In a perfect world, CEOs would focus laserlike on how to increase revenues, add customers and utilize a workforce.
Too often, however, CEOs are caught up in the workaday functions of a business ”” order fulfillment, attending to customers ”” according to Mark L. Fagan, a managing partner at accounting and consulting firm Citrin Cooperman.
“CEOs should focus on strategic activities versus tactical ones,” Fagan said. “The success of a company is heavily weighed on a CEO”™s understanding of the business, anticipation of changes and strategic thinking.”
Citrin Cooperman, in partnership with the University of Connecticut School of Business, has invited four business leaders to discuss the challenges they”™ve faced while leading their businesses through tremendous periods of growth.
The event, titled “CEO Evolution” after Fagan”™s column in the Business Journal, is Jan. 29, 6-8 p.m., at the UConn School of Business in Stamford and will be moderated by Fagan.
In Fagan”™s view, “The CEO of a company can do many, many things with his or her time.”
“The best use of that time, though, is to focus on strategic activities and not operational ones,” he said. “There are others in the company who can take care of day-to-day operations. Let them do their jobs, so that you can devote your efforts to keeping your business on track.”
John Elliott, dean of the UConn School of Business, said he expects the event to be an exciting opportunity to shape both contemporary business leaders”™ and students”™ thoughts on management best practices.
“We teach management but we also engage with managers to create a flow of information between us,” Elliott said. “We want our research and knowledge to be integrated with the ongoing experience of business leaders. We all learn in the process.”
Scheduled to speak about their experiences as CEOs are:
Linda McMahon, the former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment in Stamford, who stepped down from her position in September 2009 to run for U.S. Senate in 2010 and 2012.
At the head of WWE, McMahon helped grow the company from a small, 13-person operation to a publicly traded, global empire with more than 700 employees.
In addition to the Stamford headquarters, the company operates offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, London, Mumbai, Shanghai, Singapore, Istanbul and Tokyo. McMahon is consistently named one of the country”™s top female executives.
Austin McChord, founder and CEO of Datto Inc., one of the fastest growing companies in Norwalk. The company is a data backup service company for disaster recovery and business continuity solutions.
When McChord created Datto in 2007, he said his goal was to create the best backup and business continuity solution available. He succeeded, he says, as evidenced by Datto”™s rapid growth. Datto was listed on the Inc. 500 twice, in 2012 and 2013. In 2013, the company marked its fourth year of 300 percent annual growth and the company has received numerous industry awards for growth, product excellence and technical support.
But outside of awards, McChord says he is proud to have created a unique culture at Datto that always look ahead and exceeds expectations.
Paul Senecal did not realize he”™d stumbled onto his future career path at age 10 when he started to hang out with the maintenance crew at his father”™s department store.
Fast-forward 40 years and he”™s at the forefront of a $35 million cleaning and maintenance company, Affineco L.L.C., with his partner Michael Diamond.
Partnering in 2002 with Diamond ”” who also began working for his father”™s cleaning company at an early age ”” the two have built one of the largest privately held commercial cleaning companies in the northeast with 1,500 employees.
The company, based in Bridgeport, is made up of three operating units: United Services of America, Premier Maintenance Inc. and Melillo Maintenance Inc.
In 2011 and 2012, the company was a part of Inc. magazine”™s fastest-growing companies list.
Dr. John Votto, CEO of the Hospital for Special Care in New Britain, has overseen a $65 million expansion at HSC and developed a number of programs contributing to the hospital”™s reputation for excellence in physical rehabilitation, respiratory care and medically-complex pediatrics.
He has developed a comprehensive inpatient and outpatient pulmonary rehab program and the second largest ventilator program in the country. He initiated a regional weaning unit, which has produced one of the highest success rates in the nation, and in recent years he has developed programs in autism, neurobehavioral, neuromuscular and cardiac rehabilitation.
Votto, a medical school professor at both Yale University and the University of Connecticut, has received two lifetime achievement awards from the Hartford Business Journal and Connecticut Thoracic Society.
As a Board Member of the Hospital for Special Care, I am delighted that John Votto is participating in this roundtable. John and his team show such fortitude and optimism as they work to ensure people with complex medical needs get the care they deserve.
I’ve had the pleasure meeting Linda McMahon several times, and as an advocate for women in business, I am one of her fans.