A day in the life of a CEO

The role of a CEO has evolved dramatically in today’s fast-paced and interconnected world. No longer confined to traditional management, modern CEOs must navigate an increasingly complex landscape that demands agility, empathy, and a forward-thinking mindset.

To get a closer look at what it takes to lead a global company in today’s environment, we spoke with Angela Cretu, former CEO of Avon, whose career exemplifies the qualities and challenges of modern leadership.

Angela Cretu: A journey from the ground up

Angela joined Avon in 1999 as a sales manager in her home country of Romania. Over the years, her dedication, strategic thinking, and passion for empowering women through business propelled her up the ranks.

Angela held numerous leadership roles across the company, including General Manager for Eastern Europe, Group Vice President for Global Field Operations, and President of the Central and Eastern Europe region. In January 2020, she was appointed CEO of Avon, becoming one of the few women to lead a global beauty company.

During her tenure, Angela led Avon through one of its most transformative periods. She navigated the company through the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, implemented a digital-first strategy, and reinforced Avon's commitment to sustainability and social impact. Her approach to leadership was deeply rooted in empathy, innovation, and a profound understanding of the company’s heritage and purpose.

The modern CEO: more than just a leader

As we can see from Angela’s story, today’s CEOs are expected to wear multiple hats.

They are not just decision-makers but also visionaries, strategists, communicators, and agents of change. They must balance short-term operational demands with long-term strategic goals, all while fostering a culture of innovation, inclusivity, and resilience within their organisations. The pressure to deliver results is high, but so is the opportunity to make a meaningful impact.

To thrive, a CEO must have a clear vision and the ability to inspire and motivate others toward that vision. This involves building a cohesive team, creating an environment of trust and collaboration, and ensuring every employee feels aligned with the company’s mission.

Successful CEOs know that their role is not just to manage the business but to lead people, fostering a culture that drives performance and innovation.

Navigating digital transformation

Digital transformation has become a cornerstone of modern business strategy, and CEOs are at the forefront of driving this change.

The acceleration of digital technologies has reshaped how companies, operate, engage with customers, and deliver value. To stay competitive, CEOs must be tech-savvy, data-driven, and willing to embrace new digital tools and platforms.

However, digital transformation is not just about technology; it’s about a fundamental shift in mindset.

A CEO must foster a culture of agility and continuous learning, encouraging teams to experiment, fail fast, and learn quickly. In many organisations, this means flattening old hierarchical structures, breaking down silos, embracing cross-functional collaboration, and investing in the right talent and technologies to drive innovation.

Angela specifically talked about how experimentation and empowering her leadership team to take the lead formed a key part of her strategy in her period as CEO.

Balancing multiple priorities

The modern CEO constantly struggles to balance multiple, often competing priorities. From driving growth and innovation to managing risk and regulatory compliance, the demands are relentless. Yet, those who succeed are adept at managing this complexity, making informed decisions quickly, and maintaining a clear focus on their strategic goals.

As CEO the need for delegation, building strong leadership teams that can execute the company’s vision, and leveraging diverse perspectives to make better decisions. Talent and multi-tasking as certainly top of the agenda.

Angela explained the multiple roles reporting into her to enable driving this change. Typically 11-12 CxO reports went directly to Angela as CEO, highlighting the need for delegation to a trusted leadership team. 

How vendors can capture a CEO's attention

To get the attention of a CEO, vendors must craft a compelling and personalised approach that stands out among the hundreds of emails CEOs receive daily, starting from the email's subject line.

Although CEOs typically do not make direct purchasing decisions, especially in large or global companies where dedicated procurement teams handle vendor selection, a well-crafted message can make a difference, leading to introductions to the decision-makers.

In her five years as CEO at Avon, only two vendor emails passed this test, and one still stands out.

A seller from Salesforce took the ingenious approach of enrolling as a company representative to properly understand the challenges that the Avon CEO was facing. Once enrolled, their targeted email subject was so compelling that Angela opened it. The body of the email which followed was directly addressing specific pain points in Avon's language, some that Angela knew but some she didn’t, with clear and actionable suggestions. This email so captured Angela that it led to Salesforce becoming a strategic partner to Avon.

As this example shows, sellers looking to build relationships and sell to a modern CEO must understand and be able to articulate their challenges and goals. Whether the CEO is focused on innovation, digital transformation, sustainability, or social impact, vendors must position themselves as partners who can add strategic value in these areas.

To engage effectively, vendors should demonstrate a deep understanding of the CEO's vision and business goals, provide tailored solutions that align with the company's strategy, and emphasise their ability to adapt to changing market conditions.

Building trust through transparency, reliability, and delivering consistent results can help establish long-lasting partnerships.

This blog is part of a series exploring the roles and challenges faced by the C-Suite executives so vendors can discover how to secure that all-important meeting. Each blog is accompanied by a webinar and a cheat-sheet, available to inspir'em sales and leader members. Log in to listen to these webinars today

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