"Can CEOs be Un-Disruptable?" identifies and explores five characteristics leaders should consider embracing and nurturing to respond to the dynamics of disruption. The report is based on interviews with 24 CEOs from high-performing global organizations in banking, pharmaceuticals, technology, natural resources, food processing, health care delivery, retail and manufacturing. It includes deeper insights into the elements of these characteristics and examples of the successes and failures of real-life top executives who have embraced and embodied un-disruptable qualities, such as:

• Ambidexterity: Cultivates the tension between exploitation and exploration, focusing simultaneously on the present as well as on the riskier future to leverage and maximize opportunities on the pathway to new pursuits.

• Emotional fortitude: An ability to combine a sober assessment of potential risks and roadblocks with the fearlessness to pursue lofty visions.

• A beginner's mindset: The ability to derive confidence from the naiveté that comes from curiosity rather than from the certainty that comes from experience.

• Mastery of disruptive jujitsu: An ability to recognize and "hijack" disruptive elements to develop a competitive advantage.

• An obsession with end-user ethnography: Devotion to the end-to-end customer experience.

"The pressure on today's CEOs is undeniable," said Benjamin Finzi, Deloitte Services LP, and managing director of Deloitte's CEO Program. "Investors, stakeholders, consumers and partners expect executive leaders to navigate rapidly changing and often unpredictable market conditions. Leaders are expected to demonstrate clear vision, embrace technology innovation, foster brand loyalty, foresee and manage conflict, and inspire teams across the organization — all while delivering consistent growth. To succeed requires a highly specialized set of skills."

Deloitte's CEO Program researched and developed "Can CEOs be Un-Disruptable?" The program counsels and coaches senior executives to help design the personal "architectural" plan for the success of individual CEOs throughout their tenure in the C-suite. Plans include guidance to elevate relationships between CEOs and their management teams, and support the strategic agenda of CEOs for their organizations in times of disruption and transformation.

"Historically, the role of the CEO has been to shield and protect the organization from outside upheavals — but today, every organization is adapting to a never-ending cycle of environmental pressures, each of which disrupts some portion of the business system," said Mark Lipton, Ph.D., Mark Lipton, research strategy lead and independent senior advisor, CEO Program, Deloitte Services LP. "Being resilient to that disruption — and understanding how to turn it into market opportunity — will be essential to any organization's long-term success."