Demonstrating a successful transition
Action
Create a sense of confidence in your leadership from the moment you are considered for the role. You need to address your assumptions and self image. Your goal is to move out of your old role and assume the responsibilities and behaviours needed for the new role. This may require you to stop relying your old technical expertise so you can address a different or broader set of responsibilities.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
Changing roles takes away a lot of certainty and comfort zones. Avoid retreating into your old role or areas of technical familiarity. This is a false security that will set you up to fail.
The more senior a role the more you have to manage people and teams that work in areas different to your technical training or experience. Learning how to gather valid information and make reliable decisions in this role is important for your transition.
Create a sense of confidence in your leadership from the moment you are considered for the role. You need to address your assumptions and self image. Your goal is to move out of your old role and assume the responsibilities and behaviours needed for the new role. This may require you to stop relying your old technical expertise so you can address a different or broader set of responsibilities.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
Changing roles takes away a lot of certainty and comfort zones. Avoid retreating into your old role or areas of technical familiarity. This is a false security that will set you up to fail.
The more senior a role the more you have to manage people and teams that work in areas different to your technical training or experience. Learning how to gather valid information and make reliable decisions in this role is important for your transition.
Action
Day one sets the tone for your leadership. Plan for it and prepare what you will do and who you will meet. There can be multiple 'day ones' to manage, whether it is the the actual first day on the job or the first day you commence doing different parts of the job or deal with a stakeholder. Work out a strategy for dealing with a deluge of operational demands that prevent you from laying the groundwork for your leadership.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
People can often wait for the leader to take the initiative. At the local business unit level there may be no systematic way of helping leaders start the job. Even when there are formal induction procedures, these don't usually focus on how you will build constructive relationships with people in the organisation or make decisions on day one. Be prepared to step out and insist on meeting people and exploring the organisation straight away.
Day one sets the tone for your leadership. Plan for it and prepare what you will do and who you will meet. There can be multiple 'day ones' to manage, whether it is the the actual first day on the job or the first day you commence doing different parts of the job or deal with a stakeholder. Work out a strategy for dealing with a deluge of operational demands that prevent you from laying the groundwork for your leadership.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
People can often wait for the leader to take the initiative. At the local business unit level there may be no systematic way of helping leaders start the job. Even when there are formal induction procedures, these don't usually focus on how you will build constructive relationships with people in the organisation or make decisions on day one. Be prepared to step out and insist on meeting people and exploring the organisation straight away.
Action
Plan and implement the priority messages and images you want to use to set the tone for your leadership. First impressions matter and we have very little control over how people interpret us. Make an effort to tune into people's reactions and responses to read how they are adjusting to you. Do the same for how you react to other people based on first impressions. Also, the type of information and data you request early on will influence your view of operations. You will probably ask for types of information that were useful in your past roles. Try to anticipate what information will be useful in the new role.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
It only takes a bad relationship with your boss and with two subordinates to destroy your chance of succeeding.
Plan and implement the priority messages and images you want to use to set the tone for your leadership. First impressions matter and we have very little control over how people interpret us. Make an effort to tune into people's reactions and responses to read how they are adjusting to you. Do the same for how you react to other people based on first impressions. Also, the type of information and data you request early on will influence your view of operations. You will probably ask for types of information that were useful in your past roles. Try to anticipate what information will be useful in the new role.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
It only takes a bad relationship with your boss and with two subordinates to destroy your chance of succeeding.
Action
Implement a sequence of meetings with your boss to ensure you have clear and realistic expectations. Your boss' personality, professional history and responsibilities will influence how expectations are set. Negotiate communication arrangements so the process works for both your personalities. Depending on business conditions there may not be much time to finalise expectations. Put strategies in place to deal with urgent issues so you can create time to make sure expectations are clarified and workable.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
Sometimes people have multiple bosses, especially in matrix organisations. At an executive level this can include dealing with board members. Make sure you clarify all expectations and have strategies in place with different bosses to resolve competing expectations.
Implement a sequence of meetings with your boss to ensure you have clear and realistic expectations. Your boss' personality, professional history and responsibilities will influence how expectations are set. Negotiate communication arrangements so the process works for both your personalities. Depending on business conditions there may not be much time to finalise expectations. Put strategies in place to deal with urgent issues so you can create time to make sure expectations are clarified and workable.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
Sometimes people have multiple bosses, especially in matrix organisations. At an executive level this can include dealing with board members. Make sure you clarify all expectations and have strategies in place with different bosses to resolve competing expectations.
Action
Work to build your boss' confidence so you can be trusted without undue reporting requirements or being micro managed. Make sure you know what to do, do what must be done, and that your boss knows it is done and expectations met. Implement personal and operational systems to execute decisions and protect critical processes to deliver result.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
It is important to get to the stage where your boss can talk strategy and objectives with you without feeling obliged to get into the details or micro-managing. Evidence of delivery helps your boss establish the confidence to leave the details to you.
Work to build your boss' confidence so you can be trusted without undue reporting requirements or being micro managed. Make sure you know what to do, do what must be done, and that your boss knows it is done and expectations met. Implement personal and operational systems to execute decisions and protect critical processes to deliver result.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
It is important to get to the stage where your boss can talk strategy and objectives with you without feeling obliged to get into the details or micro-managing. Evidence of delivery helps your boss establish the confidence to leave the details to you.
Action
Work with your team early on to clarify a vision of where you are taking the organisation and how you intend to do it. Get buy-in early to create a vision, setting aside time to work through it with people. Be willing to accept their input. Make sure the vision has tangible objectives that you can implement and track.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
A vision early on cannot include what you will learn in the first 12 months on the job. Make sure you factor in the process of learning and long term agendas.
Visions have to refer to how things will actually be if you achieve them. They are about your team and things you can control or influence. An effective vision can be used as a criterion for evaluating whether you are moving in the right direction and when it has been achieved.
Work with your team early on to clarify a vision of where you are taking the organisation and how you intend to do it. Get buy-in early to create a vision, setting aside time to work through it with people. Be willing to accept their input. Make sure the vision has tangible objectives that you can implement and track.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
A vision early on cannot include what you will learn in the first 12 months on the job. Make sure you factor in the process of learning and long term agendas.
Visions have to refer to how things will actually be if you achieve them. They are about your team and things you can control or influence. An effective vision can be used as a criterion for evaluating whether you are moving in the right direction and when it has been achieved.
Action
Quick wins have already been raised in the business factors section. Make some key quick wins a priority. They are milestone achievements that build your credibility and motivate people to follow your leadership. Solving bottlenecks in business processes can provide early quick wins that don't jeopardise long term plans. People often give a new leader a honeymoon period but your first trip up can end it. Quick wins build your credibility to get you through the inevitable trip up.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
Don't let early wins evolve into a practice of ad hoc interventions without a strategy. Quick wins are to build confidence in your long term strategy and plans. Some leaders lurch from crisis to crisis, which looks like they are achieving things at a superficial level and often garner praise because they fixed something. However, in the absence of a strategy, they do not address the underlying causes and over time may even leave the organisation worse off.
Quick wins have already been raised in the business factors section. Make some key quick wins a priority. They are milestone achievements that build your credibility and motivate people to follow your leadership. Solving bottlenecks in business processes can provide early quick wins that don't jeopardise long term plans. People often give a new leader a honeymoon period but your first trip up can end it. Quick wins build your credibility to get you through the inevitable trip up.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
Don't let early wins evolve into a practice of ad hoc interventions without a strategy. Quick wins are to build confidence in your long term strategy and plans. Some leaders lurch from crisis to crisis, which looks like they are achieving things at a superficial level and often garner praise because they fixed something. However, in the absence of a strategy, they do not address the underlying causes and over time may even leave the organisation worse off.
Action
Ensure available critical information is managed and assessed to expose threats, not cover them up. Have good processes to escalate issues to the level needed to solve them (and not above or below). Given that people often try to present a good face or simply assume they are doing well, it is important to communicate and demonstrate that bad news is welcomed and the messenger will not be shot. It is surprises that are unwelcome.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
A predictable surprise (problems that occur even though the warning information was available) is a great way to ruin an otherwise successful performance. It wastes time, soils reputations and creates negative consequences for any number of people and organisations. The fact that others don't seem worried or do no scenario analysis or even minimise risk doesn't mean you should be relaxed about issues. You can ask the 'dumb' questions, especially while you are early in the role, testing assumptions about what is really likely to happen.
Ensure available critical information is managed and assessed to expose threats, not cover them up. Have good processes to escalate issues to the level needed to solve them (and not above or below). Given that people often try to present a good face or simply assume they are doing well, it is important to communicate and demonstrate that bad news is welcomed and the messenger will not be shot. It is surprises that are unwelcome.
Risks/Opportunities/Surprises
A predictable surprise (problems that occur even though the warning information was available) is a great way to ruin an otherwise successful performance. It wastes time, soils reputations and creates negative consequences for any number of people and organisations. The fact that others don't seem worried or do no scenario analysis or even minimise risk doesn't mean you should be relaxed about issues. You can ask the 'dumb' questions, especially while you are early in the role, testing assumptions about what is really likely to happen.
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