Before the invention of office-based jobs, occupation titles were much simpler. Baker, farmer, factory worker, baker; it did not get any more complicated than this. There is a myriad of ways to define the different levels of employees which make up an organization. Here’s a brief overview of the most important job titles to help you become familiar with the hierarchy of command within a typical company.
It is an abbreviation for the Chief Executive Officer. A CEO can be described as the top, most powerful executive within the company and is responsible for the organization’s overall management. The primary responsibilities of the CEO are creating and implementing strategies at a high level taking major business decisions, overseeing the entire operations and resources of the business, and acting as the principal contact among the directors of the board as well as operations management. The CEO is usually given an advisory position on the board of directors and sometimes serves as Chairman and CEO. The company’s founder usually performs the CEO position as an example. Mark Zuckerberg is the CEO of Facebook.
The CEO may also be called the MD, the Managing Director. They have the same list of responsibilities.
COO
The Chief Operating Officer is accountable for the company’s day-to-day operations and is directly accountable to the Chief Executive Officer. He is the most senior executive and second in the chain of command. The role can be very diverse and based on the demands of the company as well as the needs that the CEO has. The COO could also be able to serve as the President of the directors’ board.
Director
A director is a step lower than the CEO. However, they still have a crucial management role in a particular aspect of the company. Directorship is a division of staff, and larger companies are likely to have multiple directors in various categories, such as an HR director who is accountable for the health and wellbeing of the entire staff (known by the name of Human Resources). Directors usually report to a Vice-President or directly to the Chief Executive Officer.
Senior Manager
The position of an executive manager is needed in large corporations in cases where an additional structure for management is thought to be required between directorship and general management. Senior managers are accountable for coordinating and supervising the activities of a team of employees, evaluating their performance, and performing corrective or disciplinary actions whenever required.
Manager
Before we reach the general employee level, we will have the general staff level. These are roles that extend the ones found lower in the hierarchy, but with the added responsibility of overseeing the management of staff at lower levels doing the same work. For instance, an account manager within the company whose responsibility is overseeing an account portfolio of clients is accountable to account executives and will be overseen by a senior account manager who is accountable to the department head, usually a director.
Executive
The definition of executive can differ slightly. In general, an executive is one of the entry-level jobs within a company. It is typically the title assigned to those who are accountable for the company’s day-to-day work. It can refer to an individual who is granted responsibilities referred to as executive, like managerial or administrative authority. Many jobs are given to individuals who perform the duties that are associated with this section of the business. However, it is a fact that they’re the true center of the business and are the ones who accomplish their tasks!
