How can a new executive succeed when replacing a former executive who failed?

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CIO7 months ago

The first thing I suggest is to do a lot of listening. This could be in the form of a listening tour, both internally with your staff and externally with your stakeholders. It's important to understand the concerns of these groups. For instance, if the IT department is viewed as horrible, ask what the first three things IT could do to rebuild trust. Then, try to put together a roadmap to regain that trust.

As a new executive, you'll have a bit of time before people make judgments about your performance. Use this time to make an honest assessment of your team's capabilities and identify what you can fix. Try to get some quick wins to build credibility. Also, be authentic and transparent with your team about the challenges you're facing and how you propose to fix them.

VP of IT in Healthcare and Biotech7 months ago

We all live in the shadow of our predecessors, whether they were successful or not. When stepping into a new role, it's important to differentiate yourself in meaningful ways without disparaging those who came before you. Maintain a positive tone and focus on moving the organization forward, away from personalities and towards the overall mission.

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COO7 months ago

I agree with Sarah and Frank. Honoring those who came before you can build a lot of credibility and respect with the business and your teams. Too many leaders use their predecessors as scapegoats if something doesn't go their way. Once you take over, it's your responsibility.

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7 months ago

I've found that stepping into a position where the previous person left a legacy is more challenging than replacing someone who failed. With the latter, you can start building confidence with quick wins and collaboration. However, if you're replacing someone who was successful, you'll need to prove yourself up and beyond that person.

CISO/CPO & Adjunct Law Professor in Finance (non-banking)7 months ago

Figure out what happened, evaluate the extant team, find out which elements you can fix, ensure there is top level support for the required changes, find out how much runway you have, define success within the applicable constraints and get agreement as to what constitutes success, design a plan to meet the milestones or benchmarks, work with your team to execute the plan, document and verify that the designated success metric has been achieved.