India, Oct. 12 -- While many corporate executives prefer private offices and meetings with senior management, Ancestry CEO Howard Hochhauser has adopted a different approach. He regularly eats lunch alongside employees in the office's communal dining area, believing these informal interactions help him understand what is happening across the company.

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Speaking to Fortune, Hochhauser explained that sharing meals with employees gives him access to honest feedback that might otherwise never reach the CEO's office.

Hochhauser developed this habit during his time at investment bank Bear Stearns in the late 1990s, where he worked in equity re...