Best Leaders In Tech: Glassdoor's Insider Review Of 2014's Highest-Rated CEOs

Tops In Tech

In its latest roundup of its anonymous employee reviews, Glassdoor has revealed the top 50 highest-rated CEOs in the industry. The CEOs were picked from companies with 1,000 or more employees and were ranked based on approval ratings from the employees themselves. Out of the 50 CEOs that made the list from industries across the board, more than a third were tech companies.

Take a look at the tech CEOs that are the best to work for in the industry, judged by the employees themselves.

Marissa Mayer, Yahoo!

CEO
Ranking: 50

Since she took hold of the reins of Yahoo! in July 2012, Marissa Mayer has managed to impress most employees, bringing in an approval rating of 79 percent. One reviewer said that they didn't think they had ever worked in an environment where the CEO takes such extensive action toward teamwork and group projects.

"Great CEO with actual product experience and the focus to get us in the right place in the market. We've turned the corner with traffic and should be turning the revenue corner in 2014," another reviewer wrote.

Dan Hesse, Sprint

CEO
Ranking: 45

Employees at Sprint said that senior management at the company provided a positive experience, though others said that the management had room for improvement. Eighty-one percent said that they approve of CEO Dan Hesse. Reviewers said that in order for Hesse to pull in an even stronger approval rating, he should listen more to employees' needs and communicate better about how they can contribute to the changes at the company.

"Do more to develop a competitive attitude across all functions. Don't settle for 3rd or 4th place!" one reviewer wrote.

Jeff Bezos, Amazon

CEO
Ranking: 33

Coming in with an 86 percent approval rating, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos was praised for being "strong," "innovative" and "a top-notch one with great vision."

"Bezos is one of the few CEOs I've seen who earns the glowing reputation. He's a genius and a visionary. It's exciting to work in his company, though the thought of what will happen when he moves on is also a bit frightening," one reviewer wrote.

Tom Georgens, NetApp

CEO
Ranking: 32

Employees reviewing the company gave NetApp CEO Tom Georgens an 86 percent approval rating, saying that he was a "great" and "something" leader. One review said that they particularly appreciated "skip-level meetings," where executives are encouraged to meet with employees over group lunches.

"Keep it up!" another reviewer wrote of their advice for senior management.

To boost his approval rating, employees recommended Georgens work to further innovation at the company, break down silos and build up the culture.

Joe Tucci, EMC

CEO
Ranking: 27

EMC employees seemed overall very optimistic about the top levels of leadership at the company, with CEO Joe Tucci pulling in an 89 percent approval rating. Employees said that Tucci and his executive team are "extremely competent leaders" and "understand what they need to do to be successful and are focused on success." They especially praised Tucci's ability to integrate acquisitions.

"Unlike other companies I've worked for, EMC top leadership has a good strategic vision and manages to pull off acquisitions successfully," one reviewer wrote.

Frank D’Souza, Cognizant Technology Solutions

CEO
Ranking: 25

Cognizant CEO Frank D'Souza has been heading up the Teaneck, N.J.-based solution provider since early 2007. His leadership of major growth for the company and tactics like an open-door policy pulled in an overall CEO approval rating of 90 percent.

"Management really cares for the work force and take key decisions having that in mind, which is a big plus," one reviewer wrote. Employees said they would like to see senior management organize town meeting sessions to improve communication, be clearer on goals and refocus on the company mission to further grow its approval rating.

Carlos A. Rodriguez, ADP

CEO
Ranking: 23

Employees at ADP said the upper management was "helpful" and "supportive." That resulted in a 91 percent approval rating for CEO Carlos Rodriguez, who has led the company since November 2011.

In order to improve its ranking further, employees recommended that the CEO take more action to follow up on his policies of "cross pollinating" the talent and give more decision control to employees.

Tim Cook, Apple

CEO
Ranking: 18

Apple's reviewers on Glassdoor worried that Cook might have lost some of the commitment to the experience of the customer and employee since Steve Jobs passed away in 2011. Despite that, Cook still pulled in a 92 percent approval rating. Employees said that there was often little direction from management, but some employees saw that as a way to excel in a tough environment.

"You cannot look for success at Apple, you must create success at Apple. If you apply for any position that you think you would feel comfortable in, know that it will push you through many obstacles that are out of your comfort zone," one reviewer wrote.

Joe Echevarria, Deloitte LLP

CEO
Ranking: 16

Employees of Deloitte said that the CEO and upper management does a great job of providing an environment that helps them achieve their goals. In their reviews, employees wrote that leadership was "incredibly smart" and has an open culture with open doors. They gave CEO Joe Echevarria a 92 percent approval rating.

’The leaders are very passionate about their business and people and it shows. You'll find a lot of collaboration, team work and interesting project work,’ one reviewer wrote. To help boost its rank, employees said the company's top executives could lead better by example and treat people more as they would like to be treated themselves.

Jerry M. Kennelly, Riverbed

CEO
Ranking: 14

Employees praised the executive team at Riverbed for being "approachable" and for establishing a strong company culture. Their high reviews resulted in a 93 percent approval rating for CEO Jerry Kennelly.

"Culture is great and this is exemplified by the CEO, great benefits and of course technology," one reviewer wrote.

Marc Benioff, Salesforce.com

CEO
Ranking: 13

Many reviews of Salesforce.com on the Glassdoor site listed working for Marc Benioff as a "pro" to their employee experience at the company, and gave him a 93 percent approval rating. Reviewers said Benioff was "great," "philanthropic," and praised his personal goal-setting system.

"CEO Marc Benioff is a genuine visionary who sees opportunity before it's fully manifest to most other leaders," one reviewer wrote.

To help grow its rank even further, reviewers recommended cutting back in internal politics, listening better and preserving the culture as the company continues to grow.

Larry Page, Google

CEO
Ranking: 11

Google is one company that is consistently ranked near the top of lists of companies that employees love to work for, and their approval of the CEO is no exception. With a 93 percent approval rating, Google CEO Larry Page was praised for helping make it a great company and urged him to keep up the "good work."

"Pat yourself on the back [Larry Page]. You did way better than any other large tech company, especially the old guard ones that have not prioritized becoming great places to work, regardless of whether they are technically innovative or financially successful," one reviewer wrote.

Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook

CEO
Ranking: 10

Ninety-three percent of reviews said that they approved of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. The hierarchy of the company is pretty flat, employees said, which means that anyone can ask questions directly to Zuckerberg at weekly company Q&A sessions. Reviewers described Zuckerberg himself as "great," "down to Earth" and "available."

To help raise the approval even higher for management, reviewers recommended cutting back on politics and making sure new management hires are a good fit for the Facebook culture.

Brad Smith, Intuit

CEO
Ranking: 7

Reviewers said that they felt that the executive team at Intuit really cared about their employees and has strong leadership and vision. The positive reviews resulted in a 94 percent approval rating for the company’s CEO. To help grow the employee's ranking of the CEO and upper management, many reviewers suggested improving the middle management level, which they said often falls short of their expectations.

Paul E. Jacobs, Qualcomm

CEO
Ranking: 5

As the second-highest tech company on the list, Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs came in with a 95 percent approval rating from reviewers. In their reviews, employees said that management at the telecom equipment company was flexible, technically competent and has an open-door policy that makes it receptive to feedback. To help boost the management approval rating, employees said that management could be clearer on its objectives, invest more in marketing and realign practices to make it more efficient.

Jeff Weiner, LinkedIn

CEO
Ranking: 1

Taking the No. 1 spot is LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner, who heads up social media networking site LinkedIn. Out of the close to 700 ratings on the site, 100 percent of reviewers said they approve of the CEO. In their reviews, employees referred to Weiner as "charming" and "inspiring." Employees praised how Weiner took the time to have a transparent culture and hold bi-weekly meetings with the entire company to keep them in the loop.

"The CEO is what helps spread the culture. He emphasizes culture," one reviewer wrote.