How do you become a relatable CEO?

I’ll let you in on a secret. I never wanted to be a CEO.

In fact, at the start of my career, running a business couldn’t have been further from my mind.

A fresh-faced university graduate, I’d just spent three months volunteering in Uganda and Kenya. Doing the sort of things 20-somethings end up doing on these trips: running sports camps, teaching English, painting walls, playing with street kids…you get the gist.

I came back and knew what I wanted to do. I wanted to work for an exciting overseas charity – doing amazing comms, running awesome campaigns, and generally using my skills to make a difference in the world.

It gets better. I actually thought business was the enemy.

That’s right. My upbringing as a missionary kid (more on that later), my time in East Africa, and the worldview I’d formed – all led me to believe that business was ‘bad’, charity was ‘good’.

and

It really was that black and white.

So how did I end up becoming the owner and CEO of a business that helps – you guessed it – other businesses? Well, that’s my story of becoming a relatable CEO.

Choosing the way of the chameleon

So, the missionary kid thing…here’s what that looked like. Born in the USA (feel free to channel your inner Bruce Springsteen at this point), 10 years in West Germany (as it was known back then), 2 years back in the USA (Texas…its own country, really) and finally 6 years in Solihull (the posh bit of Birmingham).

The upshot of all this moving about? A kid who never quite felt like he belonged; a kid who was never really ‘one of us’.

They say third culture kids (the term used to describe children whose parents hop between countries) tend to respond to this reality in one of three ways:

1) The Screamer fights back by constantly shouting/showing off about their culture of origin

2) The Wallflower tries to go unnoticed by finding a ‘non-identity’ and sitting on the sidelines

3) The Chameleon adapts by observing their environment and flexing how they interact

I choose the path of the chameleon. I became good at listening, reading the room, picking up on emotions, empathising and understanding where people were coming from.

It wasn’t long before I found myself interrupting would-be fights, reuniting quarrelling friends, sticking up for outsiders and newcomers (I knew what that was like) and generally being the guy others found hard to really dislike.

In short, I was laying the foundations of becoming a relatable CEO – I just didn’t know it at the time…

Giving up being the smartest person in the room

My early career was fun and adventure-filled. Working for a campaigning charity (where we pulled off a global news-worthy event with then PM Tony Blair), doing hands-on NGO work in Cambodia (helping to build the nascent Fair Trade movement), and eventually joining the creative agency ABA (looking after rebrands for their charity clients).

My winning combination was this: positive, personable attitude + analytical and creative smarts. It was a formula that was serving me well and winning me the trust and favour of those in charge.

The problem came when I realised I was no longer the smartest person in the room. In fact, I was increasingly surrounded by people who were clearly smarter than me. Their analysis was sharper, and their creative abilities were stronger. It felt like my superpowers were being taken away from me.

The ‘penny drop’ moment came sitting in a lecture hall at the Cranfield School of Management (attending a leadership programme with other, smarter colleagues) and hearing the professor utter these words:

“Being a leader doesn’t mean being the smartest person in the room. In fact, if you’re trying to be the smartest person in the room, you’re missing the point.”

And there it was. One of my biggest leadership lessons – that I wasn’t going to ‘win’ by being the smartest person in the room. What’s more, that winning looked like surrounding myself with people who were better/smarter than me and motivating them to do good work.

It’s a lesson that would set me up for the final step in my relatable CEO journey…

Finding the pilot light to run a business

‍The final step in my transition from ‘likeable marketer’ to ‘relatable CEO’ would be the toughest one. When the time came to step up as MD of the business – and begin the journey towards full ownership – two things happened.

First of all, imposter syndrome kicked in. I would be taking on a business that had been going since 1985; had done amazing work with the likes of London 2012, Pfizer, MCC/Lords, London Stock Exchange; and had been stewarded by a much-loved husband and wife duo. It begged the question: “Have I got what it takes?”

Secondly, an even more pressing question began to surface: “Do I really want this?” It was undoubtedly an amazing opportunity. But it was never my dream to run a business. I wanted to change the world through amazing comms, remember? Before I could commit to the journey, I knew I needed to find my ‘why’ – the pilot light that would keep burning even when things got tough.

Then one day I had a bit of a revelation. We were already working with a few purpose-led businesses (along with our longstanding work with overseas development charities), but there wasn’t a vision for it or a strategy behind it per se.

And suddenly I saw it clearly, my pilot light. I would focus the agency on helping leaders uncover the purpose of their business and tap into the deeper needs of their customers and employees. In short, we would help businesses become more like charities – combining purpose with profit, an enterprise with empathy, innovation with impact.

Once I found that pilot light, I realised just how much I wanted this. A vision for the team, a strategy for the business, and clarity about who we would work with began to emerge.

The shift from being a relatable leader to building a relatable business and brand had begun…

The challenges (and opportunities) of being a relatable CEO Since officially taking over as owner of the agency in 2021, there have been plenty of challenges along the way. In trying to be a relatable CEO (I actually prefer MD – it’s less grandiose and more, well…relatable), it’s tough when you have to challenge underperformance, call out poor behaviour, or make the call to let someone go.

But I’ve learned these things aren’t meant to be easy. What’s more, I’ve discovered a real power in honesty, vulnerability, and empathy – in being open to taking a risk. For ABA, it’s resulted in creative collaborations with some amazing people and remarkable brands. It’s opened up doors that would otherwise have been closed. And it’s rallied people around what we are trying to do as a business.

So, here’s to more leaders talking about ‘soft stuff’ like purpose, care, impact…even love. Because, in the end, whatever kind of business you run, let’s face it…you’re in the people business. And in my experience, it always pays to look after people – to treat them the way you would want to be treated.

It’s what being a relatable CEO (or whatever title you prefer) is all about.

Dave Vann (CEO of ABA | Putting purpose to work)