Читать книгу Transitions at the Top - Ciampa Dan - Страница 9

It may seem at first glance that the challenge of a transition is simple: Lay out the capabilities needed in the new leader, manage the search well, find the best person possible, and the rest will take care of itself. “After all,” as one CEO put it, “we've done all we can.” Sixteen months later, that same person said, “How could we have gotten it so wrong?” The answer is that he and his transition team did not do all that they could have. The fact is that the transition of the leader is a complex cascade of steps and events that last for many months and are affected by strong emotions.

Complexity

Chapter 1 explains that a leadership transition is not a simple transaction but rather is a process that has many moving parts that exist through a string of interdependent steps. If decisions involving each are made on the basis of the wrong logic or too carelessly or for the wrong reasons, it can cause the whole process to go off track.

Not only does the new leader need to make adjustments but each of the major players also must adjust. The directors must ensure that the process is off on the right foot without trying to do the work that management should be doing. Also they must adjust to the reality that they are hiring someone who will be key to meeting the financial needs of today, and at the same time must be mindful that they are hiring the person who will create the company's future.

The CEO must adjust as she walks the line between continuing to run the business that has her stamp on it and laying the groundwork for her successor to take over, ensuring that thoughts of her legacy do not impinge on either.

The CHRO must adjust as he carries out the coordinating responsibility of the person in the middle. He must be helpful to the new leader in preparing and onboarding, to the CEO as he directs the process, and to the senior leaders as they prepare the organization for the transition and the operational changes it will bring.

The senior managers must adjust to the entry of a new person who will be their new boss. In doing so, they will no doubt have to adjust the operational plans for which they have carefully geared their departments' processes, systems, and people.

Each major player must be ready to adjust and adapt to the changing demands of this dynamic process that touches on the strategic, operational, political, cultural, and personal realms of any company. Denying its complexity is the surest way to open the door that leads to errors. These errors fall into two categories: errors in thinking and errors in execution.

Thinking Errors

In the same way that major players ignore or remain unaware of the complexity they face in a top-level transition, they commit errors in how they perceive the task ahead in ways that block them from the goal of a successful handoff. Chapter 2 describes a number of these thinking errors and the underlining attitudes that cause them. They are most apparent in the form of three myths that commonly appear in organizations where transitions at the top fail.

The first myth is typified by the statement from a CEO, who said, “People join companies all the time; it's nothing to get all excited about.” The attitude behind this was that a top-level transition does not warrant special attention or planning but can be handled as a routine event.

The second myth, this time described by a lead director, is “Our job is done when the one we want says ‘Yes.’” The underlying attitude here is that the board can relax and back off once the candidate it wants has agreed to an offer. Directors who assume the CEO will take it from there are ignorant of their special responsibilities, ones that they alone must fulfill.

The third myth, “We know what he can do,” was uttered by the head of human resources of a large corporation that had just rehired an executive who had left several years before. It masks the attitude that past experience or familiarity can predict a new leader's performance in a job he has never done under conditions he has never faced.

Thinking errors are particularly destructive when committed by people in positions of authority who express them with certainty even though they may not have been thought through carefully. When followers fail to question or raise concerns, the collusion leads to errors in the execution of the transition.

Execution Errors

Chapter 3 reviews common errors that major players make as they execute the steps of the transition process. The first major execution error is one of omission as the directors and CEO simply ignore the need for ensuring that the demands of the transition are handled. Either from ignorance, organizational dysfunction, or laziness, a surprising percentage of companies make no effort to smooth the way for a new leader.

The second common execution error is when the directors either miss or ignore warning signs in the relationship between the CEO and the designated successor. Problems in this relationship pose the most serious block to transition success because of the need for trust between the incumbent and the person who is preparing to take over.

It is the board's responsibility to monitor the quality of the relationship and make sure that both parties are doing whatever is necessary for the relationship to be a factor that facilitates success rather than one that enables failure. Also, the CHRO has an important role to play here. It is he who should be close enough to the CEO and to the new leader to see the signs of trouble, and should be the one of all the major players with the training to recognize such problems early enough that they can be avoided.

The third execution error is when the company is affected by a type of tunnel vision that brings into focus only the new leader coming aboard but ignores the fact that for every new leader elevated to the top position in a planned transition, there is another transition as the incumbent leaves, and often there are other “derivative defections” when senior managers leave because of disappointment at not being awarded the top job or because their influence will decline with a new leader. As we stress throughout this book, the organization is a general system where when changes happen to one part, other parts will be affected in some way. The wise board and CEO will recognize this system-wide interdependence in how they plan for and carry out their transition duties.

The final common execution error is mismanaging the process of steps and events that make up the transition. Of course, every transition is different because each one happens in a unique organization culture with people who have unique personalities, strengths, and weaknesses. But, while each approach must be tailored to the particular conditions and demands of the situation, every top-level transition should be designed and implemented on the basis of a primary guiding principle: Transitions at the most senior level must be treated as special events because they are unlike transitions at any other level. What is good enough in the case of a new functional vice president or general manager will be insufficient for a CEO handoff.

Lack of appreciation of this principle contributes to three missteps that are described in Chapter 3: not organizing and interpreting the information that is most important to the new leader's success, particularly cultural and political information; inadequate preparation of people for the roles they must perform in order for the transition to be a success; and mishandling the part of the transition process that has to do with onboarding the new leader. Poorly designed programs to assimilate the new leader commonly detract from a smooth transition, especially when the new leader is coming into a culture and political structure that are unlike what he has experienced before.

Roles for Success

Errors of thinking and of execution can be minimized if the major players do their parts. Chapters 4 through 7 detail the role, the most impactful contributions, and the key success factors for each of the major players: the board, the CEO, the CHRO, and the senior managers.

The Board's Role

Directors must assume overall accountability for the transition's success. Chapter 4 highlights why and how the directors who are most involved must be engaged, informed participants. At the same time they must be careful to not be so active that the CEO's role is compromised. When that happens, not far behind is confusion or, worse, divided loyalties of the CHRO, senior managers, and also the new leader. Finding and maintaining this right balance is a key success factor not only for the board's role but also for the entire handoff.

In addition to accepting accountability, the board must manage relationships adroitly with both the incumbent leader and the new leader. With the existing CEO, the relationship must be that of a partner in making the transition a success. That requires the board to agree with the CEO on the rules by which they will work together, and to be as open to his point of view about how the transition should be managed as the CEO should be to the board's point of view. A partnership relationship also allows for input and advice from directors to the CEO, and vice versa. For advice to work, especially for a leader from his board, it must be given in an effective way by directors and also must be taken well by the leader. Chapter 4 explores this sometimes delicate interaction and the part the board and the CEO play to make the most of it during a handoff.

True partnerships are not common between a board and CEO. This chapter explores how new rules and regulations governing the makeup of boards and the relationship with the CEO have affected the potential for the board–CEO partnership. But we also suggest a more important reason for the lack of partnerships at this level: Boards and CEOs have not made it a high-enough priority. Even though new regulations may force boards and their CEOs to have a more arm's-length relationship, they require nothing that prevents a partnership relationship. It is a matter of having it as an important goal and putting in the effort to make it happen.

In Chapter 4 we also examine the formation of the relationship between the board and the new leader. Starting in the first interview, both parties share responsibility to shape a relationship that is positive and constructive, with the CEO playing a pivotal role. In addition, we look closely at the impact on that relationship of how the board intends to judge the new leader's performance and how it sets expectations for the new leader to eventually become CEO.

The two parts of the board's role in a top-level transition, then, are to be accountable for the transition and to adroitly manage the relationships with the CEO and the new leader. That role depends on three imperatives. The first imperative to ensure both parts of this role is to provide oversight that is both wise and useful for the transition. That often comes down to finding the right balance between backing off too much to avoid intruding on the CEO's responsibilities and being too involved.

The second imperative necessary for the board to fulfill its role is to enable the CEO to exit gracefully and at the right time while also enabling the new leader to master what she must in order to meet the company's emerging challenges as well as the political reality of her entry.

The third imperative is to pay particular attention to the culture and its political dynamics as the transition goes through its various steps. This chapter identifies specific actions that boards can take to do so that enable them to stay within their role while still being actively engaged.

The CEO's Role

Chapter 5 concentrates on the role of the CEO in a leadership transition. This role has two major parts: to direct the design and implementation of the transition's various steps, and to ensure that the CEO's successor assimilates effectively into the organization and, ultimately, moves up to the top position.

The first part requires that certain standard elements be in place that are important to any handoff, such as expectations and roles being clear, the right amount of communication, ways to measure progress, and ensuring that the transition is on the agenda of each major player. The key here is an organized, efficient process. The second part requires the CEO to believe that the success of the person who next steps into the CEO position is the final, important objective on his watch. We explore how CEOs fulfill this priority.

Of course, the way the CEO performs each is always tailored to the situation and personalities involved. We describe two cases where each CEO took a different path toward the same objective of a successor successfully taking hold. One CEO took on the role of counselor to his successor, coaching him actively and throughout the transition. The other CEO became an instructor, ensuring the new leader grasped what she had to and that she had the help needed to shape the relationships that were going to be most important, especially ones with managers who would end up reporting to her. These were different approaches with each fitting the situation that existed in each company, and that fit the personalities and abilities of each CEO.

Three imperatives must be handled well by the CEO in order for this role to be fulfilled and the transition to be directed effectively as the new leader moves up. The first is that the CEO control the steps and pace of the transition process. This starts with choosing the entry point and position in the organization for the new leader. The next step is the CEO clarifying his mental image of the optimal person to be his successor, of how they will interact once she is aboard, and what the handoff should be like if it works smoothly and effectively. The next element necessary to control steps and pace is for the search process to be juxtaposed and to overlap effectively with the process for the transition. This chapter explores each in detail and describes the points of overlap as well as potential tensions and problems.

The second imperative for the CEO is to ensure the other major players do what they must for the transition's success. We explore how the CEO can do so in ways ranging from the bully pulpit of his office to his personal persuasiveness to various ways to involve and educate. We also see why it is particularly important to involve in the transition the senior managers (that is, the CEO's direct reports) who will eventually report to the new leader.

The third imperative is the CEO's own self-management and self-awareness as she passes the mantle of authority to her successor. The CEO must manage her own emotions during this time, one that can be quite stressful for any leader. She must also sharpen her awareness of her impact on others as the handoff proceeds. The degree that the CEO can do both effectively will go a long way to determining how well she hands over authority to her successor. It will also in large part determine the state of mind in which she leaves the organization as well as how employees will view her as she walks away. While it is difficult to move into the top spot for a new leader, it can be just as hard to leave it. For the CEO who has devoted significant time and energy to leading the company, departing raises important questions of what has been accomplished, what is being left behind, and what is next for the CEO. Chapter 5 looks in detail at ways the CEO can address these crucial questions.

The CHRO's Role

Chapter 6 looks at the role of the chief human resources officer (CHRO) in a transition at the top. While the board is accountable and the CEO must direct the transition, the CHRO's role in a top-level transition is divided into two parts. First, he is the one who should ensure each step operates as it should, that they all fit together in the right way, and that there is the appropriate degree of coordination with related activities such as the search process. It is also to the CHRO that falls the responsibility for the new leader's assimilation into the organization and also communication to the organization about the transition. This includes ensuring each transition step operates as it must; that the various parts of the process fit together to form a general system where one part interacts appropriately with others; and that the execution of the major tasks is smooth, efficient, and effective.