by Hilary Potts
The quicker you let go of old cheese, the sooner you find new cheese.
– Spencer Johnson
After about three to four months, your transition as the new leader customarily comes to an end. Then it will be time for you to demonstrate your value, contribute significantly to the organization, and achieve measurable results. The first few months in the new role have given you the opportunity to build credibility. But it is what you do over the next 6 to 18 months that determines your long-term success. The end of your transition is merely the beginning of your leadership. This is what you should be looking forward to: a time when you can truly start to serve and make a lasting contribution to the business.
If you have worked through the first four steps of the Executive Transition Playbook (see Figure 2-1), you now will have a better picture of how to enhance the business. This could involve clarifying the current strategy or developing a new one. Perhaps the executive team is not working well together, or it lacks the capability to effectively execute the strategy. Or you find that certain processes require updating to align with the strategy. Regardless of the specific issues you face, the next phase requires you to build an effective plan, communicate that plan to your stakeholders, and enroll others in the actions.
The fifth and final step of the Executive Transition Playbook is to Step into Action, which is an opportunity to create a What’s Next Plan. The What’s Next Plan is a useful tool to map out how you wish to both take on the full business accountabilities and incorporate the changes you see need to happen. This plan takes the core themes you identified and maps those themes out over the next 18 months.
As part of the final phase of the transition, I work with leaders to chart their course for at least the next six months. Leaders can learn from professional athletes (among others) who regularly create goals and strategies to approach both training and competitive events. The strategic details of a plan allow the athletes to focus on executing the right strategies to compete at a world-class level. A What’s Next Plan achieves the same purpose, of taking a leader from the transition period into the business cycle.
If you followed the Executive Transition Playbook, you learned about the organization, thought about the changes you will make, and identified and prioritized actions. You have worked on building your team, so that you can enroll others. You have carefully pondered your leadership style and actions, and you understand what is needed to lead this organization. Your What’s Next Plan can capture all this information, giving you a clear and concise blueprint for what you will do going forward. As you share this plan with others, they will learn what they have to do to get engaged in your plans and follow your lead.
Many aspects of your Executive Transition Playbook can be repurposed to create your What’s Next Plan. As you create this plan, focus on these areas:
Direction
Gain clarity on the direction, to ensure that the appropriate vision, strategy, and structure are in place.
Leadership Alignment
Check that the executive team is aligned and committed to moving in the same direction. Too frequently, great ideas fail because executives across the organization have conflicting ideas about and plans for where the business is headed.
Business Alignment
Review all the business elements to determine that each is suitably aligned with the business strategy. Processes and organizational structure should support the overall strategy, yet they can take on lives of their own or even be modified when people find it difficult to carry out the process as designed. Worse yet, many processes aren’t documented, so different people may perform the process in different ways.
Role Clarity
Clearly define your business role, and help others define their own roles. Great strategies stall when people are unclear about what they are supposed to do. When smart people are not clear about their roles, they can create their own definitions, which may be off the mark. It is a waste of time, effort, and money for a star performer to do work that does not positively contribute to your strategy. So work with the executive team to identify the key leadership behaviors needed, especially if some of the activities are new or may be resisted.
Call to Action
Prepare the organization for the business changes. Bring people to action through timely, compelling messages that cascade throughout the organization. Be sure to include in your plan the actions needed to change both processes and behaviors, so that people can carry out the strategic direction.
Calendaring Your Milestones and Events
Develop an organizational business calendar to sequence and match the events to the kind of interactions and activities that will enable the work to be accomplished. You may have inherited a company business calendar; if such a calendar does not exist, create one. Your transition is a good opportunity to make any adjustments to fit the new direction.
Engagement
Continue to cultivate relationships. Build on the solid relationships you developed in the first three months, and continue to earn people’s trust and respect over time. Doing so takes consistency in how you interact, communicate, and lead. Be sure to reach out to a broad cross section of people, so that you can learn how well your implementation efforts and leadership are working.
Communications
Update your leadership communications strategy to match the needs of the business, going forward. Most leaders do not communicate enough. They get busy solving problems and forget to keep people informed. You can stay in touch by creating a plan for regular communication. Identify key touch points on which to solicit feedback, then learn about what is working (or not) in the organization. Use these touch points to coach others, remove obstacles, and resolve issues.
The What’s Next Plan helps to keep the strong momentum and cadence of staying connected for months to come. You will be able to move from the “honeymoon” period to consistently effective daily operations in a smooth, seamless manner. Consider mapping the activities across a timeline such as the What’s Next Plan Timeline depicted in Figure 25-1.
Use the What’s Next Plan to get others involved in the actions going forward. The key is to create a narrative that enables you and others to capitalize on the ideas and insights you collected during the transition period. Pulling the information together into a What’s Next Plan helps to move the ideas to action. This final exercise generates a firm foundation from which you can lead the organization over the next year, and for years to come.
Chapter 26
Final Thoughts
In today’s highly competitive environment, leaders are growing businesses and are establishing and expanding healthy organizations through the actions of many individuals. Like them, you must consider how you will choose the best ways to serve the business you have been asked to lead. Your objective is to find the quickest path to gaining knowledge and traction in this role, so that you can add value to the efforts of others. You will need to pay close attention to what others require to do their jobs effectively, and as their leader you will have to provide a safe environment for people to interact, share a diversity of ideas, and come to agreement on the best path forward.
My hope is that an Executive Transition Playbook provides a strategic and operational approach to managing your transition. I trust that your Playbook resonates well with you and inspires you to spend this short transition period wisely. Further, I encourage you to use all the information in this book, modifying the Playbook and the other ideas to fit your business situation. My goal for the book has been to help you work through your strategy, plan your approach, and act in such a way that you can be of highest service to others in the organization.
An important point I want to restate is the importance of taking care of yourself first. Only then can you develop your leadership approach and create the balance to have the capacity, focus, and energy to engage others. A small amount of time spent on correct planning can go a long way in preparing you to show up well in the many venue
s of your business and your personal life, combined. You will then be prepared to assist others. When you employ a plan such as the Executive Transition Playbook, your intentions will begin to
match your actions, and your actions will surely have a positive impact on the work of others.
When you are clear on a direction, you have a foundation from which to pivot and make changes as needed. If the foundation isn’t strong, you may find yourself overly engrossed in many activities and moving in numerous directions; however, you may see minimal results, and the people around you may struggle to follow your lead.
It has been a privilege for me to share with you ways to elevate your leadership during the transition into a new role. While the concepts I lay out in this book make common sense, it requires effort on your part to make them your own. It is one thing to understand a concept, but it’s truly another to put it into practice. The easiest things can get overlooked as being thought “too simple,” even though these items may be the very underpinnings of more-complex activities.
Your Executive Transition Playbook provides ample tools for your journey into your new role. Many of my colleagues find these tools useful in handling other business changes, as well. You will do yourself and your colleagues a favor by using the proven tools I have outlined in this book to move along the path to high-performing leadership. You will be setting yourself — and others — up for success.
I will leave you with this final thought as you step into the new role:
Anyone can make the simple, complicated. It takes an extraordinary leader to take complex and complicated issues and make them simple.
– Adapted from jazz great Charles Mingus
As you work with others, strive to find the simplicity and clarity of solutions that will engage and inspire others.
I would welcome hearing about your leadership successes and challenges as you navigate the changing business environment. To send a note, and for more information, visit www.executivetransitionplaybook.com.
My best wishes to you, as you continue serving others through your thoughtful leadership.
Suggested Reading
Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson, The New One Minute Manager (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2015)
The authors have updated their 1980s classic, which continues to be a great reminder of fundamental principles for leaders and their important roles in serving organizations.
Larry Bossidy and Ram Charan, Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done (New York: Crown Business, 2002)
The authors share a no-nonsense approach to achieving results, using a simple model focused on strategy, process, and people. They provide insights to lead any business.
William Bridges, Transitions: Making Sense of Life’s Changes (Boston: Da Capo Press, 2004)
The author outlines ways to navigate the psychological impacts of transitions in a way that honors the ending, a neutral zone, and a new beginning. He created a body of knowledge to help individuals and organizations navigate change. The exercises he presents help guide the reader through personal exploration of transitions. Managing Transitions, another book by the same author, focuses on how to assist others in business transitions.
Michael Carroll, Awake at Work: 35 Practical Buddhist Principles for Discovering Clarity and Balance in the Midst of Work’s Chaos (Boston: Shambhala Publications, 2004)
The author shares Buddhist wisdom to turn business issues into opportunities. He uses ancient Eastern principles to inspire the reader to look at work as energizing and fulfilling.
Ram Charan, Stephen Drotter, and James Noel, The Leadership Pipeline: How to Build the Leadership Powered Company (San Francisco: John Wiley & Sons, 2011)
The authors offer a structure and insights on issues that leaders face as they move up the career ladder. The book contains many insights into traps and tips for successfully moving from the role of an individual contributor to that of a group business executive.
Stephen R. Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1990)
This book is a classic read for anyone who wants to be inspired and transformed in their personal and business lives.
Aubrey Daniels, Bringing Out the Best in People (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2000)
The author is a master at outlining the role that leadership behavior plays in getting results. His book is a short course on the ins and outs of applied behavioral science. Many leaders may be aware of the concepts, but what gets them into trouble can be the lack of follow-through. The author puts these ideas in the context of the business world.
Peter F. Drucker, Frances Hesselbein, and Joan Snyder Kuhl, Peter Drucker’s Five Most Important Questions: Enduring Wisdom for Today’s Leaders (Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2015)
Drucker’s questions are timeless and continue to be relevant in today’s business world. This short, easy-to-read book should be a constant companion for any leader wanting to make a difference.
Seth Godin, Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us (New York: Penguin Group, 2008)
This book is a quick read about the power of bringing people together to solve problems. It will inspire you to find the collective power in your own organization.
Dan Harris, 10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works—A True Story (New York: HarperCollins, 2014)
The author shares his journey into mindfulness meditation and other ancient Eastern practices. He tells how these practices helped him find a healthy balance in his high-powered career.
Gay Hendricks, The Big Leap: Conquer Your Hidden Fear and Take Life to the Next Level (New York: HarperCollins, 2009)
We all have “fears,” a word that isn’t always accepted in business conversation, which is an unfortunate omission. The author demonstrates how to eliminate the barriers to success by overcoming false fears and beliefs.
Phil Jackson with Hugh Delehanty, Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success (New York: Penguin Books, 2013)
Sports writers call basketball coach Jackson the “Zen Master” because he inspired his players to look past the fame and fortune and to consciously play the game they love. For leaders looking for practical ways to incorporate mindfulness into their own leadership practices, Jackson shares insightful stories of how he used these concepts to lead two professional teams to NBA titles.
Nancy Kline, More Time to Think: A Way of Being in the World (London: Cassell, 2009)
The author has been studying and writing books on the topic of thinking for decades. She provides perspectives on how to help yourself, and others, find the space to think. In this hectic world where people want things done “yesterday,” she shares why we may be getting in our own way.
Patrick Lencioni, The Five Temptations of a CEO: A Leadership Fable (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1998)
This is a wonderful tale of a CEO who knew he was failing. It depicts the few simple behaviors that any leader should consider practicing.
Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz, The Power of Full Engagement: Managing Energy, Not Time, Is the Key to High Performance and Personal Reward (New York: Free Press, 2003)
If you are looking for an overall balance of your life and leadership, the authors can help you. They outline a simple model and set of tools to balance your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual selves to be able to perform at your very best.
Michelle and Dennis Reina, Trust and Betrayal in the Workplace: Building Effective Relationships in Your Organization (Oakland, CA: Berrett-Koehler, 2015)
The authors masterfully share decades of research and work with corporate clients to help their readers understand how to build trust and support high-performing organizations. Don’t be scared off by the title. The writers have a very practical model to help leaders enhance their own personal awareness and gain a perspective on what others may be experiencing as they build “trusting” organizations.
Robin Sharma,
The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari: A Fable about Fulfilling Your Dreams and Reaching Your Destiny (New York: Free Press, 2011)
The author is a great storyteller who weaves leadership principles into his fabled stories. The messages are simple and inspiring.
Simon Sinek, Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action (London: Penguin Group, 2009)
The author is all about finding an organization’s, or an individual’s, life purpose. This book is all about the “why.” The author also has delivered a stimulating TED Talk that highlights the reason for you to find your “why.”
Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind (Boston: Shambhala Publications, 2011)
This spiritual classic is a must-read for anyone looking to find quiet and stillness through meditation and mindfulness. Every time you read it, new insights reveal themselves.
Julian Treasure, “5 Ways to Listen Better,” TED Talk, July 2011 www.ted.com/talks/julian_treasure_5_ways_to_listen_better
Many executives are told they need to work on their listening skills, but few are shown how to practice listening. This TED Talk captures the essence of why we struggle to listen. This is a captivating speaker with amazing insights. He shares a compelling reason why a few minutes of sitting in silence (some call it meditation) really works.
Acknowledgments
This book would not have been possible without the insights and support of many people. I am deeply grateful for the extraordinary leaders I come in contact with every day.
First and foremost, I will be forever grateful to my family, especially my darling husband, Michael House, who has been my sounding board and so indispensable in helping me keep things logical and simple; thank you for your love, understanding, and encouragement through every iteration. Thanks also to my favorite guys, my sons Garrett and Evan House; I learn something from you every day, with your thoughtful questions and ideas. The world is a better place because you are in it. I hope this book provides both of you insights as you enter the business world.
