In the age of personality, it's not surprising that bosses of giant corporations are seen as more than mere figureheads. But do we expect too much of them? This cult of the CEO is a bad business, argues David Prosser
One is the current poster boy for all that is so unacceptable about big business. The announcement of the other's forthcoming retirement saw him feted the world over for his corporate achievements. At first sight, Tony Hayward, chief executive of BP, and Sir Terry Leahy, the chief executive of Tesco, could not have less in common.
Yet the two men share a bond: membership of a relatively exclusive club. Both run companies that are among the world's largest, at a time when there has never been so much scrutiny of such leaders. Indeed, in an age in which the desire to personalise, to put a face to a name, has become all-consuming, these men practically are their companies.
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