If you’re looking for the top jobs in corporate America right now, the best choices aren’t at the major companies themselves. While it’s possible for bright students to begin this route by receiving a bachelors in economics or public administration, those most interested in becoming a CEO often pursue a related business-related degree, including management and/or business administration. In fact, this degree is growing in popularity for its ability to prepare graduates for careers in all kinds of corporations (not just those headed up by Fortune 500 companies). A management degree, for example, allows you to take on the role of a top manager in any type of company from small privately held companies to multi-national chains. The skills learned in a college or university will be transferred to the workplace, giving you not only a competitive edge against other future competitors, but also a wide range of opportunities to pursue depending on your interests and talents.

One skill that you absolutely must have if you want to become a CEO is strategic thinking. While many are under the impression that strategic thinking means you’ll need to have an advanced degree in economics or business, it actually refers to a series of general business skills that can be applied to any type of organization. Those who wish to go into management must be skilled at building a team that works well together and at managing resources effectively. Most importantly, they must possess excellent leadership skills – being able to lead people and make decisions that benefit the company rather than simply their own career path.

If you think you have what it takes to be a CEO, you’ll need to go beyond your current level of education. Many CEOs began their careers as either an officer or director of a company, and there’s a good chance that you were a key manager in one or more of these companies. Some of the skills you learned while in college – strategic thinking, team building, and leadership – can serve you well as a manager in another type of organization. Even some of the best CFOs began their careers as an officer or director of a corporation, so these skills are also relevant to your future as a CEO. Just because you were a key player on the team of a large corporation doesn’t mean you can’t apply these same skills to a smaller business. The only difference will be that you probably won’t earn the stock options or the salary that CFOs earn.

There are several distinct types of CFOs who perform many different duties within organizations. Chief financial officers manage the overall finances of a corporation. Audit executives inspect the books of a company and the financial documents that back them up. Chief compliance officers to ensure that the books of a corporation are accurate and up-to-date. Many CEOs have advanced degrees and specialized certifications from a college or vocational institute, which makes them experts in their particular areas of accounting, finance, or business law.

In today’s fast-paced business environment, pursuing ongoing training and development is crucial for managers and executives seeking to advance their careers. While a strong educational foundation in areas like business, economics, or public administration can provide critical hard skills, the soft skills of leadership, communication, and strategic thinking are equally vital. Fortunately, companies offer various professional training programs to help leaders strengthen these competencies.

Some popular options include management bootcamps that leverage case studies and role playing to fine-tune analytical and decision-making abilities. Leadership camps take professionals outside the boardroom to develop organizational and team-building techniques. And strategic thinking seminars use war-gaming simulations to improve the judgment calls and trade-off decisions required in high-stakes corporate moves.

You could also look forward to professional development certifications like the POPM certification training course, which can teach you how to apply Lean, Agile, and SAFe principles to enhance your business agility. The certification is valuable for individuals who want to excel in product management and product ownership in an agile or scaled agile environment. It equips you with the knowledge and skills needed to lead and contribute effectively to product development in organizations that adopt SAFe practices. The certification offers individual professionals a wide range of advantages, from career advancement and higher earning potential to enhanced skills and marketability. It can be a valuable investment in one’s professional development and can lead to a more fulfilling and successful career in agile product management and ownership.

In addition, for executives guiding agile transformations, the other particularly impactful offering is the SAFe (Scaled Agile Framework) Practice Consultant Certification Training. This intensive course equips participants to coach departments through moving from traditional waterfall development to faster, more flexible agile methodologies. Given how instrumental enterprise agility is for innovation and competitiveness, the SPC certification empowers leaders to spearhead mission-critical initiatives.

The range of impactful training available makes ongoing skills enhancement achievable at various career stages. Whether an aspiring manager fresh out of an MBA program, or an executive leading a company through market changes, tailored development opportunities help professionals continue progressing and delivering ever-greater value. With sound training choices, executives can reliably elevate both their organizations and their careers.

Although many people view becoming an executive as the easy way out of working for yourself, it is usually the most difficult path to take. It requires strong leadership skills as well as business acumen to lead a team of people and make sound business decisions. Your primary focus may not be managing the day-to-day operations of the organization, but making important strategic and key decisions. In order to climb the corporate ladder, it is imperative that you are both capable and experienced in decision-making.

However, it is vital to prioritize your mental well-being amid this pursuit. The path to CEO can sometimes be overwhelming, potentially leading to a loss of mental peace and a sense of being inundated. Such challenges can cloud your vision, hamper your focus, and impact your overall performance. Fortunately, by incorporating healthy relaxation practices and taking regular breaks, you can prevent this issue. Thankfully, a guide to CEO mental health available on the Web can effectively aid in achieving this balance.

Conclusion

Although it may seem very unlikely, some companies actually groom their top executives for a leadership role. If you work with a company that does this, it is possible that you will even qualify for a senior leadership role down the road. These companies hire executives on a full-time basis and groom them for future opportunities.

As these executives gain more managerial experience, they remain employed by the company and take their job responsibilities seriously. As they approach retirement, they remain board members vote on major issues affecting the company, and share their opinions with other board members.