Coaching for New Hire Senior Executives
New Hires
Senior executives who are brought in to a company are selected for their expertise and track record of success. Relying on the old success formula, however, from their former company, may not translate. Some savvy executives prefer to get off to a great start, before new colleagues form inaccurate conclusions based on very little data. Wouldn’t it be great to have a “cultural translator” who speaks the native language of that company. Executive coaching provides that.
The Biggest Mistake
The biggest mistake I see executives making is, wanting to make an important contribution by fault-finding or suggesting big improvements. Attempts to offer great suggestions which will impress colleagues often backfires, and is heard as criticism. To the new company colleagues, this contribution of recommending changes is deflating at best, and perceived as arrogant and misguided at worst. That approach invites the defensive responses of: “we’ve tried that already,” or, “you didn’t take into account the X constraint.” It would be fairly easy for the new colleagues to make the case that the recommendation is not based on enough data. But more than not enough data, the challenge for having recommendations be received is to build enough relationship.
The remedy may be humor, or it may be humility or my personal favorite, curiosity. Bring a commitment to making connections first. Build relationships first, before imposing new great ideas. In fact, don’t impose them at all but invite collaboration and feedback. Set a role model for being open to feedback, criticism and the contributions of others’ ideas. Your fresh eye and past expertise are valuable: you want to be sure they are heard. The best way to be heard is to be a great listener.
Culture
Even after focusing on relationship and data, invisible rules prevail. Is this a competitive culture where put-downs are good collegial fun, or a political misstep? Is self-effacing modesty to be admired here in the new environment, or seen as weak? Are brainstorming sessions really for showmanship rather than creativity and innovation? These rules of the road can take months to discern, and can hold back the progress – the agenda – of being able to reinvigorate a department which may have been without a leader, or may be in need of a restructure.
Coaching Engagement
Generally coaching engagements involve the input of the leader’s manager, but occasionally a new executive does not want that additional support and would rather have sessions be held off-line. Of course, coaching sessions are always confidential, even if the manager is brought in at the beginning to orient the new executive by helping define the job expectations, coaching goals and cultural context. In either case, best practices in executive coaching involve a clear statement of the coaching goals, milestones or evidence of those goals being reached, and an understanding of the shared responsibilities involved in coaching. The executive charts the course, and through an ongoing dialogue, shares areas of interest, concern, learning edge, and relevant information from the changing context of their experiences. The coach elicits the executive’s goals, strategies, beliefs and results, and provides a forum for playing out scenarios of different next steps. The executive makes all the choices for creating the desired results, and for documenting goals and results as appropriate.
What is coaching?
Coaching is inquiry, listening, reframing, challenging, and offering new ways of thinking and therefore behaving. Coaching is building on existing strengths and competencies, and identifying and reducing limiting behaviors or beliefs. It is designed to create congruence between a leader’s positive intention and his/her actual professional impact on the job.
Resilience After Obstacles
The important thing for new executives is to be able to rebound if a new project, product or department design is not adopted and implemented. People will forgive setbacks based on your reaction: if it’s one of being responsible and willing to learn, the odds are much higher that colleagues will extend support.
If you do make a misstep the important move is to be vulnerable and receptive to what went wrong. This is completely antithetical to the reflexive urge to be defensive, and to justify why your action was a great move. That’s the human conditioning. But credibility is being built and requires receiving of information as well as transmitting. Excecutive coaching provides the pause for resilience.
Resources
The First 90 Days by Michael Watkins chronicles the importance of these first impressions, and tips for putting your best foot forward. For example, in relationship building, ask your new manager who it’s important for you to work with closely. Don’t just manage up; be sure to build strong peer connections to other department heads. Brush up on active listening skills, including asking great questions. Brush up on empathy skills. The addition of a new executive is bound to threaten some people. As a new leader, tune in to what they are fearful about.
We all have strengths, and it’s natural to play to those strengths. However Watkins advises that especially in the first 90 days, play to the priorities of the job. Spend your attention, focus and time on those aspects of the job that matter most, even if they’re not your go-to qualities. If that’s the job you accepted, those are the priorities that matter most. While you’re at it, you’ll be role modeling a professional approach towards meeting job expectations.
Managing Up
I had a leadership professor in graduate school who shared this tip from his own work experience as a leader. He told his staff, “no surprises.” If he was in a meeting of other senior executives and found out from them that some project in his group was derailed, that was one strike against the staff. If it happened again, he would not keep them. So find out your manager’s hot buttons. Is it not being called enough? Or checking in too much? Are you working for a boss who wants you to be proactive, take the initiative and execute? Or does s/he want you to align with his/her priorities without a debate or discussion? Does your manager want you to make decisions independently and autonomously, or really wanted to be included? Does your manager say, “you decide,” but then modify your decision? Find out those hot buttons and manage up well. An excecutive coaching conversation can help you reflect on your experiences and hypothoses, to support your succes.
Your executive coach can help you not only strategize effective communication approaches, but unpack why certain attributes might be particularly annoying to you. Don’t let them be annoying – it wastes good energy that can be spent elsewhere. Executive growth involves personal growth. Coaching is a chance to develop new, more strategic and effective habits.
