"the job of the CEO involves the challenge of " refounding" the company. That is, the founder started the organization for a reason, be it a year or a century ago, with a thesis about the business and why it exists beyond the category. Simon Sinek refers to this as a company's "why;" I like to think of it as the company's conviction. It's what they believe and are willing to stand for, even if it means losing business."
"I find conviction to be much more action-oriented because your organization can have a "why" but veer away from it in the face of inconvenience. However, you can't be convicted if you aren't willing to stand for it. Through this lens of refounding, the CEO's job is to maintain the integrity of the founder's intended conviction and align it to a holistic operating system within the organization. That operating system, of course, is culture."
The CEO's core responsibility is to refound the company by preserving and renewing the founder's original conviction and aligning it with the organization's structures. A company's conviction answers why it exists beyond its category and requires willingness to stand for that belief even when inconvenient or costly. Conviction is action-oriented and demands consistent practice across decisions and behaviors. The CEO must maintain the integrity of that conviction and embed it into a holistic operating system—culture—that coordinates strategy, processes, and leadership. This alignment sustains purpose over time while enabling adaptation.
Read at Fast Company
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