the organisation, the skills and the characteristics of a successful CEO are also vital.

In their research study based on CEO and employee interviews and surveys, Wood and Vilkinas indentify the characteristics that successful CEOs possess and demonstrate.

These characteristics in order of importance are

1. humanistic approach
2. achievement orientation
3. a positive outlook
4. a