Who hold more power in a company CEO or the president

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers on the power dynamics between the roles of CEO and President within a company. Participants explore the responsibilities, authority, and interactions between these positions, considering various corporate structures and scenarios, including bankruptcy and ownership changes.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants suggest that the CEO has more power because they execute the orders set by the President.
  • Others argue that the President can influence decisions significantly, especially if they hold a majority of shares in the company.
  • There is a question about whether the President can fire the CEO or other employees, with some suggesting that such decisions require shareholder approval.
  • Participants discuss the implications of a President acquiring a company in bankruptcy and how that affects their power.
  • Some express that a new owner can delegate operational responsibilities to existing management while retaining ownership control.
  • There is mention of the potential for merging companies if the owner holds a majority of shares in both entities.
  • One participant notes that the structure of the company and its bylaws significantly influence the roles and powers of the CEO and President.
  • Another participant shares a personal perspective, indicating that in their experience, the President generally holds more power, but the CEO has substantial influence within their department.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express multiple competing views regarding the power dynamics between the CEO and President, with no clear consensus reached on who holds more power overall.

Contextual Notes

Participants acknowledge that the roles and powers of the CEO and President can vary significantly based on corporate bylaws, state laws, and the specific structure of the company.

badman
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im confused over these tqwo position. big companies have both position, but who hold more power? if the president makes a rule or wants to do something new with the company does he has to go thru the CEO?
 
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Yes, the President makes policy but it is the job of the CEOs to execute those orders. The CEO thus, has more power in the company because he/she is the one who has the power to actually get things done in the company. At least, this is how most companies work (with the respective positions) according to my father.
 
can the president fire the CEO or any other employee?
 
I would think decisions like that have to be voted on. I remember getting material from a stock I own that asked my choice on a board hiring decision so I would assume that means all hiring/firing at that level must be agreed upon by a majority of the share holders.
 
what if the president bought up the majority of the shares when he purchased a company while it was in bankruptcy?
 
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The company he is President of or another copmany all together?
 
the company he's president of
 
Well then what he says goes. The chief officers still are in charge of executing orders but they could just be fired if they don't do it since the president has the majority power in the company.
 
cool. i have another question since you have more knowledge than i do. but if a company files for bankruptcy, can someone acquire it and still hold the majority of power?
 
  • #10
Sure. I believe there are many famous companies that were saved from going under because some billionaire bought it up or another company bought it.
 
  • #11
sweet. one last question if someone does buy up a company and he/she just decideds just to use it for monetary reason but doesn't want to run everything or be COO or CEO, can he just have the people who were running the company handle it?
 
  • #12
Yah I am pretty sure the person can do that. there's probably some legal agreements that need to be made but it can probably be done rather easily.
 
  • #13
i know i said last question, but one more just popped into my head. its related to the previous question i asked. so if the new owner did give up his position in running the company, could he later merge the company with another company he owns?
 
  • #14
If he holds the majority of shares (or simply owns) of both companies, he can merge them.
 
  • #15
Pengwuino, I can't help but wonder whether you're helping him on his quest for world domination or something. The way he's saying "cool" and "sweet" after you answer his questions...uh oh.

badman: Just in case your plan does involve world domination: remember, everything is legal until someone notices :biggrin: .
 
  • #16
Archon said:
badman: Just in case your plan does involve world domination: remember, everything is legal until someone notices :biggrin: .

Oh yah, IM the one helping him achieve world domination :P
 
  • #17
badman said:
im confused over these tqwo position. big companies have both position, but who hold more power? if the president makes a rule or wants to do something new with the company does he has to go thru the CEO?
Normally the President reports to the CEO who reports to the board. The CEO may be a board memeber, and may be Chairman of the Board. a lot depends on the structure of the company.

Here is a good overview of the duties of the CEO - http://www.leadershipdecisionworks.com/articles/ceojob1.htm,

and http://academic.emporia.edu/smithwil/s99mg444/eja/mcclay.htm#Duties

The CEO is a strategic thinker in a company.

The President is usually the chief administrative officer and is responsible for daily operations. Probably similar to Chief Operating Officer).

Here is one description of the corporate president's duties - http://www.lrc.state.ky.us/KRS/154A00/070.PDF (here is defines president as chief executive officer).

One person could be both CEO and President.

Again, a lot has to do with the Articles of Incorporation and State corporate laws. Each nation may have significant or subtle differences in corporate law which affect the roles of president and CEO.
 
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  • #18
The President may be the CEO., but that all depends on the Corporate Bylaws of the company. It rarely is mentioned in the Articles of Incorporation.
 
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  • #19
dduardo said:
The President may be the CEO., but that all depends on the Corporate Bylaws of the company. It rarely is mentioned in the Articles of Incorporation.
Yeah - I believe that is generally the case. Thanks for pointing that out.
 
  • #20
Well, my dad is a CEO for his company and the president has more power in general, but in his department, my dad has quite a bit of power. Almost every idea is run by the president before it is executed though.
 

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