Situational Background

Arvind Krishna, IBM’s CEO since 2020 (chair since 2021), isa principled, engineering-minded leader who communicates with clarity and restraint. He focuses on disciplined priorities, transparent choices, and trust—especially in complex, regulated environments. Krishna pairs long-term thinking with practical delivery and respectful candour. Distinctive for measured judgment and integrity, his approach travels well across sectors.

Practical Leadership Principles

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1) Principle-centred thinking.

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Decide from first principles you’re willing to state publicly.
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Behaviours to model:

• Write your decision criteria.
• Explain trade-offs before outcomes.
• Revisit principles when facts change.

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2) Discipline and focus.

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Concentration beats diffusion.
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Behaviours to model:

• Publish the short list of priorities.
• Exit low-impact work decisively.
• Review progress with simple metrics.

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3) Trust by design.

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Make reliability and fairness everyday habits.
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Behaviours to model:

• Share assumptions and limits.
• Invite independent challenge.
• Document decisions and learnings.

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Call to action

List your top three priorities, one principle you’ll use to decide today, and one transparency step you’ll take—then communicate all three to your team.