Case One

The first case in our study was conducted at a mid-size printing company

located in the Midwestern United States. The leadership position under

study was that of Sales Director. The “leader” took this position after a one-

year job search prompted by an unexpected termination with his previous

employer. The “full circle” team consisted of 10 direct reports, his boss, and

three peers. There was no formal transition plan. The following themes

emerged from an analysis of the interview data.

Leader’s Perception

The leader’s separation from his previous employer had been difficult.

When combined with a lengthy job search, the leader found his confidence

shaken. Moreover, others in the full circle expressed concern to him about

his ability to add value due to his lack of experience in the printing indus-

try. These comments led the leader to question his ability to be successful

in the new role. Expectations from the executive team and the leader’s team

were unclear. The leader felt pressure to perform in light of not having a

Supporting Leaders in Transition  101

budget or defined goals. As he explained, “there was an instant expecta-

tion that I bring value to justify my salary.” Moreover, the leader felt that

although there was a strong message to produce immediately, there was

an unstated message that he also needed to “slow down, watch, listen, and

learn” before taking action. The leader found it difficult to build relation-

ships with key stakeholders. The leader understood that he quickly needed

to build relationships with team members and his peers to be successful.

However, given the revolving door of leaders in the position (six leaders

in four years), the team and others were skeptical of the new leader and

hesitant to trust.

The leader’s assumptions about the industry and business were also chal-

lenged. The new leader expressed that

you go into a new position knowing only what you know, you believe what you

believe, and you do your best to improvise within the letter of the law and

the rules of engagement within that organization . . . and they were hard to

figure-out.

Boss’s Perspective

The leader’s boss noted that they tried hard to build new relationships.

The new leader was seen as sharing information openly, providing direc-

tion and asking for honest feedback from direct reports, peers, and leaders.

Although his boss felt that the leader worked hard to develop relationships,

“He needed to recognize that his style can wear on team members.” The

leader’s passion and enthusiasm for action, and his need to “talk things

out” was viewed as a relationship barrier.” According to his boss, the leader

needed to question his assumptions and learn to adapt to the new culture.

He also needed to learn how to interact with a new group of executives.

Peer’s Perspective

The new leader did not have credibility in the eyes of his peers. The lead-

er’s years of sales and sales management were not seen as adding much val-

ue because the experience was not in the “printing industry.” The leader’s

assumptions were also perceived as a barrier. Some peers noticed the lead-

er labeled things as “good, bad, right, or wrong” depending on the similar-

ity to the leader’s previous experience. They saw the leader as a “numbers

guy,” which caused him to focus on the wrong information, both in his

learning and his expectations of others. Peers noticed the leader’s strong

desire to act quickly. As one of these individuals noted, “He needed to just

sit and watch instead of trying to do so much so soon even though upper

management was pushing for quick results.” In general, his peers felt that

there was more talking than listening on the leader’s part, and that was a to his transition.

The peer group also believed that the organization could have done

more to support the leader in his transition, pointing out that the organi-

zation did very little, formally, to assist the leader. Furthermore, they felt

that, “We could have done a better job of helping him fit here by having

a roadmap or strategy for where the company is going.” The peer group

felt that the leader did work to build relationships. He tried to increase the

amount of communication, in addition to being more open with the type

of information shared. He held one-on-ones and regularly scheduled team

meetings. The leader was seen as working hard to create allies at all levels of

the organization and learn the “political layout.” Dealing with strong-willed

direct reports presented a challenge for any leader. As one of his peers

stated, “I don’t think he was certain how to react when his team members

pushed back. They wanted support—he wanted control.”

Direct Reports

The leader’s lack of experience in the printing industry translated to a lack

of credibility for many of his direct reports. Several team members stated that

the revolving door of sales directors had influenced their willingness to build

a relationship with the new leader. Similar to the perception of his peers, the

leader was seen by most as working hard to build relationships. He was viewed

as genuinely showing interest in projects and seeking ways to help team mem-

bers. They saw him as someone who sought and valued their opinions.

The direct reports also felt that the leader’s assumptions got in the way.

Coming from organizations with formal structures and processes made it

difficult for the leader to navigate this informal culture. One direct report

noted, “He tried to push the things he thought we needed, but he was actu-

ally the one who needed it.” His former culture was forthright about infor-

mation sharing (sales calls, sales numbers), so as he pushed team members

to share, they tried to hold on to what they viewed as “theirs.”

The new leader was perceived as willing to learn. They saw him on sales calls,

in meetings with the functional leads, on the print floor, and asking questions

to increase his understanding. While the organization did little formally to

help this leader learn, the team saw him learn quickly. The team felt he spent

time with the right people—he went to the source or the lead in most cases

to learn how a part of the process worked and always asked why.

Some aspects of his leadership style were identified as barriers:

• “ He has to temper his lecturing points versus having one’s opinions

heard out.”

• “He is overemphasizing his abilities.”

• “His two sentence answer can be two paragraphs

Page 99

TABLE 5.1 Stages of Leader Transition

Author Phases of Transition

Ciampa and Watkins (1999) Three Stages: Transition (6 months), Transformation,

Succession

Gabarro (1989) Five Stages: Take Hold, Immersion, Reshaping,

Consolidation, and Refinement.

Holton and Naquin (2001) Three Stages: Initiating, Sensemaking, and Changing.

MLA 9th Edition (Modern Language Assoc.)

David W. Jamieson. Consultation for Organizational Change Revisited. Information Age Publishing, 2016.

APA 7th Edition (American Psychological Assoc.)

David W. Jamieson. (2016). Consultation for Organizational Change Revisited. Information Age Publishing.

MLA 9th Edition (Modern Language Assoc.)

David W. Jamieson. Consultation for Organizational Change Revisited. Information Age Publishing, 2016.

APA 7th Edition (American Psychological Assoc.)

David W. Jamieson. (2016). Consultation for Organizational Change Revisited. Information Age Publishing.

MLA 9th Edition (Modern Language Assoc.)

David W. Jamieson. Consultation for Organizational Change Revisited. Information Age Publishing, 2016.

APA 7th Edition (American Psychological Assoc.)

David W. Jamieson. (2016). Consultation for Organizational Change Revisited. Information Age Publishing.

MLA 9th Edition (Modern Language Assoc.)

David W. Jamieson. Consultation for Organizational Change Revisited. Information Age Publishing, 2016.