Mark Valentino

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When your CEO shares your mission, you can focus on growth knowing the company is in good hands. Hiring the right CEO means finding someone who’s not just capable but deeply aligned with what your company stands for. You’re handing over the reins to someone who needs to lead, and lead like you would—with full conviction in the company’s mission and the clarity to drive it forward. It’s a high-stakes decision that can either strengthen or unravel your foundation. To help you make the right call, nine Fast Company Executive Board members share how they’ve identified and retained CEOs who are mission-driven, reliable, and ready to take the reins. Below, they offer practical ways for finding a leader who can build on your vision while giving you the freedom to focus on what’s next.

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Building a strong business credit rating is like constructing a house: You need a solid foundation to support the structure.

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Whether you're navigating a merger, restructuring a team, or launching a new initiative, it's important to be prepared to navigate change smoothly. Big organizational changes at work can stir up just about everything—nerves, questions, and even momentum. That’s why how you lead through change matters just as much as the change itself. Without the right approach, it’s easy for you and your team to lose clarity, confidence, and productivity along the way. To help you manage change effectively, Fast Company Executive Board members share 19 real-world strategies leaders can use to keep communication flowing, maintain trust, and move through transitions with purpose.

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Looking to boost business with a client rewards program? Keep these factors in mind to ensure it's a success. Incentive and rewards programs can encourage repeat business from loyal customers. However, simply offering points or perks won't necessarily drive long-term loyalty. To have a real, lasting impact, your program needs to be thoughtfully designed around what truly motivates customers and delivers mutual value. With this in mind, the members of Fast Company Executive Board share key factors to consider when developing a client rewards program and why it's so critical to get these details right.

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Regardless of your industry, any company can benefit from forging deeper connections with its target audience. In a noisy digital world, engaging with your target audience online is the key to standing out and staying relevant. While different engagement tactics may work best for different industries, you can't go wrong by building strong relationships with the people who support your business. To help you do this, 20 members of Fast Company Executive Board share their most effective go-to engagement strategies and why engagement is so important. From leveraging employee voices to creating personalized experiences, these hands-on tactics have helped them build deeper connections and drive measurable growth.

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Digital and physical clutter can quietly derail focus and productivity. This season, take some time to "spring clean" your work environment. From outdated tools to bloated workflows, the buildup of unnecessary tasks and information can make it harder to prioritize what really moves the business forward. A thorough, thoughtful spring cleaning routine helps leaders streamline operations, sharpen team focus, and create space for more intentional, high-impact work. Below, 18 members of Fast Company Executive Board share some must-do spring cleaning tasks for the workplace. From cleaning up your tech stack to auditing your workflows, these activities can set your business up for success for the rest of the year.