The business world is not a monolith, and it becomes less so every day, but there are nonetheless certain rules – both written and unwritten – that a company needs to keep in mind if it is to have ongoing success. The written rules we already know about, while the unwritten ones are often where a business development agency can really help you with advice like “always have a welcoming social media presence” and “make it easy for people to pay you”. One rule that seems to be put out there on a regular basis, especially in the modern, more people-centred age is that it is important for a leader to be the “face” of their business. But is this necessarily the case?

Anecdotally, one individual being the public “brand” of their business can affect things in both negative and positive ways. We can all think of at least one CEO who is at the head of a successful company, but whose personal reputation may be off-putting to potential customers. On the other hand, a leader with a more benign reputation may well be the greatest asset their company has, even encouraging some customers to develop a level of brand loyalty that you just can’t have for a corporate logo. But on balance, is it important to be the public face associated with your business.

Are you comfortable being the face?

One of the key elements in being your own brand is that you should be comfortable in that role. If you attain a certain level of success as a business, there will be media waiting to cover your achievements and you’ll also gain the respect of people who want to emulate that success. This comes with a level of publicity which not everyone enjoys. It can even be distracting, making it harder to focus on what got you in this position in the first place.

Sometimes it’s advantageous to shun publicity for yourself and pick someone else to handle most of the media attention; but you shouldn’t hide away completely. “It’s not all about me” and “this company is its employees” are powerful messages, as long as you are delivering them in person. Then, you can push forward people who are more comfortable in the spotlight.

Do people expect it of you?

There is a Shakespeare quote that goes “Some are born great, some achieve greatness and others have greatness thrust upon them”. You could say the same thing about a reputation for business. If you’re in business for long enough, work with enough people and deliver on a regular basis, then before too long – whether you want it or not – you’ll gain a profile that goes before you. And that can resonate inside your business as well as outside. If you’ve done well enough, people who you work with personally will look to you as an example. Sometimes, as humble as you want to be, it will be harder to take a back seat than it is to bite the bullet and be the public face.

Does a business need a single figurehead?

The bigger question might be whether your business needs one person to be the go-to at all. You might find that publicity campaigns are better handled by one person who thrives in the limelight, but if the company suffers a setback, then you as the head of the company need to be the one who speaks for it. Even if you have a distaste for personal attention, the CEO does have to be the one who stands up in a crisis and takes responsibility for getting things back on track. That’s a part of leadership, and one you can’t delegate