Day in the life of a company director?
Discussion
I know very little about the business world and figures and accounting and meetings qnd memos are just not my thing. My work is very easy to understand as it is usually sitting in a chair in front of me.
An article in a newspaper got me thinking about big business and the work it involved. I'm not talking small and medium businesses, I mean companies with thouands of employees in tall office blocks etc and who have directors who earn 7 figure salaries.
I'm not complaining about these guys earning this money if that's what the going rate is for what they do, good luck to them. But I have no idea what it is they actually do and I'd really like to understand!
It sounds incredibly naive I know but who can give a description of a typical day of one of these guys and the sort of decisions/planning/calculations they make or do?
An article in a newspaper got me thinking about big business and the work it involved. I'm not talking small and medium businesses, I mean companies with thouands of employees in tall office blocks etc and who have directors who earn 7 figure salaries.
I'm not complaining about these guys earning this money if that's what the going rate is for what they do, good luck to them. But I have no idea what it is they actually do and I'd really like to understand!
It sounds incredibly naive I know but who can give a description of a typical day of one of these guys and the sort of decisions/planning/calculations they make or do?
Uhh, they direct! They analyze information, determine course of action, negotiate deals, mull over important issues facing the company, etc. The thing is, modern companies have so many sub-departments that the above is almost certainly inaccurate. However, it is not very difficult to be an executive, more to do with education and connections than ability, save for a very few cases.
Devilstreak said:
Tell everyone below them what to do, then eventually claim the credit for it. Leaving the people below them little more than a thanks and the credit into your bank...
Close.Get the people below you to tell you the best thing to do, then get them to do it. Anyone can be a director!
I would imagine life at the very top isn't as hard work as some might think. If you have a good team below you they should be doing all the hard work for you leaving you to meet with equal clients usually over night lunches. Ok there will be pressure you will have to take the big decisions that could cost the company millions and ofcourse cost you your job.
BoRED S2upid said:
I would imagine life at the very top isn't as hard work as some might think. If you have a good team below you they should be doing all the hard work for you leaving you to meet with equal clients usually over night lunches.
And therein lies the problem. IME, this country has the most incompetent middle-management possible, causing problems which, naturally, run both up and down their organisations.Many will have risen through the ranks of the company - or risen through the ranks of other companies and head hunted because of their perceived success elsewhere. The newly appointed chief of M & S (Mark Bolland) is just such a person - 20 years in management at Heineken, 3 years rescuing Morrisons following their botched expansion a few years ago and now hoping to revitalise M&S.
If Heineken made company directors, they'd.... oh, hang on...,. they do.
If Heineken made company directors, they'd.... oh, hang on...,. they do.
I'd assume that these guys were essentially accountants with a knowledge of their market sector as a whole. They look at the real bottom line of the company, then make decisions on the general direction of the company. Stuff like will they focus on the budget products, or luxury brands, can they improve profitability by cutting staff / closing outlets, or indeed opening new ones, what they want the brand image to be, etc, etc...
I also reckon there would be a fair number of business lunches with big customers / suppliers negotiating high level relationships. then of course there will be meetings with their snior management team to pass on their decisions to make them happen and take advice where needed.
In terms of what they actually do, I think most of it will be talking & meetings, I doubt they do much photocopying or such like.
They get paid a lot, but they can have a profound effect on a company, just look at the M&S share price yesterday, but definitely an element of 'who you know, not what you know'.
I also reckon there would be a fair number of business lunches with big customers / suppliers negotiating high level relationships. then of course there will be meetings with their snior management team to pass on their decisions to make them happen and take advice where needed.
In terms of what they actually do, I think most of it will be talking & meetings, I doubt they do much photocopying or such like.
They get paid a lot, but they can have a profound effect on a company, just look at the M&S share price yesterday, but definitely an element of 'who you know, not what you know'.
t. You get out in the world, you take more soften said, the higher you are, the less you do...
however, as long a piece of string as this really depends on the individual. Some head of major PLC will be workaholics, a lot will do as little as possible but will essentially make crucial decisions for the business which can effect many things. I would imagine this is a lot of pressure...shareholder demands, providing jobs for the employees etc..
however, as long a piece of string as this really depends on the individual. Some head of major PLC will be workaholics, a lot will do as little as possible but will essentially make crucial decisions for the business which can effect many things. I would imagine this is a lot of pressure...shareholder demands, providing jobs for the employees etc..
skoff said:
In terms of what they actually do, I think most of it will be talking & meetings, I doubt they do much photocopying or such like. .
Well the last few explanations help clear it up, although regarding the above I always imagined them sitting at a desk on the top floor, back to a large window overlooking the city, poring over piles and piles of paper full of facts and figures of company statistics. Been watching too many movies perhaps...Some NWS language - be careful if the director is around
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NisCkxU544c
The company I'm contracted to at the moment seems to have directors for everything, what would have been a basic team leader job a few years ago is an "executive" position now. In my experience it just means they get to talk louder and get free fruit every morning while having a team of stuck up secretaries that get into an absolute panic over the smallest of issues.
I think it's wrong to group them all together though, I'm sure some of them are jolly good at what they do and deserve to be up there in the ivory tower
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