CHAPTER 10
Workplace Change: The New Boss
I had been consulting with a client for a year when I got a call from the CEO telling me that he hired a new vice president to lead his team of frontline managers. This was not a surprise. I knew he had been looking for the right candidate for a while. The majority of my work with this client had been with the outgoing vice president, conducting monthly coaching calls with those same frontline managers on how to coach their employees. I knew she was changing jobs with the organization.
The CEO thought the new VP was a great fit for the team but had a nagging concern that he did not have any industry experience. Based on his last experience with a transition like this, there had been mistrust when the leader had no industry experience. He felt the managers would push back and not show the proper respect. He also worried there would be some resentment from those managers who interviewed but did not get the job. He wanted to make sure the team did not stumble, get distracted, and lose momentum. He knew I was familiar with her team, had a good rapport with them, and wanted my thoughts on how to successfully integrate her replacement.
I told him I did not share his concern. I couldn't promise him a seamless transition with no grumbling or dissent (no one can), but I didn't feel this was going to be a big issue. I explained that the managers had been coached well and served the current VP well. To this point, we had mainly worked with the frontline managers on coaching their teams. But if we extended our coaching to the managers on this change, and they truly understood their responsibility to serve up, the managers would thrive under their new VP just as they had thrived under the previous one.
Still, understanding how to serve up and actually doing it are two different things. Although we spoke about serving up and implemented many of its principles, this would be their first real test of the serve up mindset. To put the CEO's mind at ease, I told the current VP to set up a meeting with the managers to discuss serving up, how they had served her, and what it means to believe in those we follow, not question them. We invited the CEO to listen in and hear the message we gave the team and hear their comments. If they had the right mindset, the managers would already be prepared to believe in the change, adapt to it, and give a new leader the same respect they gave her. They would serve their new boss no differently than her and not question his experience or why he was hired. He would hear that in how they responded.
The Meeting
The meeting started with me reminding the frontline managers how fond they were of their CEO, how they trusted and believed in him. I recalled how many of them had told me how good a man and leader he was. How he would never do anything to hurt the team. This was the same CEO who had decided to bring in a new VP from the outside to lead them. So with this decision, they must believe this is for the best and do everything not just to stay focused and move forward but bump up their energy.
To do this, they had to suspend any doubt or disbelief and assume the new VP will learn the industry and business and use his skills to manage through the changes in the marketplace.
I warned: Don't get stuck focusing on how it used to be. Be the ones that see the benefits of a new way. The old way lasted a long time. Now we must adapt. Be the managers your new boss can count on as that happens—the leaders that own their leadership roles and responsibilities. The new guy is not coming in here to get rid of strong and committed leaders. Play the victim and hurt his success, and thus the organization's, and he will help you succeed elsewhere. Which is exactly what your current boss would do if he were the new hire.
Finally, I addressed the fact that I knew a few of the managers interviewed for the job and that the natural instinct is to be bitter or hurt. My advice was to take that hurt and use it as motivation to learn what they could from the new boss. Believe that he has or knows something you don't. Don't get mad; get better, and ask him to help you. Maybe you'll figure out what gave him the edge. At the very least, when you take that approach, you're showing respect and allowing him to coach you. If you resent him, the only person who will suffer, and ultimately lose, is you.
Let's get excited about the future, focus on how we're going to be better and win, and not on why or why not a decision was made. Great leaders and their teams focus on how to succeed through change while others focus on what and why the things happened.
What happened next? They lived happily ever after (mostly). A year after the new VP took the lead, the company achieved its best results ever and was on pace to exceed that in year two. Did everyone buy in to what I said? No. But that is inevitable. You don't need everyone and can't always expect that. But the top managers who served up had the greatest success, and one was promoted. One manager who refused to serve up left and was last heard complaining at his new company about the boss who cut him loose and playing the victim.
In short, with the serve up mindset and a belief in the leader in the middle, the team never skipped a beat. The managers transferred their belief to the new boss, because they believed in their old boss and the organization. This allowed the new boss to be himself and humble enough to learn the business and industry even while he led his team without worrying about their commitment. A year later, the new the team's year-over-year performance was way up—better than ever before. Most importantly, because the leader did not have to spend time convincing the managers their new VP was good enough to lead and they did not move timidly, they were able to keep the momentum. Not only did the numbers never dip, they started increasing within the first sixty days.
The Belief Created the Culture, and the Culture Created the Behavior
Simply put, as leaders in the middle, most of the frontline managers at the company owned the power they had to serve up and coach down through the workplace change. Too many leaders in the middle don't. Even successful ones do not own the power they have when serving up and coaching down, especially when it comes to leading through change. Instead, they worry. They lose faith in themselves and their teams when those winds of change blow. When leaders in the middle don't operate with a serve up/coach down mindset, they create a culture of doubt, questioning, and fear of upsetting the troops with changes. They will say things like, “The new boss will have to learn their culture and adapt to them, especially as he knows nothing about our company or industry.” Forget about the fact that in many cases an organization is bringing in a new leader to change or improve the culture. They think resistance allows them to keep their power.
When leaders in the middle have a serve up/coach down mindset and create a culture based on that mindset, their teams are ready for change. They don't see uncertainty or question new leadership, certainly not until that leadership has a chance to succeed. In fact, it is usually the opposite. The leaders have demanded down and the team is energized. They are ready. They expect bigger and better things. They say, “We get what we expect.” They know keeping the power is about being positive with the decision, embracing the possibilities, and believing that the change will bring what they need.
Athletes embrace this mindset all the time when a great coach or manager leaves a team he has led to great success. If that coach and organization has truly coached the team to win and serve the organization they play for, the team does not just fall apart when that coach leaves and the new one arrives. The players look forward to learning new ideas and approaches that they had not tried before or maybe tried and failed. They appreciate that the new coach brings a different perspective and leadership qualities and are excited by it all. They respond with enthusiasm to the new coach and look to continue their momentum, maximize their performance, and take their game to a higher level. Only those who get stuck questioning the change or stuck in the perspective of the previous leadership get stuck themselves and are either let go or get traded to another team.
Take a lesson from football's New England Patriots, the most successful NFL franchise of the 20th century. Anyone on that team is replaceable, and must be in the long run, because the competition isn't just throwing up its hands and conceding. If the plan changes or a star player gets hurt, you need the team to keep moving forward—even when you are down twenty-eight points in the Super Bowl. The New England Patriots get it: Put too much weight on any one person or piece of the puzzle and the competition will exploit your weakness and win.
In the end, when a change in leadership happens, there are two key perspectives to consider when serving up and coaching down before the change happens:
- The leaders: The person who hired the new boss and wants to ensure the direct reports embrace him or her.
- The followers: Employees getting the new boss and facing the change in the workplace.
The Leaders — Coaching Down
Leaders in the middle don't have to soften their approach but don't have to be hard-nosed and bullish either. Approach the team with clear messages and direction without fear.
For example, a leader could say:
Team, I wanted to let you know that your new manager is joining us tomorrow. I feel she is the best fit for our team and helping us get to our next level of success. My ask of you is to give her the same respect you would want if you were the new leader coming in to our organization. Please remember our job is serve our leaders and organization. You can question to understand direction, not challenge it. Remember that everybody is different, and many times, that difference in perspective and behaviors is the very reason why a person may be selected. Differences and challenges are how we grow! I am confident in you as a team and your ability to embrace your new leader's direction. I am grateful for each of you; never stop believing bigger!
The Followers—Serving Up
This does not have to be a negative situation. Rather, it can be a way to challenge those team members to become better and grow, though it is tricky, especially if employees interviewed for the job.
The wrong mindset fueled by poor coaching and an inability to serve up: I can't believe they are hiring this person. He does not know anything about our industry. I bet he will not make it three months. I'll tell you what: He'd better not micromanage us or start making a bunch of changes. We know what works and what doesn't, so he needs to come in and learn how we do things. If he tries to make me do this or that, I will make his life miserable, or better yet, I will quit. I should have this job; the only reason he got the job is [fill in the blank].
The correct mindset fueled by great coaching and an ability to serve up: I wanted that job, but it wasn't to be this time. I understand that this is the direction we are going. So I need to get better at what I do and learn from this. My goal should be to learn the most I can from this new leader and treat him like I would want him to treat me. Ask him to make me better. I want to understand the direction and expectations for the team, so I can be the leader and my team can be the ones they know they can count on to get things done! I understand that it is only a matter of time before I am that new manager taking on a new team, and I want to be able to model the behavior I would want from my new team.
Remember: No one with power and self-confidence gets passed over. Only victims get passed over. Confident leaders understand the other person was a better fit for the job, and next time, they must do better to be the only choice. They own it.
Still Think It's a Fantasy?
Many of you reading this may be thinking, “Yeah, Nathan, that would be great, but it's not realistic.” My advice is to change your reality and stop creating self-fulfilling prophecies. “Realistic” is what you make it. The way to ensure the correct mindset and eliminate the wrong mindset is to coach the team members on the mindset before the issues arise. Don't leave it to chance. Most leaders want to assume that team members can only believe one way or another. That is true. They only believe one way—your way—if you coach down. If you explain, teach, and live the serve up/coach down mindset, when issues happen, you don't have to persuade, you just have to hold up a mirror to yourself and your team, check your mindsets, and believe.