2007 Chief Executive of the Year.

"When I think about leadership, I think about the ability to transform an organization to win in the face of unrelenting change and unrelenting competition because that's the world that we live in today, and this definition fits Bob Ulrich perfectly," said 2006 Chief Executive of the Year A.G. Lafley, CEO of Procter & Gamble, in his tribute to Target CEO Robert Ulrich, who was chosen by his peers to be 2007 Chief Executive of the Year. In a celebration of Ulrich's investiture, some 250 CEOs and their spouses attended the annual award dinner held last August at the New York Stock Exchange in partnership with NYSE Euronext.

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The event was the 22nd celebration of excellence in business leadership by Chief Executive magazine. CE solicits nominations through electronic surveys and ballots, from which the 10 most frequently cited individuals become finalists. Names and dossiers of the top 10 nominees are presented to the selection committee. CE has no vote. Only the judges determine who is the winner. This underscores what Ed Kopko, CEO of Chief Executive Group and CEO of Butler International, said, "The very specialness of this award is that it comes from one's peers.

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"We've been observing CEOs in leadership now--this is our 30th year of publication--for some time," added Kopko. "We know that the business leaders are a force for good. They deliver much to our society in terms of goods and services that enable us to live better lives. They help create a lot of employment."

As honorary chairman of the selection committee, Lafley called attention to Ulrich's record. "In the 20 years that Bob has led Target, sales have grown from about $5 billion a year to nearly $60 billion a year today. Since 1994, when Bob became chief executive of Target, earnings per share have grown from $0.40 to $3.21," said Lafley. "Target stock has grown from a little under $6 to more than $60 today. And the Target brand has become one of the strongest and best known and best respected brands in the U.S."

In summarizing the sentiment of the judges, Lafley cited several considerations guiding their choice. Among them were Target's strategic and operational discipline, clarity of purpose, superior execution, its special drive to delight customers, an ability to enable leaders within the organization and Ulrich's own passion of "listening and learning."

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Delighting and surprising customers, Lafley said, is a simple and powerful idea, and "it's the surest path to sustainable growth. Yet, as obvious as it may be, there are an awful lot of companies that fail to act fully on it."

In accepting the honor, Ulrich said the award "acknowledges the important contributions of thousands of Target team members, and the commitment of our important vendor partners around the world, to delight our guests with a continuous flow of exceptional design and outstanding value every time they walk into a Target store."

Not missing a marketing opportunity, Ulrich shared a moment of mirth with the audience when he called attention to the company's token of appreciation--a Target gift bag of its own premium brand of savories along with a pair of plush Target bull's-eye dogs dressed in traditional Indian and Chinese male and female costumes, "which reflect the worldwide scope of our business sourcing operations."