The Riddle
Here’s a little riddle for you:
How good do you have to be to land a job working for the new senior executive who’s just parachuted in from outside—over the person who’s been working side-by-side with them for the past decade?
Answer: You can’t be that good.
Picture this: You’re at your desk, full of anticipation. You’ve been with your organization long enough to be what we call consciously competent. You know all the secrets—the shortcuts, the hidden dangers, the go-to people who can get things done despite the red tape. You’re an organizational ninja. Now you hear a new leader is coming in from the outside. You’re excited because you thrive on chaos and change. You’re one of those people who keeps the ship sailing smoothly, no matter what.
So you sip your latte, thinking about how this is your moment. The new leader is going to LOVE how you’ll help them hit the ground running. You’re ready to smooth their path and become an invaluable part of their team. You’re already imagining the rewards—cash, recognition, maybe even a nice vacation condo. You can’t wait to share the good news with your partner.
But hold on a second—you might be deluding yourself.
That new leader might not care about your excellence. They might care more about trust—the kind of trust built over years of working side by side. Competence is just the baseline. In big organizations where politics often outweigh merit, mediocrity + loyalty can trump excellence. You need to recognize if that’s the game being played where you are.
And remember, that new leader might have been brought in for an H2C (Hole to China) project—a massive initiative that’s often why they’re there in the first place. Chances are, they’ve already secured spots for their own team, and your name probably isn’t on their list.
Learn to spot when the “band is getting back together.” LinkedIn can be your best friend here. A major red flag? When the new leader acts like they barely know the lieutenant they just brought in to shadow you. But if LinkedIn shows they’re practically family, it might be time to start planning your next move.
Technology leader with executive skills. Strategic thinker and problem solver. Excellent communication skills.
4 周Great food for thought Dave! And they don't need to be from outside the company. They can be from inside the company but outside of the department. Rising superstars from within the company often take new roles and bring their people with them. Lookout! Rising superstars often don't care about the company or your career. They care about their own career. This topic reminds me of the old book, "The 48 Laws of Power". Heed the warning.
Business Solution, Partner Engagement, Cybersecurity, Automation, Inventor, Public Speaker
1 个月This is absolutely right on the money You and I have both discussed and experienced the, “ Director of the hole to China project”. Coupled with the “special projects “ team member they bring in who later ends up being best friends with the director and gets promoted to team lead and later team manager. This person them disolves top talent in order to protect their position and eliminate competition. I am always amazed by “ the pier parrot” who sits in one meeting and 39 minutes later in the next meeting, repeats to management the thing that they just learned from from someone else sounding like an amazing resource of knowlage. It is a shame but it is reality and ultimately leads to failure. But there is always another visionary company with a hole to China project to move to.
Building Things and Growing People at Google Cloud
1 个月It’s not about being good. It’s about being trusted.
Global Technical Operations Mgt, Strategy Execution, Process Optimization, PMO, Risk, QA, Agile, AI, ML, ITIL, Kanban, Scrum, Organizational Excellence, Customer Success, Communicator, Leadership, Multicultural / Lingual
1 个月Like in golf, you play the course not the other players. You focus on your game and be the best at what you do! If management changes and you aren’t a part of it, you can always leave and play another course. Companies that promote mediocrity, politics and nepotism will at some point fail. There are numerous examples littered over the past 10 years that have failed; GE, Boeing and SAIC are just a few that come to mind. The lesson learned, like in golf, is to play the course, better your score each time you play or in your example, learn something new (a skill, technique, etc) that will improve YOU and then teach someone else. That’s the difference between success and failure!
Retail & Consumer Executive | Tech Startup Enthusiast | Product Owner
1 个月Yes! Ahem - Starbucks?