LEADERSHIP WHEN THERE IS NO ONE TO ASK - AN INTERVIEW WITH ENI BERNABE,FRANCO

Few CEOs will face crises as disruptive and dramatic as those encounte red - and overcome - by France Bernabe. In 1992, when Bernabe: was app ointed CEO of Eni, Italy's large, energy-focused industrial group, his announced goal was to transform the company from a political quagmire into a clean, market-driven business ready for its first public offer ing. The resistance to his plans was intense, but that wasn't the wors t of it. Soon after he took power, an investigation known as Mani Puli te - Clean Hands - led to the arrest of much of Eni's senior managemen t team, including the company's chairman. One of those senior managers even made the false claim - based on hearsay - that Bernabe himself h ad taken a huge bribe. Simply put, Bernabe's story is not just that of a CEO steering a massive strategic reinvention. It is a story of lead ership, and an unlikely one at that. In this interview, it becomes cle ar how Bernabe survived his tumultuous first months as CEO and then le d the company's transformation. To begin with, he was unique in having both an encyclopedic knowledge of Eni's operations and a view of the company's future from 30,000 feet. But perhaps more than anything, Ber nabe's power to lead has come from within. He follows, he says, an inn er compass pointed toward humanity and justice. In difficult times, Be rnabe seeks consultation from others. But ultimately, he makes all imp ortant decisions alone so as not to be buffeted by the needs, emotions , or agendas of others. Such solitude, he believes, is one of the burd ens - and necessities - of leadership.