-By Development Network-
Transitioning executives into previously nonexistent roles can be fraught with miscommunication and misaligned processes. HR leaders play a crucial role in reducing confusion and ensuring success for both the organization's goals -- and the new executive. Imagine walking into an empty office -- no files, no computer records, no handwritten notes. Nothing to indicate where to begin. Executives walking into a newly created position often face this very scenario. In today's shaky economy, companies are finding it increasingly necessary to establish these new roles for strategic reasons or to address a tactical gap. In September, Bank of America established a co-COO arrangement, and in August, Lowe's created three new geographical divisions, all led by senior vice presidents whose roles did not previously exist. While titles sometimes hint at what new executives will be doing, it is often unclear -- to both the newcomers and to others in the organization -- why they are there and what the new position is responsible for executing. HR leaders play a crucial role in reducing this confusion and ensuring that both the role and the executive who transitions into it succeed. As the senior talent leader or people officer, the HR executive can act as an understanding and unbiased coordinator who creates clarity, acceptance and collaboration around these new roles. Executives entering into or promoted to a function that was not previously part of the corporate structure face special challenges not experienced during the normal executive-integration process. They are often under intense pressure to fix a critical strategic or operational flaw. Simultaneously, they must sell themselves as a leader and build credibility (among their peers and throughout the organization) for a role that is totally unknown and undefined. Leaving this process entirely up to the newcomer is a recipe for chaos, not success. Some existing executives will be reluctant to shift projects off their plates and onto that of the newcomer -- due to internal politics or fear of a reduction in span or control. The odds are that the senior team will have to operate and communicate differently than it did before. In addition, in many cases, these new executives will take on employees who used to report directly to the CEO or president, and these people will expect immediate support from the new executive (expectations sometimes tinged with suspicion). Collaboration across the organization is crucial, and the lines of communication must be rewired accordingly. Failure to understand and address these challenges may result in a variety of undesirable outcomes that impact the entire organization, including misaligned priorities, knowledge gaps, duplication of effort and revenue strains. A poorly managed integration effort will leave new hires disconnected from company culture and values, and thus less likely to understand what is expected of them. Such results often end with the executive leaving the company, which incurs further costs and makes future integration processes even more difficult. How can an HR leader provide the incoming executive with the proper foundation and tools he or she needs to hit the ground running? Through our research and experience helping clients with these transitions, we have found that the best course is to divide the process into five stages that span from pre-hire planning all the way through post-integration. If carefully addressed, these elements will greatly enhance the chances of success for this new executive/position combination. 1. DEFINE: What does the perfect choice for this position look like? The process starts when someone in the organization sees a distinct strategic need or tactical gap in operations and realizes a new position is needed to address it. HR leaders must work directly with senior management to create a profile of the unique combination of behaviors and skills required to fill the need in this new role. It is imperative that the HR executive be aligned with all key stakeholders on what this new position will contribute and how the search process will proceed. Meet with those calling for change to clearly define the position and to ensure that HR, senior management and the CEO are on the same page. If upper management is not aligned on the new position and its ideal candidate, then your efforts as an HR executive will ultimately be useless. When a senior vice president of strategic development was hired at a large company, he was unknowingly the source of disagreement between the president and CEO. The CEO wanted to improve the organization's strategic capabilities while the president simply did not see a need for such changes. Not long after the SVP began, he quickly realized that he was strung between two bosses with very different visions and commitment levels, further confusing his understanding of how he should contribute to company initiatives. Eventually, this new executive was fired under the auspices of "restructuring." Differences on the merits of a new role aside, upper management must agree on what the incoming executive is expected to contribute. This is the only way a newcomer can successfully carry out the role (and convince dissenters of its value in the process). 2. EDUCATE: Who is this person and why should new colleagues care? HR executives should use the profile created in the "define" stage to brief peers and future direct reports on the incoming executive's purpose, expected outcomes and potential projects. It is your job to carefully articulate how the pioneer position is, in fact, "pioneering" and may involve new or different communications structures to different constituencies. HR leaders should personally inform each employee affected by these changes about the new role and the person hired for it. Use these meetings to offer guidance on how they should interact with their new colleague. Address concerns up-front to maximize efficiency and productivity. Recently, the president of a large organization removed himself from the integration process of a new vice president of creative design, feeling that it was up to the new executive to chart his own course. Because of the president's passivity, employees were unsure of the newcomer's role and how to engage with him. As if nothing had changed, they continued to go directly to the president for questions and concerns about design-related content. Rather than take the time to educate his employee on the purpose of the new VP, the company's president continued to answer questions and meet with these employees and take on responsibilities that no longer belonged to him. Not surprisingly, the president became frustrated that he was seeing no value from his newest hire. The new executive was equally frustrated at how hard he was working to sell the benefits of a role that few people had taken the time to acquaint themselves with. Starting from the top, HR executives must ensure that each and every employee understands the reasons behind the hire of a new executive. 3. BUILD COMMITMENT: Do employees know why the new executive is there? This is the time to see if earlier educational efforts are working. During this stage, key stakeholders -- particularly those employees directly affected by the new position -- should understand and see a clear connection between the new position and how it will aid them and the organization. The best way to do this is to make sure that employees experience the benefits of the new role through careful internal communications. Upon the new leader's arrival, HR executives should ensure that individual meetings take place between the incoming leader and any executives affected by the new role -- whether they are peers, direct reports, or their boss. These conversations should reinforce the messages of the "educate" stage. In addition, make sure that senior management is adequately showing support for the new position, especially when it is carved out of existing areas of responsibility. Take the example of a company whose languishing growth prompted the hiring of a new executive to focus sales and marketing efforts. Known for its loose and unstructured business atmosphere, the company had recently made efforts to focus on process improvement and running a more "buttoned-down" business. In this atmosphere, the new leader's efforts to create opportunities and bring a new perspective to sales and marketing were considered by many employees as too radical -- proof that the pendulum had swung away from "creative" and more toward "focused execution." The company's CEO needed to help his employees understand that there is compromise between chaos and consistency. Once employees understood that the new leader's role was meant to challenge and probe (and that this does not mean throwing away the advantages of consistency and structure), the newcomer quickly earned acceptance. Sometimes all employees need is the assurance that they can let go of certain roles or mandates, thus giving the new hire the traction he or she needs. 4. NAVIGATE: How does the new executive get things done in this culture? The new executive needs to understand the culture, values and decision-making processes of the company in order to function effectively. Somewhere between the first 30 to 60 days, the HR executive and his or her team should solicit feedback from key stakeholders on how the education campaign and commitment-building stages are going. Do they understand the new executive's mission? Are departments cooperating? Is anyone withholding information for political reasons? Are there any roadblocks in the way of success? Share the results with the newcomer and upper management, and adjust the action plan as needed. 5. DELIVER: Here is what the pioneer has done so far. This stage is about producing results and making sure they are visible to the right people. If stakeholders are unaware of what the incoming executive has accomplished, they are likely to assume the newcomer is not focused on the right tasks. HR executives should work with management to make sure the pioneer executive is placed on the agenda at regularly scheduled staff meetings (or board meetings, if appropriate) so that he or she can reinforce the mission and give updates on progress. Continue increasing visibility for this executive -- whether it is through inclusion in an internal newsletter or company video, or adding the new executive to the roster of company spokespeople. Make sure senior management and team members are aware of when benchmarks are met or of any major accomplishments. Key Success Factors Our research on executive selection and integration finds that the process is greatly enhanced when the organization and the responsible HR executive attend to what we have identified as five key success factors. HR leaders should keep these five factors in mind through each step of the integration process listed above -- and do everything possible to help the new hire achieve these keys to success: 1. Role Clarity: Understand the role, its relationship to others in the organization and how success is measured. 2. Relationships and Networking: Identify and build relationships with key stakeholders both inside and outside of the organization. Failing to invest time in building relationships before they are needed is frequently a cause of derailment in later stages of the integration. 3. Navigating Culture: Understand the implicit rules and beliefs held by people in the organization that influence how goals are met. 4. Early Wins: Achieve early successes around goals and values that are important in the organization. 5. Accelerated Learning: Acquire knowledge and skills that will be critical to achieving success. Executives who are not seen as "catching on" begin to doubt their credibility and their ability to drive results. Pioneer positions are introduced to gain a competitive edge as strategic and operational gaps are eliminated and weaknesses are turned into exploitable strengths. Organization have an enormous opportunity to profit from such changes, as long as the integration process is done correctly. A robust, carefully planned program to integrate the new executive and the new position will help HR leaders gain the support of senior management and be recognized as a driving force behind positive, innovative change. The knowledge and experience gained during such a process can be used for future pioneer positions, and reduce uncertainty the next time new roles are introduced. Most importantly, the successful management of such a process provides benefits for the organization that positions it for long-term success. [About the Authors: Adam Kling, Ph.D., and Steven Gilbert, Ph.D., are principals with RHR International LLP, a firm of management psychologists and consultants who work closely with top management to accelerate individual, team and business performance.]
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