The role of a Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is to serve as the highest-ranking executive in a company, with responsibility for making major corporate decisions, managing the overall operations and resources of a company, and acting as the main point of communication between the board of directors and corporate operations.

What Is “POSDCoRB”?

According to Gulick & Urwick in ‘Papers On The Science Of Administration’, the activities of the chief executive in an any organization can be summed as the acronym “POSDCoRB,” or: Planning, Organizing, Staffing, Directing, Co-ordinating, Reporting, Budgeting. This acronym has since been expanded to refer to the activities and duties of administrative management in its entirety.

P – Planning

Working out in broad outline the things that need to be done and the methods for doing them to accomplish the purpose set for the enterprise
Developing and implementing high-level strategies
Identifying and managing potential risks to the company

O – Organizing

Establishing the formal structure of authority through which work subdivisions are arranged, defined, and coordinated for the defined objective
Allocating resources efficiently to achieve company goals

S – Staffing

Bringing in and training personnel
Evaluating the performance of other executives
Maintaining favorable conditions of work and a positive company culture

D – Directing

Making decisions and embodying them in specific and general orders and instructions
Serving as the leader of the enterprise – setting the vision and direction for the company
Leading the executive team and providing to them guidance as needed

Co – Coordinating

Interrelating the various part of the work
Ensuring compliance with laws and regulations
Acting as the face of the company in public and media relations

R – Reporting

Keeping those to whom the executive is responsible informed as to what is going on, which thus includes keeping himself and his subordinates informed through records, research, and inspection
Communicating effectively with stakeholders, including the board, employees, and shareholders

B – Budgeting

Fiscal planning, accounting, and control
Overseeing the company’s financial performance
Overseeing major capital investments and expenditures
Ensuring the company meets its financial goals

According to Gulick & Urwick, the activities of the chief executive in any organization can be summed as the acronym “POSDCoRB,” or: Planning, Organizing, Staffing, Directing, Co-ordinating, Reporting, Budgeting. This acronym has since been expanded to refer to the activities and duties of administrative management in its entirety.

The point of the above is to “organize and institutionalize the executive function as such so that it may be more adequate in a complicated situation”, according to Gulick & Urwick, and we can use POSDCORB as the fundamental tasks of leaders in a corporate hierarchy – placing individuals in each specific role as the organization grows.

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