TRANSITIONING NEW ROLE SENIOR LEADERS: HOW CAN WE DO IT BETTER?
Any transition to a new role, while exciting and an acknowledgement of what the organization thinks of you, is a time of anxiety for every newly transitioning leader.
A few of the common errors of a new role leader include trying to do too much too soon, failure to understand the de facto culture/sub-culture, and/or misinterpreting the expectations of their superior. Danger lurks ahead….. in the form of mistrust by others, leader fatigue, compounding anxiety with over preparation, and possibly the creation of an unsafe environment for employees.
As stress intensifies for the new role leader, can you really be making the best decisions for the organization as a whole, your team and yourself?
Stress has a tremendous effect on performance levels, particularly at a time when a leader is under the magnifying glass. Stress studies have demonstrated that it’s effect alters the ability to learn, to remain agile, and to make effective decisions.
I have worked with leaders who admitted that they have hardly slept in three months and leaders who existed on a pop and pizza diet. It is rewarding as an executive coach to support leaders in these circumstances and be part of the process that allows them to gain back a feeling of balance and control, rewarding them with restful nights rather than a continuum of midnight note taking sessions.
With invested and targeted support, these leaders can bring about greater contribution to the organization in a shortened time frame as they learn to manage their stress, embrace the transition, garner early credibility and move powerfully forward with their leadership.
What is the cost to an organization of not readily investing in the transitioning new role leader? This is not just about the leader’s transition. You have to take into consideration the transitional impact on those who surround the leader and the cost to the organization when their performance falters as a result of how the new role leader shows up for others.
Some thoughts for effectively supporting senior leader new role transitions in your organization:
- Identify communication gaps and improve communication of support and development programs
- Appoint an “ambassador of programs” who can effectively inform, steer, co-design, and co-manage a transitioning individual’s action plan
- Gain commitment of senior leaders to provide face-to-face time with newly promoted leaders, ensuring relationship building, clarity of expectations, and constructive feedback sessions
- Provide senior leadership networking opportunities
- Encourage formal and/or informal mentorship
- Ensure strategic alignment to the overall succession strategy of your organization
- Utilize psychometric assessments in the early stages to increase leader’s self awareness
- Design or contract for an accelerated leadership transitioning program that can be self-directed and facilitated by an executive/leadership coach
- Implement usage of a senior leadership 360° assessment for a transitioning leader at an 18-month interval, with a smaller version of the assessment redone at 24 months.
Can your organization afford to falter in its role to more effectively support transitioning leaders? Is there an opportunity to step back from the status quo and examine the question: How could we transition our new role leaders better and assure their and our organization’s success? Let me know how you feel and what you think. Take care.
This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 12th, 2010 at 1:48 pm and is filed under Business Coaching. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
