How Well Do Canadians Know Their Bosses?

How well do Canadians know their bosses?

A new CareerBuilder.ca survey of full-time workers in Canada suggests that most employees have met their CEO and know what he or she looks like. The survey, conducted online by by Harris Interactive, reveals that 61% of workers says they've met their CEO while 39% have not. More female workers (64%) have met their CEO compared to 58% of males.

However, Canadians' knowledge of the organizational chart falls off significantly after the CEO. Only 34% of workers can name all of the C-level officers in their organization, while 20% can only name just a few C-level officers.


The survey also found that familiarity with senior leadership does not necessarily correlate with knowledge of the company's financial performance. For example, 70% of workers don't know how much their company generates in revenue each year.

"Leadership from the C-suite can be a difficult balance," explains CareerBuilder's Rosemary Haefner. "The CEO and, in some cases, other senior leaders are the face of the company both internally and externally. Meaning they need to find a level of accessibility that allows them to connect with employees, while on the other hand, dedicate the necessary time for building relationships with outside stakeholders. Employees realize their top leaders can't know everyone on a first name basis, but they do expect their leaders to be a public symbol that embodies the organization's values."