Companies invest a tremendous amount of time, energy, and expense in recruiting and hiring a new executive.  Yet research conducted by the Gallup organisation shows that a shocking 40% of newly placed executives are shown the door before 18 months.

Part of the reason is that executives are mis-hired in the first place, yet another big part of the reason is that they did not receive any help with “executive onboarding,” in the way of coaching or mentoring.

Leaders in new positions often fail for a few common reasons:

• due to unclear or outsized expectations,
• a failure to build partnerships with key stakeholders,
• a failure to learn the company, industry or the job itself fast enough,
• a failure to determine the process for gaining commitments from direct reports and
• a failure to recognise and manage the impact of change on people.

Onboarding coaching of the newly recruited or promoted executive can turnaround this high rate of failure.

What’s the problem?

First, in the sink or swim culture that exists in most businesses, coaching doesn’t exist.  Second, the mindset of the typical business owner or executive is “my entire career has been an apprenticeship for this new venture or role, I am in now, and I am going to just do it. I don’t need coaching.”  Third, executives are often hired to bring about change in an organisation, without any knowledge of how to master the vagaries of the political chessboard or understanding of the culture.

Robert Hargrove, author of “Your first 10 days in a New Executive job: Powerful First Steps on the path to Greatness”, urges people to find a coach for the first 100 days in a new job, as this is often pivotal in making a successful transition.  This is a time when you need to calibrate your vision and goals in line with diverse stakeholders and the needs of the business.  It’s a time to make some quick wins that will increase your personal credibility and political capital. And it’s a time when people’s opinions about you will be crystallising.  Things misspoken or missteps made can put you in a deep hole which will be hard to climb out of.

Here is a short list of coaching tips for executive onboarding:

1.   Find a coach who can help you with the executive onboarding process. Talk a minimum of once a week.

2.   Have a story ready for day one, as key stakeholders look for important signals immediately.

3.   Make a decision or take an action within 72 hours to seal your leadership and have an impact.

4.   Do your diligence interviews to build trust and understand the corporate culture.  Then, and only then, create a strategy to match.

5.   Create a virtuous circle of increasing personal credibility and political capital through a rapid succession of quick wins.

Reference: Robert Hargrove, “Your first 10 days in a New Executive job: Powerful First Steps on the path to Greatness.”