by Hilary Potts
◆Schedule periodic check-ins to see how things are progressing.
◆Transition leadership oversight to yourself, when appropriate.
It may initially feel good to be active in the business, but remember that you still may not have a complete picture of the situation. Hold off on the temptation to jump in and make decisions without knowing all the facts. You might find that people are afraid to warn you that your early ideas and decisions will take the business off track. My best advice is: Unless it is mission-critical to make a decision, use at least the first month to listen and learn. In the entire transition period, however long it runs, be clear about how you want to be engaged in decisions, as your involvement will likely be different when you step fully into the role.
Be extra-considerate in meetings. Know when it’s appropriate to ask questions to deepen your learning and when you are derailing the meeting. It’s better to write down questions and observations for follow-up after the meeting than just to extemporize about them on the spot and later be proved wrong.
Recognize when it is better to let the organization operate without you for a certain time. One large organization I consulted with insists that its incoming executives go through an extended onboarding process to learn. The daily leadership is assigned to someone else, so the new executive has ample time to learn about the business, products, culture, and markets. This company has found that the assimilation and success rates of entering executives have increased dramatically. In your case, while others may make the top-level decisions during your first few months, you will want to take full accountability for those decisions when you are finally ready to assume the role.
Chapter 20
Leading in the New Organization
Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.
– Oscar Wilde
Stay Engaged as You Move Farther Away from the Action
With every move you make up the corporate ladder, you actually get one step farther away from the company’s day-to-day activities. You may have anticipated more control over decision-making, yet feel powerless about it. So take care that the messages you and others send do not get lost in translation. Strike a balance of working at the enterprise level and creating the forums that enable you to engage in more detailed discussions without overstepping your role. This will give you a clearer picture of the business.
Inspire two-way dialogue and idea exchanges by incorporating work sessions within the business reviews. Far too often, business reviews become one-way presentations, with so many topics being crammed into the session that little time remains for discussion. Leave enough time for a working session that engages the group, versus having the usual old report-out sessions. Keep the conversation active by briefing other senior leaders and your direct reports in advance on how you’d like them to participate in these sessions. Then your executive briefing sessions will be transformed into work sessions. The executive team will move from merely looking for problems to cultivating a multilayer conversation that can analyze and then actually solve problems. Bringing yourself closer to the action in a coaching and consultative role allows you to tap the organization’s layers of talent for unique solutions and ideas.
Not Wrong, Just Different
It’s easy to fall into the trap of seeing what’s not working and focusing on how to fix it, instead of seeing what’s working that can be built on. As you look at the business, you will find many differences from your own approach. You may need to reframe your viewpoint to see these differences as opportunities, instead of dismissing them as “wrong.” If you find yourself criticizing the business aloud to your colleagues, reframe your comments to be more productive. Balance your views and share what’s working as well as what needs to be changed. Too much constructive feedback can feel like criticism if it’s not delivered properly. The intent is to find the best solutions, not to disenfranchise those who do the real work.
How you look at diverse ideas and concepts will shape how your fellow leaders approach differences. Encourage people to use the diversity of thinking to their advantage. Find ways to stimulate creativity so that it’s acceptable to voice different opinions before converging on a workable solution. Pay tribute to and leverage the strengths of the organization to build a solid foundation for the future.
It’s up to you, as the new leader, to create a safe environment for people to share ideas and give direct leadership feedback to you. People will want to follow you if you can demonstrate credibility and value. As people see they can count on you, trust builds. Your encouragement to surface different ideas and opinions will open the opportunity for growth.
Attend to the Emotional Side of Business
In any transition, there is a tendency to focus on the technical preparation and to find that managing the business is actually the easy part. Myriad challenges can lie in the personal and interpersonal elements of the new role. For instance, you might find yourself spending more time with the Board, handling sensitive matters. Perhaps you realize it takes many individual conversations to socialize an idea before people are ready to discuss the topic in a larger group. Maybe you are expected to commit significant blocks of time to executive forums with your peers. You might not feel that some of these discussions are necessary or even relevant.
You may need to make some adjustments to work in this new way. Some say the “soft” stuff becomes the “hard” stuff in these new roles. Taking the time to understand the additional demands on your time and how you will handle the interpersonal interactions will help you and others work toward a common goal.
When you are able to observe yourself and become aware of how your own beliefs and natural reactions shape your actions, you can choose ways in which you want to act. Use your transition to become aware of your personal points of view and of how your beliefs affect your actions. Cultivate the social intelligence to understand and learn from others’ perspective. Listen to a diversity of ideas and come up with the best possible solutions. Use these insights to convey messages in ways others can hear and act on them.
With emotional and social awareness, you will be able to bring your authentic self into your work. When you listen and observe, you become better able to communicate clearly in a way others can hear and act on.
Your new role will likely require you to develop new behaviors that enhance your emotional and social awareness. Building this awareness helps leaders to effectively lead both themselves and others through even the most challenging of times.
Create Dialogue
Some leaders may find it easier to “tell” people what to do to get the work completed. Unfortunately, “telling” people to do something does not necessarily mean that they will carry out the request or will execute the work in the way you want it done. People may need more dialogue or specifics to get the work started. They may want to be included in the decisions as well as to be a part of the solution. This may require looking at the issues from all sides and soliciting ongoing feedback to keep things moving along.
It’s amazing how people can get stuck when looking at a problem from only one angle. The best way to keep people working on the right things is to develop a dialogue and exchange of ideas. This goes beyond restating the problem. Look below the surface to find out what’s hindering progress, then remove any obstacles in the way.
The feedback you share can help others see a broader perspective and look beyond the obvious issues. Sometimes people have to see what is working in order to pave the path to find the full solution. So pay attention to how your comments increase dialogue, or how perhaps they silence the room, then look for ways to get people talking. As you cultivate the conversation, sit back and listen. These discussions can provide valuable input for you to coach and mentor others. The group will be more productive when you move from stiff, executive briefing sessions in which people are afraid to talk to open-dialogue sessions where everyone becomes an integral part of shaping the solution.
Work in a New Way
Frequently, a new role involves expanding your responsibilities and scope of leadership. If you listen and learn in your transition period, you should gain insights into how you may have to adjust your current business and leadership behaviors. Learning how to be a coach and a mentor to others can open the door to richer conversations.
Through a coaching approach, people see you as someone who is helping guide the discussions, instead of simply stepping in and taking over.
Every step into a more senior position requires new behaviors. Often, leaders get stuck working in old ways. Figure 20-1 shows some traps you may face as well as tips for avoiding those traps as you enter a new role.
You have probably heard the saying, “What got you here may not get you to where you want to go.” Most likely, your new assignment requires different actions than the ones in your previous assignment. Review your personal SWOT analysis from Chapter 7 in the context of the new business situation to determine what you need to stop doing, what you should start doing, and what you should continue doing to enable your success.
As you move up the leadership ladder, you may find the shifts in your behavior to be more subtle than they were earlier in your career. Critically examine your new role and the business situation to assess what skills you need for success. Then create a Leadership Plan to develop those skills. Be sure to look at both the technical and the interpersonal skills required.
Make a list of the areas you need to address, then determine what changes you must make to act as a leader in this new role. Review the Leadership Plan Worksheet you created in Figure 7-2 to look at common areas to address in your Leadership Plan. Keep this simple; in each area, identify the one or two top-priority actions. This will make it easy to apply them in your daily routine. Once the new behaviors become a habit, choose additional leadership behaviors to develop, again a few at a time.
It can be helpful to get feedback as soon as you start your new behaviors. Ask trusted colleagues to observe these behaviors in meetings and give you their thoughts on how you are doing. Consider testing your leadership effectiveness by asking for 360-degree feedback after your first six to eight months in the role. This can provide valuable information for making any necessary adjustments so that you can better serve others in the company.
The Essential Skill of Giving and Receiving Feedback
Your transition is a time for inquiry and exploration. It requires you and others to make adjustments and learn how to work with each other. You will be giving others feedback, and receiving it in one form or another from your stakeholders. Knowing how to give and receive feedback becomes an essential leadership skill.
Always consider your tone, words, and comments whenever you communicate with others. Observe how you share ideas, so that you come across as sincere and caring, with the intent to help, not harm. Whenever you provide feedback, take care to make your messages objective, fact-based, and clear. See if you can observe the impact your comments have on others. Reinforce the desired behaviors with positive feedback, not negative comments. Instead of criticizing and finding fault, frame your comments to create a learning environment so that others can take positive actions to improve.
Pay attention to how you yourself receive feedback. Create a safe environment so people feel comfortable sharing their insights with you. You may need to assist others who may be uncomfortable giving feedback. When you are receiving feedback, actively listen, without emotion, to the ideas the person is sharing. It’s easy to deflect or make light of positive feedback instead of listening and acknowledging the input. Also, try not to get defensive or push back against what is being said when it feels like criticism. People may not be aware of how they are coming across. Rather, allow them to show you different options and courses of action. Then, demonstrate that you have heard the feedback by paraphrasing their remarks, and finally thank them for their honesty and insights.
One final thought on feedback: Most people will avoid sharing bad news, as they are afraid the leader will blame the messenger. If you do not know the issues, you cannot be part of the solution; therefore, reinforce others for providing both “good” and “bad” news. One executive I worked with learned to listen to the full message about a problem before providing a thoughtful reply. He was careful not to accuse or criticize. He realized this news was a gift that could help the organization improve.
How you handle issues, over time, in your new role will reflect on how much information is shared with you. When people recognize that you will listen without “killing the messenger,” more opportunities for improvements will surface. While you will want to support the identification of problems, you will also want to encourage others to find creative solutions. As you promote the delivery of both “good” and “bad” news, you will be able to facilitate richer discussions.
Chapter 21
Organizing Information
Organizing is what you do before you do something so that when you do it, it is not all mixed up.
– A. A. Milne
Create an Executive Transition Sourcebook
As you move through your transition, you are gathering significant amounts of information. It can be helpful to set up a system to collect and organize the information for easy reference and review. I recommend that you develop an Executive Transition Sourcebook with various sections, including tabs for business, people, processes, leadership, communication, and external constituents, plus any others that will help you. Figure 21-1 shows a possible outline for the sections in an Executive Transition Sourcebook. This Sourcebook can keep all your key insights and information in an organized place that will be extremely useful when you conduct business briefings with the Board and senior management. It’s a valuable tool that will help you analyze the business at many levels and then develop your own strategy for improvements and for your go-forward plans.
In the Sourcebook you will collect enterprise, business unit, geographical, and functional information in one place. This may include presentations, financials, plans, processes, and many other documents. Use Figure 9-2, Business Ecosystem Considerations, outlined in Chapter 9, as a guide to collecting information. Depending on the business, it may be a good idea to create separate Sourcebook sections to let you look at the entire business, as well as the business units, divisions, functions, regions, and even countries if yours is a global business.
Gather the insights you have gained through your learning so that you can take an objective, holistic look at what you’ve discovered. Add your personal insights to the appropriate sections of the Sourcebook. Then review the information and draw your conclusions about what actions to take.
With information coming in daily from many directions and different areas, you may find it best to gather the information into the sections on a weekly basis. When the pertinent information is in one place, it’s easy to have it handy for reference. As you review the information, what do you see as common and similar themes across the business? Where do the differences occur? For instance, is there a good reason for certain business segments being operated differently, or does that indicate a lack of strategic alignment that should be addressed?
Use the information to identify the core themes. Look for interdependencies across the business. Laying out the information so that you can see the entire business ecosystem will show you the strengths and weaknesses throughout the business. It will provide a visual map for determining the implications of changing one aspect of the business and the ramifications of that on other areas. Collecting the information in one place allows you to sequence the business priorities, tag interdependen
cies, and share your ideas with others. The Sourcebook offers an enterprise view from which to identify next steps.
Chapter 22
Cultivating Relationships
Trust is the glue in relationships and organizations.
– Stephen Covey
Stay Connected
I can’t emphasize strongly enough how important it is that you cultivate networks inside and outside the company, as well as keep in periodic contact with the network of people who can support you. Take a chapter out of Dale Carnegie’s classic How to Make Friends and Influence People to cultivate thought-provoking relationships with a wide variety of constituents.
Relationships are built on communication. It’s a continuous learning process to be aware of how you are communicating your intentions, and how your language, tone, and tenor either connect with or disengage from those with whom you come in contact. Each stakeholder will need different things from you. Anticipating those needs makes your job easier. It won’t all be about business. People will also want to relate to you as a person. In some of your circles, the personal discussions are as important as the business content.
With so many people wanting to engage with you, why is it so easy to get isolated in your new role? You should ask yourself what you could be doing that contributes to this isolation. For one thing, the pulls of the job get in the way. For example, you promised to get back in touch with a colleague after a terrific interaction, but find there’s no time in your schedule for the next few months. And if your executive assistant tries to protect your schedule, the message gets out that you may not be approachable. Your genuine desire to help on an issue turns into a monologue of you “telling” others your views, without giving them the opportunity to comment. In fact, your comments may sound more like criticism than helpful solutions.
To stay in touch effectively with others, you need to actively manage your relationships. Keep a list of the people you want to stay in touch with, and indicate on the list how often you’d like to make a connection. Put dates in your calendar or planner. Personalize the Example of a Stakeholder Preparation Plan (Figure 11-1) to prepare for key discussions.