Keeping Newly Hired Leaders On Board
By: Bob Sawicki
Originally featured in HR Pulse
We may all have seen this happen: A significant leadership role is filled by an external hire with a great pedigree and expectations of a fresh set of ideas and energy. Then the person doesn’t last. Despite the time, resources and investment in finding a great candidate, either the company or the newly minted leader decides it’s not a good fit.
While this phenomenon is not universally tracked or measured, sources indicate that up to 40% of newly hired senior leaders don’t work out and leave before 18 months in the new role.
There are many reasons for this, but perhaps the most common is that the new leader has a misguided sense of confidence that what worked for them in their last organization just needs to be implemented in their new gig. And why not? That’s what got them to this point, and presumably was attractive to those who chose to recruit them. And without any guidance or plan to address their first few months in the role, there’s no voice telling them otherwise. Enter a growing talent management resource: Executive Onboarding.
Executive onboarding is a fast-growing spinoff of executive coaching, specifically focused on ensuring that the new leader:
gets off to a quick start with accelerated impact
is aligned with the company’s strategy, culture and values
can engage with their new team
quickly develops relationships with key stakeholders
leverages resources, information and tools to drive business results
Why should this be necessary? After all, the senior leader likely has solid experiences to bring to bear, and, to paraphrase Liam Neeson in “Taken,” they’ve developed a “particular set of skills” in their field. If anyone can handle what it takes to join a new firm, it should be a senior executive, right?
Not necessarily. Leaders starting new roles can face challenges navigating organizational culture and politics, regardless of their functional expertise or managerial experience. Onboarding can increase their “speed to impact” as well as the likelihood of success and retention.
The value of onboarding, especially with an external, neutral coach who commits to confidentiality, is the extra focus it brings to:
Building and leveraging internal networks. For example, who will be the new leader’s allies? Who might be resistant or feel threatened? Who can they turn to internally for support? How will they establish trust and credibility?
Engaging the new leader’s inherited team. How will the new leader communicate and clarify their priorities? Vision? Style? Hot buttons? There are techniques that minimize the harmful effect of the rumor mill when a member of the team misreads a signal and spreads information to others on the team that may be the opposite of the new leader’s intention. Putting focus on the leader’s relationship with their new team also reduces unnecessary turnover among the team members themselves.
Using constructive feedback and observations. You’ve probably heard a new leader overuse the phrase, “The way we did it at (my last company) was…” Coaching can help the new leader become aware of how to position their ideas in a way that doesn’t have to overcome as much unnecessary resistance or even annoyance.
Gaining insight into the organization and team dynamics. Which functions in the new company are critical to the new leader’s success, either because they serve as critical inputs or resources, or because they represent the internal customer of the new leader’s function? What’s the best way for the new leader to get up to speed on the existing internal political forces at play?
Relationship building with peers. Based on all the above topics, how will the new leader go about building peer relationships with strategic intent, so they don’t focus only on their boss at the expense of others who will be the engine of their success?
Alignment of personal style and values. A coach may use an executive assessment tool (such as Hogan) to help the new leader be “eyes wide open” about how they will likely come across to others based on their unique set of behaviors, preferences and derailers when under stress. This is especially helpful because it’s too early to collect any 360-degree feedback. If the organization used assessments in the selection process, it’s very helpful to have someone debrief the results after the executive is hired.
Again, it would be understandable to expect the new leader to be savvy about managing their own plan for the first couple of months. And in some organizations, there are resources in the form of HR Business Partners or talent partners who can put together good onboarding plans. An onboarding coach augments this resource, serving as a non-judgmental, listening confidante. The new leader, in their early weeks, may not want to appear tentative to their boss or direct reports, nor know which peers they can trust internally with questions or concerns. And as excellent as the HR Business Partner may be, they realistically may not be as available as the new leader needs them to be.
If your organization has the good fortune to have internally designated onboarding staff, be sure to include the following elements in onboarding plans, as appropriate:
Travel plans: how soon, how often should the new leader visit other company locations, factories, or regional HQs? In what order (think first few weeks, first month, second month and after)?
Meeting board and/or executive team members: again, what priorities and timing make sense?
Timeline for meeting other key stakeholders and internal partners, as well as key customers.
Scheduling a facilitated “new leader acceleration” session between the leader and their team, to minimize angst and begin to clarify priorities.
Key deadlines or reports based on the organizational business calendar.
Periodic check-ins with leader’s boss to align goals and assess early progress.
Another effective way to deploy onboarding is with internal promotions, especially when someone moves into a higher-level role significantly different than what they may have been accustomed to, say from VP to SVP. Typically, the breadth of the role expands, but more importantly the need to establish a successful brand with a new set of stakeholders presents itself. The need to delegate differently and no longer being the expert at all you’re responsible for can be daunting for some.
Bottom line: Executive onboarding can accelerate a senior leader’s transition and increase the likelihood of success in their new role, whether externally hired, or newly promoted internally. An investment in this resource early on will prevent awkward, costly and potentially disruptive outcomes that neither the leader nor the organization wants to come to pass. In fact, some organizations mandate that all new hires in their most senior-level roles work with an onboarding coach, as it has proven to be extremely successful. Which roles at your organization could be impacted the most with a good onboarding process?
