McKinsey on Exception CEO's

What do the world's best-performing new CEO's do once they get the job? This piece by Michael Birshan, Thomas Meakin, and Kurt Strovink in the McKinsey Quarterly suggests they are more likely than not to come from outside the company and to hit the ground running with a thorough strategic review. Counter-intuitively, Birshan et al., found that exceptional CEO's are less likely to restructure their top team or do a company reorganization in the first two years.Taken together, these data argue for a reflective leadership style ( hence the strategic review) and a bias toward actions informed by evidence and better knowledge of the company. Do these lessons translate into the private school sector? We think so and suggest that board, too, take notice.