Leave Your Old Tools at Home
Five Things for the First-Time CEO, Part 4 (read previous post by clicking here)
“A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way and shows the way.” – John Maxwell
Get out of the office and leave your old tools at home! This is some of the best advice I was ever given. It’s applicable whether you are a newbie CEO, or an experienced chief executive.
See, the real, immediate risk is “isolation.” In the first six months after being named CEO, the natural tendency is to huddle with key members of your team, focusing on finance, strategy or operations planning. Important topics, to be sure. This might even feel reassuring – after all, it’s where your expertise lies.
OK. Here’s the hard truth: You are no longer in your old role. More than your title has changed. You are leading everyone in the organization now. Employees’ expectations of you are significantly different.
Embrace the Change
You aren’t a technical specialist anymore. You’re the CEO. Step into the role. Leave your “old tools” at home!
I learned this the hard way. In my previous life, I was a technical specialist in finance - a CFO type, a number cruncher. Some might have even called me a “bean counter.”
It took some time, and a few hard lessons, to learn you can’t lead an organization through e-mail edicts, or spreadsheets, or any of the “tools” that served me well in my prior positions. No, being CEO was more like being a “politician.”
To lead … to get everyone pulling the plow in the same direction … to change the culture of the organization … the CEO needs to engage in active dialogues with all team members.
Meet, Greet, Eat
You’ll have only one chance to make a first impression. Don’t miss this opening to get started on the right foot.
How? The first six months after being named CEO offer a perfect opportunity to talk … one-on-one, over lunch, over drinks, during break time … not just with members of your leadership team, but with all team members.
The team members who will make (or break) the culture of an organization are those nearest to where the action is - on the plant floor, on the front lines, in direct contact with customers. These team members crave a leader.
They want to know about the vision, about the future, about their role in the organization, and a plan for them and their family. They want to express their views, and be heard. What’s the plan? Where are we going? How are we going to get there?
These questions can’t be answered sitting in your office. Real information can only be exchanged by being where the action is - where your team works, on the front lines!
It's a lot, I know. Perhaps a big change from your daily routine as a technical specialist. It was for me. When asked what made our organization’s culture a way of life, a living thing, something real, I say: Getting out of the office and having daily dialogues with front-line team members, in their spaces, and their workplaces.
Why go through this alone and unprepared? The “CEO Shepherd” can help with practical, smart and simple advice. Learn from the experiences of others – and let them support you.