Leaders should clearly define and communicate a vision for the company to accelerate progress, says Joel Trammell, author of The CEO Tightrope, in How Leaders Can Drive Company Culture.

Defining that vision may take weeks or even months depending on the complexity of the organization and how much a vision needs to change, but "without a distinct direction, it’s difficult to take actions for change," says Trammell.

It is important for a clear meaning of success to span the entire company, although this is often not the case. "It’s typical for employees to focus on cutting costs or saving time, and lose sight of the bigger picture – or possibly not know what the bigger picture is in the first place," Trammell says.

Aligning company objectives takes significant training, but once the values are clear, then decisions are easier to make. This leads to increased employee confidence and progress for the company, says Trammell.

Establishing a company culture that promotes employee confidence is important and the CEO is the only one who can really drive that culture, according to Trammell.

Read more about the importance of establishing a clear vision for company progress in How Leaders Can Drive Company Culture.