The Loss of a Boss

Our company's CEO, my boss, tendered his resignation this week.  The reasons for his departure were deeply seated in his faith, and I don't begrudge him the decision that he made.

Unfortunately, I joined the company on the basis of the man that his is, and on the basis of the corporate culture that he established and nurtured.  He is free of ego, smart, curious, funny and does not tolerate BS in the organization.  As such, we have basically no politics, no drama, no crap, and everyone rowing in the same direction.  And due in large part to his leadership and that culture, we're on the cusp of some huge achievements.

So now what? 

We'll get a new company leader.  My reporting structure will likely be different, as will our corporate culture.  Things will change.  Three days into it, they already have. 

It all begs some very interesting questions.  Is culture bigger than one person?  Is our leadership team strong enough to protect what we have?  Can the change that is happening be controlled, or will we be controlled by it?  Can we achieve the goals that we're so close to achieving, or will we screw it up?  So many questions...

In the meantime, I'm abjectly saddened.  I've suffered a significant loss - the loss of a CEO that was the best leader I've ever worked for.  And I know that in these times there are three profiles one can adopt - quitter, camper, or climber.

I've come so far.  We've come so far.  There's no time to mourn anymore. 

It's time to climb.