We have already started to see the rise of the Creator-CEO – groups of influencers turned entrepreneurs who are monetizing not only products and brands, but their own lifestyles. Executive leaders and founders are now taking a page from that playbook. Today’s CEOs are expected to be visible, vocal, and, more than ever, creative. And there’s a business case behind it as well.
Business and mindset coach Suz Chadwick explains that we’re now just as guided by the connection to a company’s CEO as we are to the brand itself. “Years ago it was about the business brand, it was all about whether it was Nike or Google or even Instagram. Now we know Mark Zuckerberg, we know Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos,” Chadwick says. “We’re in an economy where we actually want to know about who the people are behind the brand, and it influences our buying decisions.”
Because influence is fragmented, trust is scarce, and the line between brand and leader is blurrier than ever. As Harvard Business Review argues in Why CEOs Need to Be Chief Storytellers, leaders who don’t shape the narrative risk letting others do it for them.
The CEOs who get this right aren’t just posting LinkedIn updates once a quarter, but rather developing a content strategy where they run their own content engines. Consider how Satya Nadella’s writing on empathy and innovation helped reshape Microsoft’s culture. Or how Melanie Perkins, CEO of Canva, uses personal storytelling to keep the company’s mission front and center.
So, what does it take to build a credible, compelling CEO content strategy? Here are five tips:
Every post, podcast, or keynote should anchor back to a clear purpose. In The CEO Content Playbook, Forbes reminds us that consistency builds authority. Define the few big ideas you want to be known for – then repeat, refine, repeat again.
Not every leader needs to be on TikTok. But every leader does need to show up where their stakeholders already are. For B2B audiences, LinkedIn remains the default stage. For direct-to-consumer brands, Instagram or short-form video might make more sense. Fast Company highlights how different CEOs tailor their channels to match their message and their audience’s attention span.
The best executive content is rooted in real experience; lessons learned, mistakes made, ideas still in progress. Audiences crave leaders who are human first, corporate second. McKinsey calls this the art of authentic leadership communication: your audience can tell when you’re showing up to check a box.
No CEO has time to draft every post alone. Behind every visible leader is a tight-knit crew: ghostwriters, comms leads, content strategists. Inc. explores how top CEOs now build “creator teams” to help them stay relevant without burning out. Systematize it. Make content creation part of your routine, and leverage AI to operationalize it. Tools like Narrato and OpusClip support content creation from ideation to planning to video editing.
Too many leaders forget that good content is a two-way street. Reply to comments. Acknowledge critics. Share the stage with employees, partners, customers. Thoughtful engagement signals accessibility, a power that drives loyalty inside and outside the company.
