3 reasons why entrepreneurs are not suitable for CEOs

Forget the tale of Jeff Bezos or that of Mark Zuckerberg: almost never the founder of a company is able to bring his creature to success as a CEO.

Moreover, having an entrepreneurial and visionary perspective does not always coincide with the possession of solid managerial and managerial skills. As if a Ferrari engineer, after having developed the fireball, decided to sit behind the wheel during the GP race. How many chances would there be to get the front row?

Insisting in staying at the top of a well-founded company can have negative consequences for the business and put company health at risk.

This is also confirmed by recent research conducted by a joint team of professors from Duke, Vanderbilt and Harvard Business Schools: analyzing a sample of over 13 thousand companies in more than 32 countries in the world, it emerged that the realities led by the founder were almost 10% less performing than others. Possible? Yes, by observing the "test of the nine": simply by replacing the founding CEO with a professional CEO manager, the score went back to normal levels.

The reasons for the failure of the entrepreneur as CEO? Here they are listed 3.

1 . Entrepreneur and manager: different objectives
A manager hired by a company has a specific goal in the crosshairs: to bring the company to success and to make ends meet all the performance indicators, using every lawful tool to reach the target.

On the contrary, the goal of an entrepreneur is different, often behind the choice of founding an activity hides motivations of a personal nature such as the need to have more freedom or the desire to have greater control.

Different motivations, different performances: we do not have to explain which of the two management styles will have more chances to survive, right?

2 . Some economic resources
After an initial launch phase, it is essential that the company survives and has sufficient economic resources to invest in innovation and development. A more complex activity, that of fundraising, if at the top of the company there is its founder. According to the research, in fact, investors are less likely to financially finance a company that depends too much on a single leader, interpreting this variable as an alarming risk factor.

Not to mention that a visionary entrepreneur at the top frightens the lenders for his dubious preparation: will the founder lead the company as a great manager? The only question literally runs off the sponsors, penalizing the chances of success of the business.

3 . Scarce strategic vision
The task of a good CEO is to set goals in the long run and to anticipate possible market risks.

Having a clear and detached vision is essential to evaluate the trend of the business objectively and, in case of setbacks, to implement corrective solutions. Showing a winning leadership, therefore, means being ready to question everything - even your own ideas - and be willing to change direction.

It is not surprising that a founder is more reluctant to change, and risks dragging the Company to ruin, due to the over-attachment to one's beliefs.

In short: if you have an excellent entrepreneurial talent, capitalize on your skills and start the Company's engine. Insert the first, heat the car and ... sit down on the passenger seat: your CEO will guide you to success.