High Performance with High Integrity

VI. Building the Foundation

The most important argument in this short book is that the CEOs need to own—or reclaim—the fundamental business challenge of high performance with high integrity.

Governance on the Front Lines

Throughout the preceding pages, I’ve tried to highlight the critical role that the CEO and other senior leaders must play in driving this issue deep into the company’s business operations. In the post-Enron era, much of the governance debate about corporate performance with integrity focused on the role of the board. And although the board has a vital oversight role, I have argued that the directors simply cannot provide the sustained, rigorous, disciplined, aspirational leadership that’s needed, especially in a complex, transnational ...