The duties and responsibilities of an executive officer range from planning goals to executing them. The job description of an executive officer is outlined in the article below.
The post of an executive officer is one of the most vital ones in any organization, irrespective of whether it is private or public. If it’s a private organization, he reports to the board of directors, and if it’s a public organization, he acts as a representative of the company in front of the share holders.
The duties and responsibilities mainly revolve around leadership and management, top end decision-making, formulating the overall policies and framing procedures according to which the organization will be run, overlooking the execution of policies, and finally, seeing to it that the organizational goals as devised by the board of directors are finally met. The article below provides you an insight into the responsibilities of an executive officer.
Executive Officer: Duties and Responsibilities
Policies and procedures
- As the main goal of any organization is to earn profits, the executive officer has to direct and manage the various departments in such a way that this aim is achieved.
- He formulates certain policies and procedures so that the various departments in the company, such as marketing and human resources, can function in the best possible way.
- He meets with the departmental heads on a daily or weekly basis, to check on the working procedure and to see that they are meeting their individual departmental goals in time.
- He should be apt at planning and execution as well. The various policies and procedures formulated have to be constantly monitored from time to time to see to it that they are still effective in the ever-changing business scenario. And, if they have become obsolete, it is the executive officer who does the whole planning again and come up with modern policies and procedures.
Vision and Goals
- He needs to be a visionary, and has to constantly foresee the future based on the current company performance. He also has to formulate growth strategies for the future.
- He has to be updated with the current market scenario as well as any changes that take place.
- Not just this, he has to keep the company staff aware of the changes as well. Accordingly, he will suggest recommendations, make plans, and oversee potential in the future – like making 5-year, 10-year plans and more.
- He has to be a brilliant resource manager. He has to manage financial, physical, and human resources.
- He has to initiate newer goals and plans for the company, and make use of every opportunity to catapult the organization into the global market.
Decision-making
- He has to be very good at decision-making and should have a clear idea of which jobs to do himself and which ones to delegate to others.
- As a strong decision maker, he should make sure his recommendations and plans are correct and accurate.
- Also, he needs to be sure of their successful implementation himself so that he can convince and influence others on the Board.
- He is responsible for simultaneously catering to the needs of his staff as well as the company shareholders and keeping them both satisfied.
Liaison Between Board and Staff
- Since he is an interface between the Board and the employees, he plays a very vital role in taking high-end decisions. He has to submit his plans and suggestions to the Board and also point out the flaws, if any.
- He also plays a major role in selecting, disqualifying, and assessing Board members.
- He is expected to stand by and abide by the Board rules, especially during orientation and evaluation.
- He is also expected to lend support when the company undergoes a tough phase.
Employee Motivation
- Employee motivation is highly important. Even though every department has managers who very well manage this strategy, it is the executive officer who is at the helm of these responsibilities.
- He is supposed to preside over and plan employee motivation programs, staff encouragement, etc.
- He is on the lookout for newer products, services, etc., to improve organizational performance.
- He needs to promote his plans amongst his staff first, and value their opinion and expertise.
Miscellaneous
- To increase the revenue of the organization, it’s very important that the company has a good reputation in the market, among its clients, creditors, share holders etc.
- To get business, the executive officer has to arrange meetings and outings with the company’s main clients from time to time.
- Another duty is to make public appearances on behalf of the company in business conferences, industry seminars, press conferences, share holder meetings, etc.
- He is the face of the company, he has to leave a positive impact though his public appearances and appropriate business communication so that the company gets more business.
Educational Qualifications
- You need to obtain a management degree from a reputed business school or should have a doctorate in a similar field.
- This, however, may not be mandatory, since you require years of experience in the industry prior to actually becoming an executive officer.
- You need to possess leadership, management, inter-personal, and communication skills.
- You need to have brilliant decision-making problem-solving skills, and should be very passionate and dedicated towards work.
- An executive officer, in a single day, interacts with the company’s clerk to the board of directors to the chief financial officer, so you should have the desired communication skills to handle all kinds of people.
- Math skills need to be well-polished, since you have to stay abreast of the company’s financial growth.
Salary
- The median annual salary of an executive officer may be approximately USD 650,000.
- Of course, this hugely depends on the industry and experience.
- Besides the salary, the executive officer is provided with several perks and benefits.
To summarize, the executive officer is responsible for the overall success of the organization, which is very stressful, to say the least. He needs to possess the mental strength to handle such situations as well as some really good problem-solving skills.