But interest alone is not enough. There must also be a
strong element of enthusiasm in his attitude. I hardly mean
any hip, hip, hooray! variety of enthusiasm. I’ve never gone
along with the school of thou
ght that calls for sales meet-
ings to open with rousing company songs. What I do mean
is that an executive should thoroughly like his work. He
should—starting with the operations of his own department
—actively seek ways whereby h
is firm’s efficiency, produc-
tion, sales and profits may be increased.
Loyalty—another important quality in executives—can
only be recognized and judged after it has been demon-
strated. The executive’s loyalty should not be to any indi-
vidual—but to the stockholders, employees, his associates,
superiors and the company as a whole.
These, then, are the characteristics which I believe are
the most important for business executives to possess.
Doubtless, some readers will be surprised by the fact that
I’ve left out such things as personality, education and
technical knowledge. But, on closer analysis, it should
become clear that these are not really as basic or important
as those qualities I have mentioned.
I’ll agree that an individual with a completely negative
personality can hardly expect to achieve success in any
position which calls for him to work with people. On the
other hand, an executive’s job is to run his department, not
to run in a popularity contest.
As for education, it depends largely on how one is using
the term. I’ve found there are many top-quality business
executives whose formal education stopped at high school
or even grade school. What they know, they taught
themselves. There is much knowledge a good executive
should possess, but he does not necessarily have to obtain it
at a college or university. Although a good, solid formal
education is usually a great help to a man who wants to be
a good executive, I don’t believe that it is always essential.
Technical knowledge? I’ll admit that in this day of com-
plex industrial and business technology, every executive
needs a greater degree of technical knowledge. But the kind
and amount depends largely on what he is doing and where
he is doing it. I can sum up my views on the subject by say-
ing that I’d rather try to make a good technician out of a
good executive who has no technical knowledge than try to
make a good executive out of a good technician who has no
executive ability.
Among other traits I imagine most laymen would list as
being desirable in executives are such things as honesty,
industry and imagination. I have purposely omitted these
and several others because I consider them to be self-
evident and think it is superfluous to mention them.
Certainly, no businessman in his right mind would ever
hire an executive if he had the least suspicion that the man
was dishonest, lazy or unimaginative.
There’s really no magic or secret to being a good
executive. I think any man who has the qualities I’ve listed,
sincerely wants a business career and will work and apply
him-self can become a good executive. Such a man would
most certainly fit most successful businessmen’s
requirements for management personnel. He would most
certainly fit into almost any firm in almost any industry. In
my opinion, his career would be assured. He would, in
short, have it made in the business world.