Don’t fall for the fashion of the hardcore chief executive

The best leaders should toggle between leadership styles according to the conditions

In January, Tufan Erginbilgic reached for the dangerous metaphor of the “burning platform” to describe Rolls-Royce’s predicament. PHOTO: REUTERS
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Tufan Erginbilgic is barely two months into his job. Yet already the chief executive of aerospace group Rolls-Royce sounds like the incarnation of a style of no-nonsense, emotionless leadership that a combination of purpose and the pandemic seemed to have sent to the scrapheap.

Anonymous comments from former colleagues suggest the one-time BP executive “doesn’t do being woke” and is “not a people person” (Financial Times). Mr Erginbilgic is “not hugely likeable”, and “a really hard taskmaster” but “if you’re a red meat eater that loves driving performance, you’ll think he’s great” (Sunday Times).

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