The current ecomomic crisis has brought into the spotlight a very troubling leadership crisis that permeates the current business environment. This crisis has been brewing for sometime and in fact has its origins in a managerial theroy which is still perpetuated by leading business schools today. The theory is that for a company to be successful managers and shareholders need to be aligned at the hip and to ensure this, stock options need to be part of their compensation. This has created a breed of executives more interested in improving stock price than often making the necessary decision for the long term growth and profitability of the corporate entity.

These CEOs are in a breed of their own. They are the “untouchables”. As legends in their own minds they fancy themselves as “gurus” and “visionaries”. You know you are in the presence of one as they are most usually surrounded by drones who have automated the words “yes sir” and “you are brilliant sir”. (Those with talent usually do not stay in their employ). When there are problems these CEOs are quick to vanish like Houdini from the scene as problems are for others to fix. They are after all focused on anything that might move the stock price up a fraction. Berating others for errors makes them feel important. Sadly many good corporations have suffered in the hands of these types.

The digital revolution that is profoundly redefining society has changed the role of the CEO in many ways. For one thing the flattening of our world erases the concept of CEO as “guru” because there is no such thing as fame anymore. The rise of citizen journalism is just one example of how the once famous and powerful media journalist whose word could destroy a career has been de-emphasized in importance by the proliferation and new competition of basement bloggers who have with their written ideas been embraced by the collective intelligence. In addition the grass roots movement towards transparency demands a new breed of leader that embraces responsibility, authenticity, integrity and ethics. Some have called the new world we are entering as one where Social Leadership must be embraced.

Daniel Goleman is author of “Social Intelligence:The Science of Human Relationships”. The book suggests that leadership today is beyond IQ or emotional intelligence but instead based on the science of human interaction. It is proven that profitability increases where good leadership is present. Really good leaders achieve success through a measured scientific process that encompasses empathy and tuning into the minds of their followers. You could call it a sort of neural WiFi bonding experience. It enables us to share and navigate our social world and detect someone else’s emotions and reproduce them. Some of the research is also very interesting. For example it was found that top performing leaders brought laughter more frequently to the lives of others than mid performing leaders.

(Given these findings perhaps there is a market for CEO pratfall classes? Any takers?)

In the meantime, to get on the road to success corporate entities need to shed the “gurus” and recruit passionate people who are socially skilled and know how to attract talent where they lack, to reach financial objectives. Simple? Perhaps we can do it in 120 characters or less?