Most CEOs are not the level 5 leaders described by Jim Collins in Good to Great as helping to take companies up the performance curve—individuals who are “self-effacing, quiet, reserved, even shy,” who get the best out of employees by not soaking up all the limelight and making all the decisions.15 The rarity of such leaders may be why so few organizations go from good to great. And even Collins begins his story when these paragons were already in the CEO position—the road to the top may require different behavior than being successful once you have arrived.
