John Savignano, Chief Executive Officer of Savignano, has a lengthy career in accounting which includes strategy consulting, finance consulting, international business development and marketing. As a career professional, Director of strategic planning and development at MNP LLP’s corporate headquarters as well as head of the North American office for Arthur Andersen Macaulay Culkin & Associates (MCAC) he came to recognize that technical knowledge alone was not enough to succeed at high levels in business.
READ: John Savignano Values the Human Element in Accounting Success
Savignano believes that there are two kinds of leaders which vary in how they view their role from promotion to success. These two types of leaders have very different views on the role of education and training in the development of leaders.
- The first type believes that success is about him or herself and the direct impact for their group, team or department in terms of personal advancement, status, rank and compensation. This type of leader views education as primarily a means to advance his or her career – regardless if it is broad based in nature if it will help him or her achieve higher status. Although this may be useful for some short term goals, it does not prepare leaders to compete over the long-term.
- The second type of leader is one that has a broader view and considers the impact on the organization as a whole. This type recognizes that education can also help them to better understand how the business works and to learn more about other departments, divisions or regions. This type of leader is interested in leading by example, developing teams and helping to improve business systems and processes. They see their role as part of the leadership team to develop strategies for the long term growth and success of their organization or group.
John Savignano believes that today’s leaders at all levels need to think about how best to combine education with experience. They need to get senior leaders involved in setting this important tone from the top down.