Corporate World

A corporation is an organization that is created for the purpose of operating a business.  Most large businesses are formed as corporations, including Microsoft Corporation, the Coca-Cola Company, and Toyota Motor Corporation.  The process of creating a corporation is called incorporation.  Incorporation begins by preparing a charter that must be approved by an agency of the state in which it plans to do business.  Upon incorporation, its shareholders must elect a board of directors to manage corporate affairs – a chairman or president, secretary, and treasurer.

Persons holding top level management positions below the level of the corporate board usually have the word “Chief” in their titles.  C-level executives are high-ranking professionals who are at the head of their respective functional areas within an organization.  Examples of the C-level managers are the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Chief Operations Officer (COO), Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), Chief Information Officer (CIO), and Chief Technology Officer (CTO).