The Chief Operating Officer (or COO) is the engine room of any business.
They sit in the C-suite, but bridge the gap between bigger picture business strategy and the day-to-day operations of the company.
In general, the COO is responsible for overseeing all business operations, making sure they line up with the direction the business is trying to go in.
The COO is also responsible for reviewing and improving processes within a business, making sure it’s running efficiently and profitably.
What Are The Qualities Of A Good COO?
A good COO will have many qualities, but some of the most important are:
Strategic thinking: The COO is not only in charge of helping to come up with the business strategy, but will also be the one implementing it. This requires an in-depth knowledge of how strategy works and most importantly, how to make it work.
Problem solving: Managing the operations of a business means constantly being involved in improving and solving issues that come up. An adaptable and solutions focused mindset is important for any COO.
Emotional intelligence: Coming up with the plan is the easy part, managing the team to implement it – less so. The COO will need to have the emotional intelligence to lead the team effectively, making sure everyone stays happy and is doing a good job.
Commercial thinking: Any business strategy will ultimately be building up to one thing: making money. The COO will have to think commercially, working out which areas of the business need to be built and cut to achieve profitability.
Ability to multitask: Like with any C-suite job, being a COO means knowing how to multitask. A good COO will be able to understand which jobs are the most pressing, allowing them to push the business forwards in a meaningful way.
To help master some of these skills, we’ve pulled together the best books for any aspiring COO to read. Let’s take a look:
Chief Inspiration Officer: How to Lead the Team Everyone Wants to Be On
The right leader can be the difference between a successful and inspired team and one that lacks motivation and loyalty.
Aspiring COOs will be in charge of making sure that their team stays focused, even in low periods. This book is all about how to create an environment that everyone buys into and lead a company (and its team) towards success.
Read the book here.
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Riding Shotgun: The Role of the COO
Riding shotgun is a book that explains the role of the COO and why a company needs this position. It explores what challenges might come with the job and how someone in the COO position should work through them.
The book is perfect for aspiring COOs, drawing on insights from those that have done the job.
Read the book here.
Bold Leadership For Organizational Acceleration
Anyone in the c-suite of a company will be leading a department, so learning how to be a good leader is very important.
Author Jim Tompkins talks through how to grow an organisation, adapt to its challenges and build relationships. The book shows all leaders how they can inspire others to achieve success and grow their businesses.
Read the book here.
A CEO Only Does 3 Things
To be a good COO, you have to understand how the entire c-suite works.
This book talks about how CEOs should focus on people, culture and numbers. By understanding this role, aspiring COOs can more easily explore how they can alleviate stress for the CEO and drive the business towards operational success.
Read the book here.
The Second in Command: Unleash the Power of Your COO
The COO is the second in command at any company, bridging the gap between the CEO and the rest of the organisation.
This book, written for CEOs to help them find the right COO, can help people understand what companies are looking for when it comes to this role. Not only that, but it can give insights into the unique role of the COO in a company, and what they should set out to change from day 1.
Read the book here.
How to be a Chief Operating Officer
For those that are at the start of their COO journey, understanding what a COO does, and how to do it well, is incredibly important.
This book breaks the role down into 16 elements, including how to get to grips with Culture, Strategy and Change.
The book also talks through how to stay adaptable and drive the business towards meaningful change.
Read the book here.
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