Press release
The CEO's New Superpower: Why Emotional Intelligence, Not Just Strategy, Defines Great Leadership By Greg Coticchia
Pennsylvania, US, 5th November 2025, ZEX PR WIRE, In the high-stakes world of tech leadership, the traditional markers of success revenue, market share, product launches, and investor confidence often dominate the conversation. But after thirty years in the trenches as a six-time CEO, two-time COO, and now as a coach at CEO Coaching International, I've come to believe that none of these achievements mean much without one critical ingredient: emotional intelligence.I've spent my career founding companies, leading turnarounds, executing successful exits, and transforming legacy businesses into modern SaaS powerhouses. At Sopheon, for example, we transitioned from a consulting-heavy model to a cloud-native SaaS platform, a shift that demanded technical precision and deep emotional leadership. Change is uncomfortable. People fear uncertainty more than they fear failure. What gets a company through that kind of transformation isn't just strategy, it's trust, empathy, and the ability to connect with people where they are.
This is the real differentiator between good CEOs and great ones.
The Myth of the All-Knowing CEO
There's a romanticized idea that a great CEO is a lone visionary who knows all the answers and commands the room. But the CEOs I've seen thrive, especially in today's climate, are not the loudest or most forceful personalities. They are the ones who listen.
When I coach leaders, I tell them: Your job isn't to have all the answers; it's to create the conditions for the right answers to emerge. That shift in mindset requires emotional intelligence to read the room, to detect fear before it becomes resistance, to inspire confidence without ego.
This doesn't mean CEOs should abandon strategy or financial discipline. It means they need to anchor both in self-awareness and empathy. You can't lead transformation if you don't understand the people you're asking to change.
Lessons from the Frontlines of Innovation
Throughout my career from my early startups to public company boardrooms, I've seen how emotional intelligence drives innovation. It's not just a soft skill; it's a growth multiplier.
When I helped guide Sopheon through its transformation to a SaaS model, we weren't just changing a product, we were changing a culture. I had to help teams let go of the old ways of working, reimagine their purpose, and trust a new process. The emotional toll was real. But so was the reward: a thriving business that successfully exited to a private equity firm.
Similarly, in founding and funding 14 startups, I've learned that emotional intelligence isn't optional in entrepreneurship, it's survival. Startups live on uncertainty. The ability to stay grounded, to maintain morale, and to lead with transparency during volatility is what separates those who scale from those who stall.
I've raised over $73 million in venture capital and been through 17 mergers and acquisitions. In every deal, negotiation, and hard pivot, human connection was the difference-maker. The spreadsheet never closes the deal. The story does.
Emotional Intelligence Is Measurable and Coachable
At CEO Coaching International, we work with hundreds of CEOs around the world, helping them scale faster and lead better. What I've seen time and again is that the best leaders aren't necessarily the most experienced but they're the most self-aware.
They know their triggers. They understand how their moods affect their teams. They balance ambition with humility.
And here's the good news: emotional intelligence can be developed. I've seen leaders who started out purely metrics-driven learn to lead with empathy and their performance skyrocketed. Employee retention improved. Innovation increased. Customers noticed.
In fact, a McKinsey study found that organizations with emotionally intelligent leadership are 20% more likely to outperform their peers. But beyond the statistics, there's a deeper truth: when people feel seen, they give more of themselves. And that's the foundation of sustainable growth.
The Shift in Leadership Culture
We're entering a new era of leadership. The old model of command and control is dying. The new model of connect and inspire is thriving.
This shift is especially pronounced among the next generation of leaders. I teach at the University of Pittsburgh Katz School of Business and founded Carnegie Mellon University's Master's in Product Management: the first program of its kind globally. What I see in young leaders is both exciting and challenging: they demand meaning, transparency, and humanity in their work. They won't follow leaders who lead from fear. They'll follow those who lead from authenticity.
To me, that's not just a generational preference, it's a competitive advantage. Companies that cultivate emotionally intelligent leadership are more adaptable, more resilient, and more attractive to top talent.
The Human Side of Growth
Let's be honest: leadership is lonely. The higher you climb, the fewer people you can confide in. I've been there: staring at the numbers late at night, questioning decisions, feeling the weight of payroll and investor expectations.
What pulled me through wasn't bravado; it was balance. Learning when to push and when to pause. When to fight for the vision and when to listen to dissent. Emotional intelligence gave me that balance and it gives CEOs today the same.
At its core, business is about human relationships. You can automate processes, but not trust. You can buy attention, but not loyalty. You can scale operations, but not authenticity.
As leaders, we have to remember: growth without humanity isn't sustainable. Profit without purpose doesn't last.
Coaching CEOs to Lead with Heart and Precision
In my coaching work today, I help CEOs master this duality to be both visionary and grounded, strategic and empathetic. I draw on decades of operational experience from launching 100+ products to managing multimillion-dollar exits but I always come back to the same question: How are you showing up as a human being?
That's where transformation starts.
Because when CEOs lead with heart, it cascades. It shows up in how teams communicate, how customers are treated, how innovation happens. It builds cultures that last, where performance and purpose aren't at odds but intertwined.
Final Thoughts: Redefining Strength
We often mistake emotional intelligence for weakness. It's not. It's courage in its purest form.
It takes courage to admit you don't have all the answers.
It takes courage to be transparent when things go wrong.
It takes courage to listen when your instinct is to defend.
But that's the kind of courage that builds enduring companies and enduring leaders.
After thirty years of leading, founding, acquiring, and teaching, I can say with certainty: the CEOs who win aren't just the smartest in the room. They're the most human.
And that's a lesson worth repeating in boardrooms, classrooms, and everywhere leadership is redefined.
About Greg Coticchia
Greg Coticchia is a Partner and Coach at CEO Coaching International, a six-time CEO, two-time COO, award-winning entrepreneur, and educator. He has raised over $73 million in venture capital, participated in 17 M&As, launched more than 100 products, and led companies to successful exits. He is also the founding executive director of Carnegie Mellon University's Master's in Product Management program.
For more information, visit : https://ceocoachinginternational.com/ and https://gregcoticchiainsights.com/
This release was published on openPR.
Permanent link to this press release:
Copy
Please set a link in the press area of your homepage to this press release on openPR. openPR disclaims liability for any content contained in this release.
You can edit or delete your press release The CEO's New Superpower: Why Emotional Intelligence, Not Just Strategy, Defines Great Leadership By Greg Coticchia here
News-ID: 4257095 • Views: …
More Releases from Binary News Network
Michael Franti: An Open Letter to Anyone Trying to Stay Steady in Unsteady Times
Illinois, US, 6th January 2026, ZEX PR WIRE, Oakland-born musician and hotelier Michael Franti is sharing a personal open letter to everyday people who are feeling worn down by work, pressure, and the pace of modern life. Drawing from more than four decades in music, entrepreneurship, travel, and service, Franti reflects on burnout, resilience, and what it really takes to keep going when life feels heavy.
This message is not about…
Diego Fernandes leads international initiative to professionalize São Paulo FC …
Sao Paulo, Brazil, 6th January 2026, ZEX PR WIRE, Brazilian entrepreneur Diego Fernandes is leading an international initiative aimed at strengthening the debate around the modernization, financial sustainability and professionalization of São Paulo Futebol Clube, one of the most traditional football institutions in Latin America.
This week, a video announcing São Paulo Day - a global discussion panel on the club's future - was displayed on the main Nasdaq screen in…
Ian Farley Chelmsford Advocates for Slower, Safer, and More Thoughtful Work Prac …
QC, Canada, 6th January 2026, ZEX PR WIRE, Ian Farley Chelmsford is using his recent in-depth interview to raise awareness around a growing issue in modern working life: the cost of rushing decisions in complex and safety-critical environments. Drawing on a career shaped by fieldwork, environmental management, and operational leadership, Farley is encouraging professionals to slow down, prepare properly, and reconnect with how systems work in the real world.
"Most problems…
Securonix to Showcase Unified Defense SIEM and Agentic AI at GISEC GLOBAL 2026
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, 2nd January 2026, ZEX PR WIRE, Securonix, a six-time Leader in the Gartner® Magic QuadrantTM for SIEM, will participate in GISEC GLOBAL 2026 at the Dubai World Trade Centre, featuring live demonstrations of Unified Defense SIEM, new agentic AI capabilities, and executive briefings for financial services and healthcare leaders.
SOCs are consolidating tools, elevating analyst productivity, and proving measurable impact. Securonix centralizes telemetry, correlates signals with advanced…
More Releases for CEO
Interpreters Unlimited CEO Sayed Ali Named Finalist for CEO of the Year
Interpreters Unlimited (IU) is proud to announce that its CEO, Sayed Ali, has been named a finalist for the San Diego Business Journal's 2025 CEO of the Year Award. This recognition honors leaders who demonstrate outstanding business expertise, leadership, and community impact in the San Diego region.
Ali, an accomplished entrepreneur and business leader, has spent decades building and growing successful companies. After immigrating to the U.S. from India in 1966…
CEO Brittany Bearden of Clarens Ghostwriting and Publishing Wins the Global CEO …
CEO Brittany Bearden won the Global CEO Excellence Award for Publishing CEO of the Year 2024 (Nevada) through her hard work and dedication to Clarens Ghostwriting and Publishing. According to CEO Monthly, the Global CEO Excellence Award targets leaders who have made significant contributions to their firms and set new benchmarks in their industries and communities.
This award recognizes exceptional leaders who have demonstrated innovation, leadership, and vision within their industries.…
CEO
Covid - the best time to start a cyber company?
U.K. cyber company announces five-year collaboration deal with top Indian brand to bring new A.I. driven cyber governance solution to the market.
In April 2020, just as the lockdown was taking hold, we spotted a challenge set by Standard Chartered to solve their problem with cybersecurity regulation using artificial intelligence. We threw our hat in the ring and won out as…
UAE Exchange CEO wins the Finance CEO of the Year Award
Mr. Promoth Manghat, CEO, UAE Exchange, is named the Finance CEO of the Year at Indian CEO Awards 2016, in recognition for business excellence and his achievements over the course of the past year as the CEO of UAE Exchange. Promoth received this award for his outstanding contributions in the progress of
UAE Exchange. He has been instrumental in introducing various transformational processes in the organisation and instilled a passion…
KnowBe4 CEO Sounds the Alarm on New Strain of CEO Fraud
(Clearwater, FL) February 24, 2016 -- A new strain of CEO Fraud (aka Business Email Compromise) reared its head at the offices of KnowBe4 in the form of a spoofed email from the CEO to accounting asking for a list of W-2s in PDF format. Luckily, the personnel and new CFO had completed a full battery of security awareness training and were able to spot something phishy about this email.…
Ceo development coaching
International coaching foundation
Executive & Business Coaching Foundation India Limited is India’s first institution dedicated to the cause of Coaching.,CFI’s Training division conducts programs in the executive and business coaching space to create coaches of international standing and participant is accredited as Leadership Development Coach and admitted as Associate Member of CFI.The primary objective of the accreditation process is to ensure that all CFI coach interns display adequate evidence of…