How2Exit: Buy, Don't Build - M&A of Small Businesses E288: Les Csorba Reveals the Real Reason Most Leaders Don’t Last
Aug 1, 2025
53:20
About the Guest:
Les Csorba is a partner at Heidrick & Struggles, specializing in CEO and board succession, primarily in the energy sector. With roots in the first Bush administration’s Presidential Personnel Office, Les has spent 30+ years advising leaders. His new book Aware: The Power of Seeing Yourself Clearly dives deep into the science and practice of self-awareness in leadership.
Summary:
On the How2Exit Podcast, Ron Skelton sits down with Les Csorba, a veteran executive coach, author, and partner at Heidrick & Struggles. With more than three decades in executive search and CEO coaching, Les shares a powerful perspective: leadership—not just capital, strategy, or technology—is the determining factor in building and sustaining successful businesses. His insights highlight why self-awareness, humility, and feedback cultures matter more than ever in today’s high-stakes M&A environment.
The conversation digs into the nuances of finding the right CEO, avoiding the trap of “people pleasing,” and why so many deals fail due to culture, not spreadsheets. Les also teases his new book Aware: The Power of Seeing Yourself Clearly, where he unpacks why most leaders think they’re self-aware but aren’t—and what it takes to close that gap.
The Key Takeaways:
Leadership Greater than Capital or Strategy: While capital, strategy, and technology are vital, Les stresses that leadership is the real driver of long-term business success.
The Self-Awareness Factor: The best leaders balance strong confidence with humility and candid self-reflection—an incredibly rare skill set.
People Pleasing Is a Blind Spot: Over half of leaders identify as people pleasers, which often results in poor decisions like leaving the wrong people in key roles.
Feedback Culture is Essential Great organizations don’t wait for annual reviews—they create ongoing, transparent feedback loops where leaders and teams hold each other accountable.
Integration Is Where Deals Fail Many M&A transactions collapse not over numbers, but because two cultures can’t align. Leadership due diligence is as critical as financial diligence.
Few CEOs Last Long-Term Most CEOs average 5–6 years in the role; exceptions like Jamie Dimon succeed by reinventing themselves and empowering strong lieutenants.
Blind Spots Are Universal Every leader has blind spots. The real question is whether they have the courage to name and engage them.
The Digital Age Hurts Self-Awareness Constant distractions from technology and social media erode the reflective space leaders need to truly know themselves.
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Contact Les on
Linkedin:
Website:
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💰If you’d like additional ways to support this podcast, you can become a paid subscriber here: https://how2exit.substack.com/
►Visit Our Website: https://www.how2exit.com/
📧For Business Inquiries: Me@4sale2sold.com
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🎬SUGGESTED VIDEOS
Don't forget to watch 📽 Our other videos. Please check them out :
▶️Previous Episode:
▶️E135: Sam Rosati On His Journey From Being A Lawyer To Becoming An Entrepreneur In The ETA Space - https://youtu.be/D2qJOidptRA
▶️E100: CEO Of Flippa Blake Hutchison Discusses Innovations In Buying And Selling Digital Assets - https://youtu.be/R1D5guQU9Z0
#How2Exit # # 💖Thanks for watching! 💖
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/how2exit-buy-don-t-build-m-a-of-small-businesses--4859429/support.
Les Csorba is a partner at Heidrick & Struggles, specializing in CEO and board succession, primarily in the energy sector. With roots in the first Bush administration’s Presidential Personnel Office, Les has spent 30+ years advising leaders. His new book Aware: The Power of Seeing Yourself Clearly dives deep into the science and practice of self-awareness in leadership.
Summary:
On the How2Exit Podcast, Ron Skelton sits down with Les Csorba, a veteran executive coach, author, and partner at Heidrick & Struggles. With more than three decades in executive search and CEO coaching, Les shares a powerful perspective: leadership—not just capital, strategy, or technology—is the determining factor in building and sustaining successful businesses. His insights highlight why self-awareness, humility, and feedback cultures matter more than ever in today’s high-stakes M&A environment.
The conversation digs into the nuances of finding the right CEO, avoiding the trap of “people pleasing,” and why so many deals fail due to culture, not spreadsheets. Les also teases his new book Aware: The Power of Seeing Yourself Clearly, where he unpacks why most leaders think they’re self-aware but aren’t—and what it takes to close that gap.
The Key Takeaways:
Leadership Greater than Capital or Strategy: While capital, strategy, and technology are vital, Les stresses that leadership is the real driver of long-term business success.
The Self-Awareness Factor: The best leaders balance strong confidence with humility and candid self-reflection—an incredibly rare skill set.
People Pleasing Is a Blind Spot: Over half of leaders identify as people pleasers, which often results in poor decisions like leaving the wrong people in key roles.
Feedback Culture is Essential Great organizations don’t wait for annual reviews—they create ongoing, transparent feedback loops where leaders and teams hold each other accountable.
Integration Is Where Deals Fail Many M&A transactions collapse not over numbers, but because two cultures can’t align. Leadership due diligence is as critical as financial diligence.
Few CEOs Last Long-Term Most CEOs average 5–6 years in the role; exceptions like Jamie Dimon succeed by reinventing themselves and empowering strong lieutenants.
Blind Spots Are Universal Every leader has blind spots. The real question is whether they have the courage to name and engage them.
The Digital Age Hurts Self-Awareness Constant distractions from technology and social media erode the reflective space leaders need to truly know themselves.
--------------------------------------------------
Contact Les on
Linkedin:
Website:
--------------------------------------------------
💰If you’d like additional ways to support this podcast, you can become a paid subscriber here: https://how2exit.substack.com/
►Visit Our Website: https://www.how2exit.com/
📧For Business Inquiries: Me@4sale2sold.com
Don't Forget to SUBSCRIBE to the How2Exit channel and press (🔔) to join the Notification Squad and stay updated with new uploads.✨
👇🏻SUBSCRIBE HERE
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_ONnhwaKSTPFt2nOxKoXXQ?sub_confirmation=1
𝐖𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬...?
▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
👍 Like the video (it helps a ton!)
💬 Comment below to share your opinion!
🔗 Share the video with anyone you think might help :) ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
📱Stay Tuned On Our Social Media :
» Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ronskelton/
» Twitter - https://twitter.com/ronaldskelton
» Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/How2Exit
» Newsletter - http://deeper.how2exit.com/
🎬SUGGESTED VIDEOS
Don't forget to watch 📽 Our other videos. Please check them out :
▶️Previous Episode:
▶️E135: Sam Rosati On His Journey From Being A Lawyer To Becoming An Entrepreneur In The ETA Space - https://youtu.be/D2qJOidptRA
▶️E100: CEO Of Flippa Blake Hutchison Discusses Innovations In Buying And Selling Digital Assets - https://youtu.be/R1D5guQU9Z0
#How2Exit # # 💖Thanks for watching! 💖
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/how2exit-buy-don-t-build-m-a-of-small-businesses--4859429/support.