Three leadership challenges can leave CEOs firefighting, undermine executive performance and expose deeper problems in workplace culture.
During a recent executive review, I asked the CEO to explain the organisation’s strategy. I understood what they were trying to achieve. Then I asked each member of the executive team the same question.
Their answers revealed a gap between what the CEO thought they had communicated and what the team had understood.
It was a useful starting point for a conversation about what needed to change.
In more than 20 years working with leaders, I’ve heard CEOs make variations of the same admissions, usually in private:
“I’m exhausted by people issues.”
“I’m not sure my executive team is actually a team.”
“Managing my board takes far more energy than anyone sees.”
CEOs are balancing commercial performance, board expectations and competing priorities. When people problems keep resurfacing, it can be difficult to know whether the cause lies in the team, the systems around them or the way the organisation is being led.
Often, it’s a combination.
The consequences extend beyond the CEO’s workload. PwC’s 2026 Global Workforce Hopes and Fears Survey found that just 41% of Australian workers trust senior management, down from 50% a year earlier.
There is also a workplace safety dimension.
Safe Work Australia’s model Code of Practice on managing psychosocial hazards identifies issues including lack of role clarity, low job control and poor organisational justice as potential sources of harm. Employers have legal obligations to manage psychosocial risks, although requirements vary between jurisdictions.
Not every leadership problem is a workplace safety breach.
But how an organisation is run can affect its people, performance and exposure to risk. These are business concerns, not simply HR responsibilities.
- When communication doesn’t translate into clarity
For years, when staff surveys showed people weren’t getting the message, my advice to leaders was to communicate more. But communication and clarity aren’t the same thing.
People can hear a strategy without understanding what it means for their role, what decisions they can make or what they’re expected to deliver.
In the review I mentioned, I worked with the CEO to put their strategy and expectations into writing.
After several drafts, the message was shared with the team. The response was essentially:
“So that’s what you mean. We can do that.”
The breakthrough wasn’t another announcement or meeting. It was making expectations clear enough for people to act.
When executives interpret the strategy differently, effort can be duplicated, decisions delayed and opportunities missed.
A useful test is whether each member of the leadership team can explain the strategy in their own words, including what it means for their part of the business.
- The cost of making exceptions for high performers
“That’s just what Joe is like.”
Most organisations have encountered some version of Joe.
He brings in revenue or has specialist skills the business relies on, but he also treats people badly. Colleagues know it, yet confronting the behaviour feels risky because nobody wants to lose someone who delivers results.
It’s understandable that a CEO will weigh up the commercial consequences of losing a key person.
But the cost of keeping them matters, too.
Other employees may disengage or leave, managers may spend time containing conflict, and confidence in leadership can suffer when different standards apply to different people.
There’s a related challenge when organisations promote excellent technical specialists into management without preparing them to lead people.
A strong salesperson, accountant or engineer may excel in their role, but managing performance, giving feedback and navigating difficult conversations require different skills. Without the right support, a promotion can create problems for the manager, their team and the business.
The answer isn’t to accept poor behaviour from high performers. It’s to recognise that how results are achieved matters, and to provide the support and accountability people need to lead well.
- When the CEO becomes the bottleneck
As organisations grow, leaders need to balance executive oversight with giving capable people room to make decisions.
Sometimes, that balance tips too far towards control. Decisions that experienced managers could make are referred upwards, approval processes multiply, and people become reluctant to act without checking first.
As I often tell leaders: “You’ve gone and employed all these incredible people with these amazing skills, and you’re not using them. So why have you employed them when you’re doing the work anyway?”
The issue isn’t whether CEOs should step away from important decisions. It’s whether they’re spending time on decisions that genuinely require their involvement.
When every decision comes back to the top, work slows down and the organisation struggles to make full use of its people.
Holding employees accountable for outcomes without giving them the authority to deliver them compounds the problem.
Clear decision-making responsibilities help leaders retain appropriate oversight while allowing their teams to exercise judgement.
Making people issues a shared responsibility
When a CEO tells me they’re exhausted by people issues, I look at how responsibility is shared across the organisation.
HR and people-and-culture teams provide important frameworks, advice and support.
But managers set expectations, address performance and deal with behaviour day to day. Referring every difficult conversation to HR may relieve immediate pressure without resolving the underlying problem.
CEOs need support, too.
Managing a board and navigating difficult executive relationships can be isolating. A trusted chair, mentor or coach can provide perspective, while a strong executive team needs enough trust to question decisions, raise concerns and hold one another accountable.
When people problems keep landing on the CEO’s desk, it’s worth looking beyond the immediate issue to understand what is contributing to the pattern.
Start with the strategy. Ask each member of the executive team to explain it in their own words.
Their answers may reveal where expectations need to be clearer, decisions better defined or leadership responsibilities better supported.
The aim isn’t to find someone to blame. It’s to understand what needs to change so the organisation and its people can perform at their best.
About Carole Cooper
Carole Cooper is a former chief people officer who works with boards, CEOs and executive teams across Australia on culture, leadership and governance. carolecooperconsulting.com
