4 important leadership takeaways from Modern CEO in 2025

Hello and welcome to Modern CEO! Each week this newsletter explores inclusive approaches to leadership drawn from conversations with executives and entrepreneurs, and from the pages of Inc. and Fast Company. If you received this newsletter from a friend, you can sign up to get it yourself every Monday morning. Hello, again. I’m Gwen Moran, Modern CEO’s editor. Last year, I shared some of my top takeaways from the first year of Stephanie Mehta’s weekly newsletter for people who run successful companies. The dedicated team ensuring that Modern CEO hits your inbox each week has been delighted to watch the newsletter turn into an ongoing conversation with a growing base of loyal readers. As we close out 2024, here are some of the most powerful takeaways from a year of exploring leadership, management, innovation, and other issues important to people in the C-suite.   Biases get in the way of opportunities The importance of removing bias was a lesson Robert I. Grossman, CEO of NYU Langone Health, reinforced in September. During Grossman’s tenure, the health system’s revenue grew from $2 billion in 2007 to $14 billion. While being a radiologist might not seem like a natural stepping stone to the C-suite, he says his training has been an important part of his success. “I think that’s unusual for a CEO to have training that enables them to extract their biases, detect signals from the noise, and manage in a very focused way,” he said.  In one of our most popular pieces of the year, Lin-Manuel Miranda shared some unconventional wisdom. His creative process includes staying open to every performance he watches—even when he doesn’t like them—to figure out opportunities to create: “As long as you stay open to all of it and you figure out who you are amidst everything you’re consuming, you’re going to make stuff that really excites you.”  AI still dominates conversations Generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) has business leaders abuzz, even if they’re still grappling with exactly how to optimize its use in their organizations. In May, four CEOs shared their thoughts on and experiences with Gen AI with Modern CEO. From cost savings to increased productivity to developing new products and services, their answers ranged from speculation to concrete examples with bottom-line impact. What’s clear is that the technology has grown by leaps and bounds in adoption and applications this year. There will certainly be more to report in 2025.   Some initiatives work—even if they’re unpopular This year, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and environmental, sustainability, and governance (ESG) each came under fire. But Modern CEO heard repeatedly from CEOs about the impact of these initiatives. In June, the newsletter featured leaders from Fast Company’s Queer 50 list and found that many of those featured had been with the same company for years or even decades. As Fast Company Senior Editor Julia Herbst said, “They’ve found a place that accepts them, where they feel like they can be their true and authentic selves.”   Beyond retention, some companies are embracing these concepts because they’re good for the bottom line. This month, Modern CEO of the Year Tarang Amin, CEO of E.l.f. Beauty, credited his team with the company’s ability to respond quickly to market demands, saying “When you have a team that reflects your community, you can move at a much faster pace . . . .” And, in July, Modern CEO covered how HP is using innovative concepts in response to resource scarcity and supply chain disruptions by advancing its circular economy efforts.  Good leaders need a few key traits  In January, Modern CEO reported that the No. 1 “quality or characteristic” CEOs need is humility. Readers had opinions about that assertion, countering that traits like empathy and authenticity were most important, which we reported in February. In November, Alicia Boler Davis, CEO of billion-dollar digital pharmacy Alto, reminded us of another important trait: the ability to “unlearn”—even when your teachers are the people running one of the world’s most successful companies. While learning from Jeff Bezos and Andy Jassy is a rare opportunity, there were also approaches she needed to reconsider in the startup world. “We have to be nimble; we have to be fast; we have to be creative,” she told Modern CEO. “The first solution isn’t being built for a million people—you have to demonstrate that you have a product that works before you can scale it.”  Finally, our February headline reporting that 19 CEOs died on the job last year, according to data from outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, held more good advice for leaders: “Self-care is part of your job”—both for the good of your company and the people who depend on you.   Share your favorites Did you have a favorite takeaway from  Modern CEO this year? Or are you dealing with a challenge you’d like Modern CEO to explore? Send your thoughts and fee