5.3. Common Challenges in Executive Transitions (part 3)

I didn't know what to do or how to behave...

In my previous articles we learnt that?nearly half of executive transitions fail[1].?We also learned that there is?little good guidance out there?when it comes to successfully mastering executive transitions. Furthermore, we know that there are?successful strategies?for existing transitions?[2]that can be learned and embodied. Among them?using a skilled Executive Transition Coach can substantially reduce the risk of failure and accelerate the transition by +50%.

What are the most common challenges of executive transitions?

According to Master Your Next Move[1]?by Michael D. Watkins there are 8 types of executive transitions. Note that most moves to new leadership roles involve?multiple?types of transitions often occurring at the same time. The more types of transitions an executive is experiencing simultaneously, the greater the overall challenge will be. And I would like to add some more to make the list of top transition challenges that I have helped executive coaching clients of mine over the years. Today we will look at challenge #3: The Leading-Former-Peers Challenge.

The Leading-Former-Peers Challenge

Sounds pretty straight forward, right?

At one stage in my career, a member of our team and I had to go through a structured selection process that had been organised by colleagues in Human Resources. At the end of that lengthy and gruelling process, I was selected to lead the team of (mostly) former peers.

This meant that I had to suddenly manage my former peers as a line manager, tread lightly at first and being mindful of not introducing major overhauls right away.

One of the best decisions I took early way to set up a new schedule for team and individual meetings, set up our team ground rules in a team session and explain my expectations for communication in our team.

That being said, at times I did have to exert authority and provide direction. In the end, the new leader cannot be the same as a peer. What was also clear is that I could not have close, personal friendships with my former peers. In a way that was the hardest part, as it is inherently part of the deal and probably a loss for everybody. But how else was I supposed to avoid coming across as playing favourites?

This really changed our team dynamics quite dramatically. Also given that one of my peers had been going through the selection process at the same time. It is understandable that he was disappointed, so would I have been. So I had to deal with the disappointed peer of mine who went through that process.

I made sure to let him know that I did value him and that I would have been equally disappointed if it had been me, and that I nevertheless would have respected him if he had come out of that process winning. In the end, we did make it work and he found his promotion opportunity later on outside of our team. To be fair, it was probably a close call anyway.

"Working with many executive transition coaching clients, one of the biggest challenges they are faced with is to masterfully “reset” past and existing relationships professionally, when they are in a similar situation." Navid Nazemian, PCC

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[1]?Watkins, Michael D., “Master Your Next Move”, HBR Press, April 2021