In this research from Brunswick they state

"Our latest research shows that corporate stakeholders expect business leaders to be adaptive, connected, and engaged – using digital & social media to do so."

While I have argued that CEOs need to be on social media and I've argued this over that last 5 years. 

Last year was the tipping point and now if you as a CEO are not on social media, some serious questions have to be raised by the Board and the investors. 

Why?  Because it demonstrates a lack of understanding of digital.

And if you don't understand digital, should you be a CEO? 

The Brunswick research goes onto say 

"Our research finds that by a more than 5 to 1 ratio, employees prefer to work for a CEO who uses digital and social media. And, by a margin of 9 to 1, financial readers trust a Connected Leader more than a CEO who does not use social media as part of their work. This isn’t about leaders spending more time communicating—it’s about using that time to lead more effectively."

One of CEOs told us that they will IPO faster and at a higher value because the leadership team, including the CEO is active on social media. 

Give me evidence of what a digital organisation looks like

Let me give you an overview what what a digital organisation looks like, this is a digital mission statement from one of our clients.  We create this during our social media strategy session with the C-Suite.


And the 5 business benefits they got

  • Visibility – recognition in the marketplace
  • Trusted advisor status
  • Recruit and retain the best talent
  • Employee engagement & shared sense of purpose
  • Pipeline, growth and new logos 

Can you imagine as a CEO not understanding why you cannot get those business benefits from empowering your team(s) with digital?

Can you imagine opening yourself up to both leaving money on the table and leaving yourself open for competitive disruption? 

Let's look at some CEOs online?

Bernard Looney - BP

Julie Sweet - Accenture

Those are some of the big guys, what about the small medium enterprise (SMEs)?

Chris Fleming - Cyberhawk 

Andrew Ferrier - Display Technology

Finish with a quote from Brunswick

"Connected Leadership is engaging, authentic, and sustained. Connected Leaders embrace digital sources to get closer to employees. They directly engage stakeholders through new forms of communication and on issues beyond the balance sheet. Their connectivity is their resiliency through today’s crises and tomorrow’s."