Leadership

OK, I may be exaggerating slightly. Nevertheless, transitions are periods of opportunity, a chance to start afreshand to make needed changes in an organization. But they are also periods of acute vulnerability, because you lack established working relationships and a detailed understanding of your new role. If you fail to build momentum during your transition, you will face an uphill battle from that point forward.

 

The stakes are obviously high. Failure in a new assignment can spell the end of a promising career. But making a successful transition is about more than just avoiding failure. Some leaders do derail (and when they do, their problems can almost always be traced to vicious cycles that developed in the first few months on the job). But for every leader who fails outright, there are many others who survive but do not realize their full potential. As a result, they lose opportunities to advance in their careers, and they endanger the health of their organizations.

 

Think, therefore, as much about transition acceleration as about failure prevention. This approach provides a blueprint for dramatically condensing the time it will take you to get on top of the job, regardless of your level in your organization. If you succeed in this, you will free up time to concentrate on fixing problems and exploiting opportunities in your new organization.

 

After all, your goal should be to arrive as rapidly as possible at the breakeven point, where you are a net contributor of value to your new organization. Every minute you save by being systematic about accelerating your transition is a minute you gain to build the business. The breakeven point is the point at which you have contributed as much value to the organization as have consumed from it. By keeping this target on your event horizon helps provide a pragmatic and fresh perspective on the initial and most critical phase. Good luck!