How To Navigate Your Move From Manager To Executive

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‘Incoming executives inherit many forms of organization that were designed to serve the needs of their predecessor. To both effectively manage your time and move forward on your priorities, it’s imperative to think through the configuration of direct and indirect reports you want in your organization, along with the capabilities and roles that you choose to elevate or demote.’

Framing your plan- even if it changes over time- is a useful step to thinking through how you will accomplish critical objectives. … An effective plan not only considers what you must accomplish at work, but also what you want to personally accomplish and do.’

Sponsorship is an essential responsibility of C-suite leaders. … Successful sponsorship often requires focus, planning, commitments, and communications to generate a tangible impact.’

‘Time, talent, relationships, and transformation are the four pillars of effective transitions.’

‘During transitions, incoming leaders must effectively gauge the prevailing corporate culture.’

‘For incoming executives, the pathway to improving company performance can entail significant change initiatives. … A starting point to improve the odds of success is to systematically anticipate and prioritize the risks that are most likely to impede the realization of the project.’

Focusing on constraints, uncertainties, disruption, scaling- and halting activities that are no longer impactful- can help transitioning executives swiftly make choices that can frame opportunities for transformation that drives a meaningful boost in performance.’

Careful due diligence of leadership’s working style before taking on a new role can help executives avoid dysfunctional environments.’

‘Incoming executives are usually hired to improve performance and drive change. Delivering this change may require the consent and support of other key executives. Exercising influence to build support for change may range from initiating conversations that leverage likeability, to trading influence currencies, to aligning stakeholder commitments and actions to your projects.’

Working through the communication cascade early in the transition with a specialist can help you clarify your asks of them.’

‘Incoming executives must establish effective stakeholder relationships.’

Source:

Ajit Kambil (2023). The Leadership Accelerator: The Playbook for Transitioning into Your New Executive Role

‘Leading At A Distance’

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Trust is built naturally among teams that interact in person each day, but it takes more effort to develop among teams that rarely (if ever) meet face to face.’

Virtual leaders need to create an environment that fosters trust. When trust breaks down, however, they will struggle to be productive.’

Motivating people at a distance is challenging because of the lack of in-person contact, which can make it harder to understand what motivates people and to convey the team’s sense of purpose.’

Recognize that virtual meetings are specially prone to disruption. Learn to recognize the five most common types of meeting disruptors and have a plan for addressing them.’

Managers who excel at coaching use paraphrasing, empathizing, and good questions to show they are listening closely, and provide balanced feedback in a timely manner, despite the distance.’

‘Leaders are concerned about how to ensure their corporate culture remains strong during all-remote work.’

‘Modeling culture starts from the top. That’s true whether leading in-person or virtually. Most leaders try to communicate more frequently when leading from a distance, and as the amount of communication increases, it’s vital to make sure one’s words and actions remain aligned.’

Leaders can create a trusting environment through open, frequent, and transparent communication, by encouraging team members to share aspects of their personal lives to build intimacy; and by admitting when they don’t know something.’

‘If your team cannot meet in person for a kickoff or important event, use a series of short virtual meetings to replicate what would occur in person.’

Process is even important when working virtually. Set clear expectations about how the team will communicate, ensure that the team is informed about shifting priorities, and seek feedback from stakeholders about team performance over time.’

Source:

James M. Citrin & Darleen Derosa (2021). Leading at a Distance: Practical Lessons for Virtual Success