It's pretty darn easy to assess the quality of corporate leadership at big-time companies -- in hindsight, that is. Did the share price go up or down? Did the company bring products to market that were successful, or didn't it?
Unfortunately, no one cares about the past; the stock market is all about the future. We need to know who will be the most celebrated CEOs five years from now. We need to invest our money with leaders like Jeff Bezos at Amazon.com who are going to take our capital and compound it over years to come, while also avoiding the Dick Fulds of the world who are going to destroy our company.
The question is: How can we do that before it's totally obvious to the rest of the world, too?
There's no sure-fire way. But there are some very strong clues. These clues will lead you most of the way toward knowing whether you're dealing with a quality management team that will guide shares to victory. Watch the video below as Fool analyst Nick Kapur describes the three keys to knowing whether you're dealing with great leadership.
Here's a hint to start: Joe Mansueto at Morningstar
