Every organization desires a 'dream team' that will catapult it to the top, making it as profitable a venture as possible. Quite obviously, this dream team needs to be led by a competent CEO or Chief Executive Officer. Investors will only be happy when they hire a CEO that is capable of bringing in the profits. CEO differ according to a variety of factors which include size of the organization, type of industry etc. A startup CEO may not be able to lead a large corporation and vice versa.

The tenure of a CEO in an organization is shorter than it was a decade ago. However, it goes without saying that a CEO needs to excel in many areas in order to succeed. Among the core competencies is leadership, the skills of which can be developed right from lower level management positions upwards (possibly attending an online management school or two in the process). This is the first step towards becoming a success as a CEO. As a leader, you need to motivate your team so that they increase their performance. Improving production and setting standards is what is expected from CEO. What matters, are not just leadership skills, but a thorough understanding of the business as well.

What needs to be noted is that there is no fixed formula to make it to the top. The working environment is very different from what it was 30 years ago. Making it to the senior executive level not only requires a great deal of diligence, but a lively personality as well. Senior executives need to be outgoing and socially confident. Qualifications have never been the deciding factor for becoming a CEO. However, depending on the industry, it does create better opportunities and comes in handy in many situations. You don't need to be a graduate from among the top business schools, but a business education adds extra weight when it comes to the selection of CEO. There are several who have become CEO based on experience alone.

In larger organizations, you may need to manage people across various cultures, which calls for a more lively and dynamic personality. Personality traits do play an important role in an individual attaining chief executive status. You will need to be a good communicator and manager as well. Striking deals is something that you ought to be comfortable with. A CEO garners respect and should be willing to share his or her vision and strategy with the employees. Even at a lower management level, you need to have a vision so that your higher-ups will sit up and take notice of you.

Usually, a person needs to have a great deal of experience in a specific industry before he or she can go on to become CEO. Without extensive experience at a senior manager level, it is difficult to assess potential risks and opportunities that may lie ahead. The larger the organization more is the need for an experienced CEO. The bottom line is that it takes a great deal of hard work. Coupled with education and experience, the job of a CEO is much easier to handle.