Who has more power in a company, the MD or the CEO?

Question

Who has more power in a company, the MD or the CEO?

Answer 1

ceo

Answer 2

That, of course, depends on the company, and what "MD" stands for.

Presumably it stands for "Managing Director," and not "Medical Doctor."

I also note that you didn't ask who's more important, or nicer, or wears better clothes. I'm answering the specific question you asked, which is who has more power.

The fact you refer to "the MD" in your question indicates that you're thinking of a company that has one, and only one, Managing Director.

A company that has both one Managing Director and one Chief Executive Officer would be odd. In their most common usage, the two titles "Managing Director" and "Chief Executive Officer" are synonymous. "Managing Director" is the British version, and "CEO" is the American version. Both refer to the highest, i.e. most powerful, officer in a corporation.

In such a situation, I suppose I'd assume the CEO has the most power, since it wouldn't make much sense to call him the "chief" executive officer otherwise.

There are some specific situations in which the title "Managing Director" is used differently. In US investment banking firms, for example, "Managing Director" refers to the top-level professionals -- the people who were called "partners" when investment banks were still partnerships. However, an investment bank of any size would have hundreds of Managing Directors, so your reference to "the" MD wouldn't make sense.

As an aside: the CEO does answer to someone. The *highest* authority in a corporation isn't any officer, but the Board of Directors, as a group. On the other hand, as a practical matter, the CEO may have so much influence with the Board that they do what he tells them. Or, sometimes the Board Chairman is someone other than the CEO who essentially controls the other Board members. It just depends on the company and the people.

In a broader sense, the shareholders, as a group, are even higher, since they must elect and can remove directors, though this power is limited in practical application in the absence of a single shareholder (or allied group of shareholders) who hold enough shares to take action unilaterally.

Answer 3

That's really a silly question. It's like asking which is more important my big toe or my left eye. Both are equally important in order for my body to function properly. Without the CEO, a company has no leadership, without the Marketing Director, all it's advertising and marketing efforts are without leadership. Both are equally important.

The bigger question is, which is more important, the CEO or the front line employee? You might be surprised at this, but the answer is still neither! With no employees a company cannot do business, produce products, sell merchandise, whatever the business they are in.

Hope this helped

Answer 4

what is a MD  (besides a doctor)

It is not a corporate position

CEO is top position

Answer 5

Depends on the organization, but in most cases the CEO.

And, in those cases where the CEO and Hospital Adminstrator are different people, the Hospital Administrator will also have more influence than an MD.

Answer 6

CEO and that is for sure!

Answer 7

The CEO must answer to his "God";

while the Managing Director must answer to the CEO or the equivalent.