Article: Your first step should be to see exactly where you fit in the management of the company. Start by examining its organizational structure. The complexity of this structure will largely depend on the size of the company. As CEO, you may be in charge of several other executives and a few dozen employees or dozens of executives and thousands of employees.  Look at different divisions within the company to see how operations are separated and carried out. Depending on the executive structure of the company, you might be reported to directly by all employees or by executives like the chief financial officer (CFO) and various vice presidents. The CEO might be the founder or owner of the company, and therefore would only be responsible for reporting to other large shareholders. However, in many cases, the CEO reports to a board of directors or the owner of the company. In this way, they act as the operation hand of the board, carrying out their decisions. A CEO may also work in tandem with another executive, like a vice president or chairman, to make key business decisions. Make sure to clearly assess who you are responsible for reporting to. When you report to the board or owner, if you are required to do so, you will report on new operational plans and/or the progress of existing plans. These might include both short-term and long-term plans. Progress must be reported at regular intervals, depending on the board requirements. In addition, the board will likely require that the CEO report to them on the financial health of the company quarterly and annually. The CEO might also be responsible for assessing the performance of subordinate executives and reporting their findings to the board. The CEOs duties vary between organizations as well. You may be responsible for coming up with a new direction for the company or more narrowly focus on improving a single metric. To be successful, you'll have to figure out exactly how your performance will be measured. If the board expects you to take the company in a new direction and you focus on increasing sales, you may be replaced. Ask for specific goals so that you can create a plan for reaching them and carry out that plan. The CEO must be conscious of all of the company's resources, including both capital and people. They need to know how much of each to allocate to the different departments and how to do so efficiently to reach the best results. Identify company assets like cash reserves and other liquid assets that can be used when needed. Assess the needs of the company as they apply to your plan, prioritizing the most important aspects and providing them with resources first. Successful distribution of resources requires that you clearly understand the operations and limitations of the company.

What is a summary?
Review the company's organization. Figure out who you report to. Determine reporting goals. Identify manager performance goals. Identify financial assets, needs, and limitations.