Why Richard Branson is the world’s best boss

By Hannah Edensor

Everybody wants to work with visionary entrepreneur and founder of Virgin Group, Richard Branson, and honestly it doesn’t come as much of a shock.

Hotwire PR has commissioned research that shows Aussies are dying to work with innovative and internationally-acclaimed CEOs, much like Branson.

The Virgin boss topped the list of A+ CEOs worldwide, with a 47% favourability rate, and given his track record for new ideas, advocacy for global issues and his “Just do it” motto, he’s a great #1 for this list.

Not only did the stats show that Branson was the most desired CEO Australians want to work for, but also that staff would like their own local bosses to chat more with staff (37%), and offer more support and flexibility in the workplace (35%).

Other CEOs that Aussies held on a pedestal included the late Steve Jobs from Apple, and Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, who both came in second.

Given their pizzazz in the tech field, both Jobs and Zuckerberg were most favoured among the 18-24-year old’s – 50% of them to be exact. Branson, on the other hand, was far more popular with those aged over 35.

Back in the airline business, and Qantas’ Alan Joyce came in fourth most popular in the world of innovative CEOs, with 21% ready to give their right arm for a chance to work with him (well, maybe not their arm).

Aussie CEOs compared to the rest of the world, however, were ranked much lower on the list of ideal CEOs.

And you’d all know of Elon Musk, co-founder of Tesla and CEO of SpaceX, among other things. Well, he had a popularity rate of 27%, but was more favoured by men than women, who only had 9% voting for him.

Male respondents were also more likely to want to see more innovation and vision (28% each) from their bosses and CEOs, than female respondents (17% and 20% respectively).

According to recent research from ManpowerGroup Solutions, over half of Aussie youngsters are actively looking for their next job opportunity, meaning local leaders need to be more in tune with their staff than ever.

Hotwire Australia Country Manager, Mylan Vu, commented, “The results highlight how closely the personal brand of a CEO is impacting people’s actions regarding where they work and their motivations in the workplace.

“The current and next generations of workers will be looking to Australian business leaders for innovative and tech-driven ideas, and there’s a huge opportunity to engage with the workforce through simple communication and by listening to employees’ desires for flexible work environments.”

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Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au

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