CEO leadership at FirstEnergy

CEO

The Chief Executive officer (CEO) of a firm is vitally important to the success of any corporation. CEOs typically have a great deal of experience and education in their particular industry. The purpose of this discussion is to examine a CEO of a Fortune 500 company. For the purposes of this discussion the leadership of Anthony J. Alexander, the President and CEO of FirstEnergy will be discussed.

Alexander was chosen because he has been persistent and dedicated to the company for many years. This dedication has allowed him to see the company at many different stages of development and growth. As such he is well equipped to lead the company.

There are many reasons why Anthony Alexander is a great leader. The first reason is his education and experience with the company. Alexander went to the University of Akron where he received a B.B. In Accounting and a Law degree. Alexander has worked with the company in some capacity since 1972 when he served as an accountant. Throughout the years he has served in various capacities including attorney, senior vice president, executive vice president and chief operating officer (Leadership Team). In 2004 he became the CEO of the company. All of this experience with the company has aided Alexander in assisting the company in becoming a member of the Fortune 500 (Anthony J. Alexander, 2011).

Alexander is also a great leader because of the way he interacts with employees at all levels. Alexander is a great communicator and communication is the lifeblood of any organization. As such he is able to properly articulate the goals and objectives of the company and devise strategies to meet these goals and objectives.

The CEO if FirstEnergy is respected because of the leadership skills that he has brought to the position. Because he has worked in different facets and departments of the company he can relate to employees at the various levels. As such he has been able to make great strides at the company.

His actions as CEO are impressive because he has made a concerted effort to ensure that the company remains profitable. In the midst of the recession the company was forced to reduce the pay of several of the company's executives including Alexander. When the decrease in pay was ultimately rescinded, Alexander requested that his cut in pay remain until the company was more stable.

Alexander has also taken the lead in ensuring that the company still remains profitable even in the face of a recession that is affecting companies in many different industries. Alexander was partially responsible for ensuring that the company met most of its earnings expectations for 2010, even though it was a difficult year for the economy ("FirstEnergy Corp…." 2010). The success of the firm during this difficult year is a reflection of the time and effort that Alexander placed into the company and its employees.