One of the perks of corporate office is the presumption of stature and legitimacy. In other words, the general public typically brings all sorts of assumptions along when reading about the behavior of a CEO. I contend that the reality of the person behind the curtain is far different from what is portrayed. That is to say, at least with respect to how CEO's typically want to be viewed in terms of corporate responsibility, I suspect that the reality in the executive suites is far different. In fact, the reality can be downright childish. Richard Fuld, who was the CEO at Lehman Brothers, may well have behaved like a six year old when upset. Had the general public been given a view of Fuld's antics, we would have shaken our heads not simply out of utter disbelief that such immaturity could be in such a position, but also in recognition of the gap between public and private persona. Such a gap is dangerous in a republic wherein the electorate is to hold the government in check (and the government in turn is charged with protecting the public and the market system itself from being compromised from firms too big to fail).
The full essay is at "Executive Stature."
