To Climb, Jump or Take the Stairs

This topic applies to those of you with years in your company. With the many hours, many defeats and many victories under your belt you now wish to ascend in your organization and move up in your career. As you sit and survey the landscape around you, you may be asking yourself the following questions:

• Should I climb within organization?
• Should I just jump to another organization?
• Should I take the stairs (steadfast incrementally moving up the ladder).

If you are in your career or even in your present position less than two years the easiest way to ascend is to jump. Jump to another company through dissemination of your resume, Internet searching, network connections or head hunters. Jumping is a quick way to gain more responsibility, have a change in scenery and to increase your salary quickly and without requiring a quantum leap in your experience or toolset. When you are young, pre-children it is much easier to get ahead by jumping because constantly moving and changing your environment is much easier when you don't have to sell your home, move to another school district or have other weights/ties associated with years of building a life and family.



Climb:
Climbing is always the outcome of experience, learning, growth, luck and timing. Wrap all of this up in a corporate culture based on meritocracy and recognition and you get a recipe for personal career growth.

• Ample opportunities for advancement


• Culture of meritocracy and recognition/reward


• Company is experiencing growth


• Company organically grows management

Of course in order to climb the ladder you have to recognize that this can only be done if the rung above you is not occupied. If you want to climb there has to be a compelling business reason for you to occupy a higher level slot within the organization. Many companies require growth to stay alive. This growth is usually in two areas: revenue growth and organization growth. With revenue growth companies may try to achieve their goal by growing the Top Line or in a financially tough environment (like now) shrink their variable costs. If they are shrinking their costs the opportunities may not be there for you to advance because of financial constraints.

Organizational growth usually happens in two ways: organic and acquisition. Organic growth is the best path for you to recognize your opportunities and desires to move up and fill a slot in a company that is growing their talents and bringing new people in. Acquisition growth usually means that when the two companies come together there is some overlap and, once identified, is usually eliminated (can you say RIF?).

In either scenario it is very important for you to recognize both the opportunity and your possible contributions to the company and sell them up the management chain. Not all climbing opportunities come to you just because you are a senior person within the organization. The most aggressive and dogged person usually gets the job, certainly over a passive (even more experienced/qualified) person who is waiting to be offered the opportunity.

Jump:
When the landscape around you indicates that there is no way to advance because of either no growth, miss-management, no fit or other reason you may find the best thing to do is jump. Some reasons to do this are:

• Company is not growing


• Old guard leadership not willing to change


• Poor industry performance year after year


• No room for advancement


• Company does not hire from inside for the level of positions you want


• Company continues to bring outside consultants to change company direction


• Company relies on outsourcing your particular area of expertise

In this instance it is always better to have a job lined up before you announce your desire to leave. There are many resources available to you to find a job: Internet, head hunters, hot jobs, Monster, etc... A good piece of advice to give in this situation is no matter how young you are or how much time you have in the organization NEVER, EVER burn a bridge. Always act in an ethical manner and always leave your current position in a positive way. Here the old saying "Small World, Long Life" applies. Take advantage of the jump to obtain a job somewhat out of your comfort zone as this will give you a more diverse experience base to build on in the future.

Stairs:

Taking the stairs just means you are in your position for the long haul and you are slowly, incrementally rising through your organization. Steady performance and a good track record will eventually land you in an elevated band. always recognize and know what your company does, what your boss does, how he is measured. Build on this to become one of his strongest assets and top performers. This will get you there, maybe not on the fast track but you will have opportunities. The key is to recognize and act on them when they appear.

Taking the stairs is beneficial when:

• Change is coming


• New management is taking over


• Happy with current work culture/environment


• Growth


• Positive reviews


• Expanding responsibilities

Spoiler - 10 Strategic Rules

These rules are adapted from the book "10 Rules for Strategic Innovators" by Vijay Govindarajan and Chris Trimble.

These rules apply to CEOs and General Managers when they are faced with or at least working with a division in the company that decides to go off and try to develop the "Next Big Thing". This thing is usually totally new to the business and the unit responsible for the development should be under totally new accountability rules since development is hard, expensive, fraught with uncertainty and most of all different than it's parents model.

The great idea is only the beginning - In order to make any great idea happen, much more work goes into the strategy, forecast, planning, monitoring, measuring and learning. If you do not plan up front then you really have no method of finding your way as go.

Sources of organizational memory are powerful - In a new model or a new venture it is very hard to separate the ideals, culture and organizational methods that have made the parent company great. This culture and these methods really do not apply to a totally new venture finding its way and developing a new product in a new market. Be aware of the pitfalls of applying one formula that works for an established company to a totally different application.

Large established companies can beat start ups - This is true. Smaller companies are more nimble and less bureaucratic. But large companies have many assets that can be borrowed from and possibly much technology (IP) that can be leveraged that would otherwise be a burden to entry for a start-up. Now the trick is how to leverage or borrow from the parent company without burdening the parent, becoming more like the parent of just remaining separate from the parent.

Strategic experiment face critical unknowns - As with anything new it will be hard to forecast schedule, investment and revenue. Not to mention there are many more things you do not know than you do know. This means that it is critical that you have leadership in place to drive the new development that is very adept at learning from their mistakes and monitoring their progress microscopically rather than quarterly/yearly.

The new company must be built from scratch - A new unproven company in the development stages should be free to operate in a physically different location, should be able to build its own culture, should have some autonomy from the parent. This enables the company to operate and focus on their objective without being compared, measured or judged against an already profitable or structured parent.

Leadership - The First 100 Days

Now that you have taken the plunge and all of your hard work has paid off you find yourself reeling from the outcome of your stellar interview. You have the job, you start next week. Now is the time to start planning your leadership strategy.

One of the first steps in your planning is to understand the outline of the plan, that starts with some education, some history and some advice. I came across this site today and it addresses and educates the importance of the first 100 days in your new role.

I highly recommend reviewing it (link below) but I will share some of the article here.



http://bigideastobigresults.com/archives/25#more-25



By Michael Kanazawa

There is no better opportunity to lay the ground work for turning big ideas into big results than in the first 100 days as a new leader. By the end of 100 days everyone will be done sizing you up as a leader, the organization will either be on a new trajectory or settle back down into the current track, and you will have set the stage for your next 2-3 years as a leader. You have a huge opportunity when taking over as a new leader.

First is the chance to change the strategic direction of the organization. People are actually expecting it, so the shift will be much easier than at any other time. Political structures will be in flux, so long-standing tough decisions that have been avoided will be easier to drive through to closure. And, even as tough decisions are made, everyone will be looking at you as the new hope for growth and improvement. People want you to be successful because it means better things for them as well. So, they will be ready to follow your lead. With so much opportunity (and risk of missed opportunities) at hand, it is worth carefully planning your first 100 days to get everything out of it that you possibly can.

Korn Ferry published research on the pitfalls and tips for success in leading through the first 100 days based on views about leaders in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. Below are statics from two questions they asked.

What is the most common mistake that senior executives make during their first 100 days?

• Failing to establish strategic priorities - 23.5%
• Committing cultural gaffes and/or political suicide - 16.4%
• Waiting too long to implement change - 15.8%
• Not spending enough face time with subordinates - 14.2%
• Getting sidetracked by “fire drills” — having a short-term focus - 10.9%
• Hesitating to make tough personnel decisions - 9.8%

What one thing — above all else — must a senior executive do in their first 100 days in order to succeed?

• Assemble and solidify a team - 25.1%
• Articulate a statement of vision and goals - 24.6%
• Identify and address what’s most important to the CEO, board of directors and other key executives - 15.8%
• Understand and adapt to the new culture - 13.7%
• Identify the leverage points and the metrics for success - 9.8%
• Achieve several quick successes - 4.9%
• Fix obvious, nagging problems quickly - 3.8%

These tips and pitfalls are very useful to understand, but only become practical when you can build them into a First 100 Days action plan for yourself. Time will fly by and without a hard schedule the calendar will run out before you’ve addressed everything. There will be plenty of fire drills and unfortunately purposeful distractions in your path to accomplishing the big shift you need to in this critical time.

Below is a well tested, streamlined set of actions you can use to build your 100 day plan. It is based on applying the ACT Process, outlined in our soon to be released book Big Ideas to Big Results, to the case of new leaders taking charge. And if you notice, fixing small, incremental quick fixes are listed at less than 5% of mentions. They need to be handled, but aren’t nearly as important to your success as getting the bigger elements of the overall team, strategic direction and alignment of top executives and the board handled first.

First 100 Days Action Plan Checklist1-30 Days

• Individually meet each direct report team member and call them into a commitment to lay the foundation for the next 2-3 years with you.
• Architect your 100 day plan steps and share it with everyone.
• Establish a fact base by engaging the organization in a due diligence process on itself, looking at the business from an internal as well as external perspective. This includes listening to customers and “non-customers”.
• Set up 2 working sessions with your team (at least 4-8 hours each) to confront reality and question the direction. This work will help you leverage the best thinking of the team and also get a good read on your people.
• Identify “Quick Start” initiatives that can be treated immediately and will show a bias for speed and action as well as puts change in motion early.
• Conclude with a working session with you team in the first 30 days with developing a refined direction of vision and goals that is now shared by your direct team as they helped create it.

31-65 Days

• Develop a new set of priority strategic initiatives with your direct team, including refined goals for the organization (working session).
• Identify any specific behavior changes needed to successfully drive the new direction and initiatives forward.
• Engage the next level team in a dialogue about how to operationalize the strategic initiatives and live the required behaviors.

66-100 Days

• Starting at the top of the organization, reset personal commitments, performance standards, and compensation plans to support the new direction and initiatives.
• Engage your direct team in resetting their commitments in another working session.
• Engage leaders at all levels in resetting priorities and commitments in a rapid cascade taking no more than 3-4 weeks to complete.
• Leverage the natural chain of command one level at a time to drive real change. One big speech from the top and staff-led programs won’t work.
• Finally, by watching how your direct team has engaged in strategic thinking, how they’ve played with the rest of your team in developing the plans and how they engaged their organizations in driving the changes, you will have all that you need to make any required personnel shifts.

Make all of the major changes in leadership before the 100 days run out. Designing these elements into your 100 day plan will keep your focus on setting strategic priorities, assessing your team, engaging the full organization, and getting started quickly – all keys to success. In the whirlwind of activities in taking over a leadership position in a new organization, it is impossible to keep everything that is important top of mind. Following a proven process, like ACT, and applying it to this critical time can help bring some order and more impact to your next challenge.

Travelling Abroad

This entry isn't so much about leadership as it is about the nature of the job, Travel.

It is so easy to get caught up in domestic travel and the convenience of the US that when it comes time to fly abroad you may not have thought through your trip. Here are some tips and reminders.

1. Buy a travel alarm. Chances are that when you are tired and worn out, setting a new euro style alarm clock will be a daunting task and there is no snooze on a wake up call.
2. Watch your bags very carefully at train stations. Many people make their living at snatch and run with your bags. I have seen this more than once. If you have a bag with a strap, place an arm or a leg through it while you sit.
3. Keep your passport on your person not in a bag (for tip number 2). Getting a new passport will certainly ruin a vacation but totally blow a business trip.
4. Get your money exchanged at home or just use an ATM machine. While most places will take a Visa/MasterCard/AMEX you will still need cash for things like a taxi or a beer.
5. Call your bank and let them know you will be charging abroad. Nothing stinks more than getting to Europe and not being able to get money out.
6. Buy an international calling card. This will help you if you need to make any calls home and you find your cell does not work over there.
7. Check the expiration date of your passport. Many countries want from 3 to 6 months left on your passport to let you in the country.
8. Pack an extra set of passport photos along with a photocopy of your passport information page to make replacement of your passport easier in the event it is lost or stolen.
9. Copy all contents of your wallet and leave one copy at home, take the other with you and store in your suitcase.
10. Taxis. Only take taxis clearly identified with official markings. Beware of unmarked cabs. Also get a price for the cab ride up front if you can. They can range from what you should pay to more than four times what you should pay. Trains are generally cheaper.
11. Don't forget your laptop power supply. It is so easy since you probably use your docking station. I have forgotten mine many times basically making my computer useless after 2 hours or so.
12. Buy an outlet adapter that converts US plugs to European outlets.
13. Insurance. Make sure you have medical insurance prior to leaving.
14. Bare essentials. Pack an extra change of clothes for your carry on in the event that your luggage is lost or delayed. The more important the trip, the more likely your luggage will get lost. It's an international law.
15. Do your homework. Foreign embassies or consulates in the United States can provide up-to-date information on their countries.
16. Ordering Passport. Inevitably you will need to order a passport with less than a week to go. Here is a site that can help you with that. Be prepared to shell out about $400.