To oversee the daily operations of an organization, top executives do a little bit of everything, they make critical financial decisions, appoint new managers, plan new strategies, all to ensure the organization meets its goals. Top executives closely observe company operations, legal matters, and financial health. Since they are largely responsible for an organization’s success, the work is often stressful; if the company performs poorly, their job is at risk. Top executives also spend a lot of their time developing and building the teams that conduct the work of the organization. They represent their organization at conferences and events, and on visits to the company’s national or international locations. Some oversee a specific part of the business, such as chief financial officers or chief human resources officers. Top executives work in nearly every industry, and any size of organization, from one-person companies, to small non-profits, to firms with hundreds of thousands of employees. In most cases, they report to a board of directors. Executives often work more than 40 hours a week, including evenings and weekends. Top executives usually have a bachelor’s or master’s degree, often in business administration, or an area related to their field, such as public administration. They typically have many years of experience, having earned promotions into managerial positions.
Sources: Minnesota CAREERwise & CareerOneStop
Typical Work Tasks
People who work in this career often:
- Determine resource needs.
- Implement organizational process or policy changes.
- Direct financial operations.
- Direct organizational operations, projects, or services.
- Direct sales, marketing, or customer service activities.
- Manage construction activities.
- Manage environmental sustainability projects.
- Prepare staff schedules or work assignments.
- Monitor performance of organizational members or partners.
- Conduct employee training programs.
Typical Working Conditions
- Having face-to-face discussions.
- The freedom to determine tasks, priorities, and goals.
- Working with a group or team.
- Freedom to make decisions without supervision.
- Working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions.
- Responsibility for outcomes and results.
- Meeting strict deadlines.
- Being in situations in which conflicts arise.
- Sitting.
Tools & Technology used by Entrepreneurs
Source: Minnesota CAREERwise
Skills & Knowledge:
Most Important Skills for Entrepreneurs
- Being Aware of Others—Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Listening—Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Monitoring Performance—Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Reading—Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
- Speaking—Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Thinking Critically—Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
- Coordinating with Others—Adjusting actions in relation to others’ actions.
- Managing People—Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
- Writing—Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Making Decisions—Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Most Important Knowledge Areas for Entrepreneurs
- Administration and Management—Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Customer and Personal Service—Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Personnel and Human Resources—Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Production and Processing—Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Mathematics—Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Sales and Marketing—Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Computers and Electronics—Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Education and Training—Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Economics and Accounting—Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Clerical—Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
Interests
Different careers may be a good fit for your personality or interests. This career is:
- Enterprising—Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.
- Conventional—Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.
Source: Minnesota CAREERwise
| Wages Per Hour For Entrepreneurs (MN) | ||
Low$28.91 |
Median$43.50 |
High$64.54 |
Low indicates 25% of workers earn less and 75% earn more. Median indicates 50% of workers earn less and 50% earn more. High indicates 75% of workers earn less and 25% earn more.
NOTE: Wages for start ups may be less than what is shown.
Demand
This career is seeing high growth compared to other careers. There will be a 7.8% growth for Entrepreneurs to meet market demand between 2018-2028. This includes the demand due to replacement (workers leaving the occupation or retiring) as well as growth.
Source: Minnesota CAREERwise
This career requires at least at least an Associates degree, but most professionals have a Bachelors degree. Licensing and certificates are completely dependent on the types of business that is developed.
View the local post-secondary education options for this career from Central Lakes College.
Spotlight on Central Lakes College
- Why consider CLC?
- Virtual Campus Tours: Brainerd Campus, Staples Campus
- Learn more about the CLC Honors Program.
- Attend CLC, and you may never need to buy a textbook.
If you have a physical, mental, developmental, or cognitive condition that requires educational support, learn about support options at CLC.
Helpful High School Courses
Examples of helpful classes that help you prepare for this career:
- Accounting
- Business English
- Business Law
- Computer Applications
- Economics
- Entrepreneurship
- International Business
- Marketing
- Public Speaking
- Social Media
Source: Minnesota CAREERwise
Play the role of a new business start-up in this simulation by Knowledge Matters, Inc.
Videos
Mushroom Kit Entrepreneur (Connect Ed)
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