????我們是否已經進入后CEO時代？

????這是個特別合時宜的問題，原因不僅僅在于眼光獨到的技術先驅史蒂夫?喬布斯剛剛逝世不久。這位蘋果公司（Apple）核心創新者的離世令許多人倍感絕望，因為他們相信，他正是蘋果公司背后唯一的推動力。人們認為，CEO是公司里唯一有能力改變世界的人。這種想法不僅非常可怕，同時也有失公允。假如這種觀念成為美國創新的模式，那將是非常危險的賭博。

????現在，我們應該轉變思想了。整個行業——出版、金融、汽車、房地產等等，不一而足——甚至整個國家都在經歷變革。曾經強大的經濟體陷入困境，而新興經濟體與他們既競爭又合作。全新的商業模式取代了舊有的模式，這些新模式常常以軟件和服務為中心。這個世界正變得越來越復雜。世上的CEO們作為企業的領導者，將越來越難以單獨行事。只有建立和維持一個強大、靈活、多樣和緊密團結的領導團隊，才能迎接未來的挑戰。

????IBM2010年對全球1,500多位CEO進行的一項調查中發現，79%的CEO預計他們將在未來面對比如今更加復雜的局面。這個驚人的比例表明，單個領導者的意見、想法和經驗可能不足以在未來成功駕馭一家公司。IBM在2011年對全球3,000多位首席信息官（chief information officer，簡稱CIO）的一項調查顯示，現在CEO和CIO比以往任何時候都更加團結，他們正在使用IT創新來提高公司業績。

????IBM的調查結果表明，盡管團隊領導目前還不是管理層面的目標，但集體決策與個人決策的較量越來越不可避免，越來越明顯。

????值得指出的是，IBM一直都是團隊領導的踐行者。這家公司在一個世紀的發展歷程中已經打造了一支強大的領導管理團隊，甚至在富有魅力的CEO劉易斯?格斯特納離開公司之后，也能幫助IBM繼續發展壯大。2002年，扭轉了IBM頹勢的格斯特納離職，當時公司里的許多人都擔心會出現領導真空，就像喬布斯在逝世前不久辭任蘋果公司CEO的情況一樣。當時，蘋果公司的市值和文化影響力正處于頂峰。

????然而，在后格斯特納時代，IBM仍然勢不可擋，今年其市值甚至超越了微軟，這還是自1996年以來的第一次。藍色巨人（IBM別稱）受益于其企業文化和價值觀，而這兩點長期以來一直都有助于推行團隊領導。比如，IBM不久前宣布，弗吉尼亞?羅曼提將在1月份接替彭明盛成為公司總裁兼CEO。這項任命并沒有引起商界的震動。IBM歷來重視培養出色的高管，輔佐公司的CEO。他們不僅是公司的接班人，還使公司的日常運作變得更加順暢。

????Are we living in a post-CEO world?

????This is a particularly timely question, and not just because I pose it not long after the loss of tech pioneer and visionary Steve Jobs. The death of Apple's (AAPL) core innovator has been met with widespread despair, because many believe he was the singular driving force behind the company. Yet the idea that a CEO is the only person within a business who has the ability to change the world is daunting and unfair. For such a concept to be the model for American innovation is a risky bet.

????It's time for our thinking to evolve. Entire industries -- publishing, finance, automotive, and real estate, to name a few -- and even entire nations are changing. As once-mighty economies suffer and emerging players on the world stage both compete and collaborate with them, and as new business models, often centered around software and services, take the place of old ones, the world is becoming more complex. The world's chief executives will be increasingly hard-pressed to go it alone as leaders. Only by building and maintaining a strong, flexible, diverse, and solidly aligned leadership team will they be able to face the challenges ahead.

????In a 2010 survey of more than 1,500 global CEOs, IBM (IBM) found that 79% of chief executives anticipate that they will face greater complexity in the future than they do today. This stunning statistic suggests that the opinions, ideas, and experience of a single leader might not be sufficient for successfully navigating an organization in the years ahead. In fact, a 2011 IBM C-suite survey of more than 3,000 chief information officers worldwide concluded that CEOs and CIOs are more aligned than ever before and are using IT innovation to drive business results.

????IBM's findings suggest that even if team leadership isn't currently a management goal, group versus solo decision-making is increasingly necessary and falling into place.

????It's worth noting that IBM is a perennial practitioner of team leadership. In its 100 years, the company has built a robust executive management team, which has helped it to thrive even after charismatic CEO Lou Gerstner left the business. When Gerstner, who is credited with the company's turnaround, departed in 2002, many people at IBM feared a leadership void similar to that left by Jobs, who stepped down as CEO of Apple shortly before his death, at the company's zenith of market valuation and cultural influence.

????But in the post-Gerstner era, IBM continues to be a juggernaut—even rising above Microsoft (MSFT) in market capitalization this year for the first time since 1996. Big Blue is buoyed by its corporate culture and values, which for a long time have been conducive to team leadership. For example, the recent announcement that Virginia Rometty will succeed Sam Palmisano as president and CEO in January did not come as a surprise to the business world. IBM has a history of cultivating strong senior officials to support its chief executives, making not only successions, but also day-to-day operations smooth.