Riding Shotgun.

• Author: Mittelstaedt, Robert E., Jr.

Riding Shotgun

By Nate Bennett and Stephen A. Miles

Published by Stanford University Press, Palo Alto, Calif., 208 pages, $27.95

MANY PEOPLE view the COO as the person who toils away in the engine room making sure the ship is running while the CEO is on the bridge plotting the course and reveling in the glory of success. Lately, researchers and authors have dared to ask, "Is the role of the COO situational?" It turns out the answer is a resounding "Yes."

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Management scholars Donald C. Hambrick and A.A. Canella Jr. discussed this "unexplored structural form" in 2004 ("CEOs Who Have COOs: Contingency Analysis of an Unexplored Structural Form," Strategic Management Journal, October 2004). Now from Nate Bennett, a professor of management at Georgia Tech, and Stephen Miles, a partner at Heidrick & Struggles, comes a quick read on the subject called Riding Shotgun: The Role of the COO. This book summarizes the authors' interviews of CEOs and COOs to shed light on the range of expectations for the COO role, as well as responsibilities and relationships.

On the basis of their interviews and observations, the authors conclude that there are three clear models for the COO, should a CEO and board decide to have one:

* The COO as Mr. Inside;

* The two-in-a-box model (co-leaders); and

* The situational model.

They conclude the situational model is the most prevalent, and then describe some well-known situations in which the role and relationships worked well or did not work so well. They point out that some CEOs prefer operational unit heads as direct reports; that way the CEO does not lose touch with the business, thus minimizing the need for a COO. For CEOs who do choose to work with a COO, the authors point out the (fairly obvious) factors likely to lead to success: delineation of responsibilities, development of a trusting relationship, limited skill set overlap, strong and effective communications, and office proximity.

Most important, the authors discuss the reasons for even considering the COO position. Does the CEO need help with the workload, complementary skills, a potential successor-in-training, or even a more experienced mentor who will not be a succession candidate?

Riding Shotgun concludes that the...