This guide outlines the business executive traits you need to develop to rise through the corporate ranks.
If you want to become a business executive, certain traits can help make you successful. If you wish to gain the respect of your peers and subordinates or quickly ascend through the corporate ranks, having suitable characteristics is essential for leading a team with confidence and success.
Below, we will discuss which qualities a great business executive should possess to be successful. We’ll also provide actionable tips that you can use to cultivate these positive traits in yourself and others. Read on to learn more.
8 top business executive traits
1. Decision-Making
At the business executive level, it is essential to have the ability to make quick decisions and think on your feet. Therefore, improving one’s decision-making skills can help one resolve minor issues promptly and focus more time on essential projects.
For instance, to enhance your decision-making skills, you should be able to trust your employees and start assigning responsibilities.
You should schedule regular decision-making meetings to develop and uphold a shared understanding among the group regarding the effects of their decisions on the organization.
However, decision-making skills will not come overnight; you have to develop these skills by engaging in activities that will help you think critically and analytically.
Also, you may want to consider an executive MBA online program from a reputable university. It’ll help hone your decision-making skills alongside other essential business skills and competencies and give you a competitive advantage. Online programs are an incredible learning avenue for full-time workers since they offer convenience and flexibility. On top of that, an executive MBA is just what you need to excel in today’s corporate world.
2. Adaptability
No day is the same in the business world. You might have to deal with an upset client one day and fix a financial issue the next day. Therefore, you must have high adaptability traits.
It’ll help you spot opportunities and find unbeatable solutions to business issues.
This characteristic will keep you on good terms with the evolving global business environment. Embracing new technology won’t seem troublesome. You’ll sail through diverse projects in a breeze. And you’ll be able to adjust your leadership style according to your team’s dynamics quickly.
It’s important to realize that adaptability is a tough business executive trait to master. It’ll take its sweet time to become second nature. So, allow yourself the margin. Take feedback from your team members, practice flexible thinking, and embrace a growth mindset. It’ll work.
3. Leadership
Business executives must possess strong leadership skills. It means you need to inspire and motivate others to reach your goals.
Leadership necessitates empowering others by recognizing and rewarding their contributions and communicating effectively and timely with the team.
Business executives at all levels should also foster and maintain a culture of trust, open communication, transparency, and collaboration among employees to work effectively and attain the desired organizational goals.
A leadership assessment can help you evaluate your current level of leadership skills and identify specific areas where you can work to enhance your abilities.
4. Appropriate Coping Mechanisms
Working at a business executive level is not an easy job. Daily, employees have to deal with the organization’s most critical issues. Most importantly, coping with stress and other difficult situations as an executive becomes unavoidable.
Developing emotional resilience can enhance your ability to make good decisions during difficult times, improve the effectiveness of your problem-solving skills, and enable you to recover faster from stressful situations.
For instance, if you are working on a product launch that has been delayed by three months, keep yourself calm and devise a rational backup plan quickly.
5. Cultural Awareness
Cultural awareness is more important than most of us think. It improves communication and interaction among staff members, leading to a highly motivated team.
Since cultural diversity has increased in workplaces by a considerable margin, understanding the values and differences of several cultures will affect your performance. It’ll help you get the job done without triggering conflicts. You’ll also be able to provide a better working environment for your subordinates.
Besides improved relationships with your team members, a deep knowledge of different cultures will help you better connect with your clients. It’ll lead to better customer satisfaction and loyalty.
6. Effective Communication
Effective communication contributes to achieving desirable outcomes by setting clear objectives and expectations for the accomplishment of a specified goal or result.
At the business executive level, you must also refine your listening skills and be able to convey complex ideas through brief messages.
Most importantly, empower employees by providing constructive feedback on their performance and recognizing their success.
7. Emotional Intelligence
Many Fortune 500 companies offer emotional intelligence training to their employees as they recognize its significant impact on work performance.
Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to comprehend and handle our emotions and accurately perceive and interpret the feelings of those in our surroundings.
Developing high emotional intelligence requires enhancing self-awareness and specific skills that must be improved separately.
To demonstrate emotional intelligence in a workplace setting, you can show interest in understanding why your colleagues may feel frustrated or upset when confronting difficulties. Moreover, be open to receiving feedback and actively seek ways to improve yourself.
8. Interpersonal Skills
In a business executive position, your main focus is establishing and maintaining relationships. No organization is void of cross-departmental collaborations. This fact necessitates interacting with various individuals, such as investors, stakeholders, and partner companies. So, you must communicate clearly with them and maintain a professional demeanor, even in adverse situations.
For example, if you own a small business and are willing to merge with a larger one, you must possess impeccable communication skills and charisma to persuade them to collaborate.
Conclusion
Becoming a business executive requires hard work, dedication, and multiple traits. A solid understanding of industry practices and the willingness to continuously learn are essential skills to thrive in this role. But strong relationships with customers and team members are a necessity too. It’ll affect your sales and growth.
Embrace the technology. Learn about new cultures. Polish your communication skills. You’ll be surprised how these small steps yield big rewards in just a few years.
The good thing is that you’ll never be short of resources. So, seek mentorship and training programs specifically targeting these skills.
