On-boarding

Typical client situations

►New externally recruited senior leader with a different background regarding:

• Corporate culture
• Geographical area
• Functional expertise and / or
• Industrial background

►Internal leader has been promoted to take on a bigger or different role

►New non-executive who wants to be brought up-to-speed quickly

Our Approach

25-40% of senior-level managers hired externally, or promoted internally, fail in their new roles within 18 months, often beginning in the first month. The costs to companies and individuals is huge – five times salary including bonus – and this is not taking into account disruption and non-tangible knock-on effects to the organisation. Successful integration can significantly aid the transition process by proactively alleviating potential risks, positioning new executives for success, accelerating their learning and preventing senior management turnover.

Common reasons for underperforming senior hires are:
► Misreading company culture and style – barricades go up, support dissipates and intelligence flow stops
► Mismanaging the personal transition (family and new community)
► Failure to understand before acting – coming up with answers too quickly resulting in bad decisions or organisation resistance
► Trying to do too much, too soon – missing commitments, alienating others, creating uncertainty
► Bringing in a new team too soon and polarising the company between the old and the new
► Taking too long to make key changes and being drawn into status quo – patience runs out

Our customized service provides accelerated transition and on-boarding support for executives over the course of the first six months – one year in new role. This typically involves:
― Aligning expectations between new executive and key stakeholders
― Building an organised framework of issues to focus on
― Creating a platform from which to understand culture, operations and organisational opportunities
― Positioning for short-term and long-term success by building a roadmap of action items based on key constituents
― Providing an assessment framework for monitoring progress and the effectiveness of transition

Our process sets up the new leader and organisation for success. We are the trusted advisor for the new executive, doing what it takes to assist him or her in succeeding in their role. At the end of the follow-up period, the executive will be performing at a high level, is intellectually and emotionally part of the organisation, has built relationships on the basis of trust and credibility and has made an immediate impact on the organisation, driving results while successfully navigating the emotional and cultural challenges of the transition.