Next week, I will be onboarding a new senior team member at the following company house line. This new leader will take over functions that I have led for some time. I’m excited about the new energy, creativity, and skills, and I’m thinking about how to prepare new managers for success.
From a CEO or founder’s perspective, transferring responsibilities to new leaders and team members is a necessary element of growth. Inevitably, we all wear many hats and lead different functions along the growth curve of our companies, but there comes a time when professionals need to be hired and handed over to free up processes (and bandwidth).
This is a timely topic for my business and the mortgage and real estate markets. Over the past month, HousingWire has reported on nearly 30 noteworthy “people movers.” That includes big names like Rick Roque joining sierra pacific mortgage corp.Peter Knag serves as financial officer Discount boardand planet home loan Recruited Bill Shuler to serve as CIO.
The pace of these executive hirings and turnovers shows that owners, executives and managers are looking to the future and are preparing the talent they need to drive the business forward.
In preparation for this hire, I spent time thinking about the practices I learned from my own experience and used LinkedIn to gain the perspective of industry executives. Here are the key points from the executive summary:
- Onboarding new executives is a delicate balance between providing support and granting autonomy.
- Experienced leaders emphasize the importance of balancing mentorship with the freedom to innovate, ensuring new executives are empowered to make changes and lead their teams.
- By clearly communicating expectations, fostering trust, and encouraging independent decision-making, you can lay the foundation for a successful transition.
Here’s a complete framework for setting up new leaders for success. As CEO, I know that successfully communicating and executing this framework will set my new team members up for success and make them better leaders for their own teams.
1. Establish clear expectations and vision
Laying the foundation for success starts with clearly articulating your company’s vision, values, and strategic goals.
Kent Ness, Founder White Deer Venture Capital, emphasizes the importance of communicating company culture and fundamental pathways for personal growth and development. He advises: “Articulate the company’s culture—the values, vision, and fundamental pathways for personal growth and development. Introduce and provide access to key personnel, applicable data and systems, and best practices, with the goal of empowering new team members from the start. support.
2. Empowerment through trust and autonomy
A recurring theme in the advice of leaders like Phillip Cantrell and Kelly Yale is the importance of taking a step back and letting new executives make their mark.
As Cantrell succinctly put it: “…get out of the way. Your CEO’s role is to create a plan and then provide the resources to make it happen. No micromanaging. (Pot to Kettle).
Providing the resources you need to succeed without micromanaging fosters a sense of trust and autonomy. “Allow them to be part of the team without you, learn the ropes honestly, and encourage their authentic voices,” adds Yale.
3. Thoughtful introduction and integration
George Milian, former Senior Vice President Rocket Mortgage Who is now founder and chief strategy officer steps of life, provides a detailed onboarding framework that includes a proper introduction to the team, adding new executives to team communications, and providing company swag to create a sense of belonging. Here’s a screenshot of recent comments on LinkedIn:
4. Guidance and ongoing support
Mentoring plays a vital role in the onboarding process, providing new supervisors with guidance, insight and support as they adjust to their new role. Nice emphasized the value of providing ongoing support as a mentor. “Follow the philosophy of mentorship—it will bring guidance, insight, and support as they move into their new role,” he advises.
Regular reporting and an open-door policy ensure that new senior executives feel supported rather than micromanaged.
For some positions, coaching might mean providing examples of the brand and executive voice so new hires can get started right away. Alyson Austin, Principal and Co-Founder Gaffney Austinadvises, “Share all the files with them to get a feel for your persona so they can match your tone.”
5. Create opportunities for feedback and reflection
It’s critical to give new executives the space to be creative and develop their own opinions in the first few weeks. Mike Cush, a 25-year veteran of the mortgage industry, advises: “Give them a few weeks with no guidance or protection other than getting familiar with the people and opportunities. Free to learn and form your own opinions. Then start talking about strategy.
Documentation is really helpful for reflection and feedback loops. Documenting observations and learnings from the first 30 days can provide valuable insights into potential improvements and ensure new perspectives and first impressions are shared. As a CEO, I’m always eager to have fresh eyes and hear first impressions.
6. Promote team cohesion
Building strong relationships within the executive team is critical to long-term success. Following Milian’s advice, scheduling informal gatherings, such as dinner, within the first 48 to 72 hours can help new executives connect with colleagues in a relaxed environment. This fosters camaraderie and increases team cohesion.
7. Balance freedom and guidance
In the end, striking a balance between freedom and guidance is crucial. Encouraging independent decision-making increases confidence and initiative. My goal is to demonstrate trust in the decision-making abilities of new senior executives and support a culture of confident and autonomous leadership. This approach is designed to help new leaders adapt to their roles more effectively and develop a proactive mindset.
Jeremy Dean, Co-Founder elite title companyadvises against backing off entirely, emphasizing the importance of remaining available and clearly communicating the company’s vision.
“You don’t just want to hand them the keys and get completely out of the way. … There’s a difference between throwing someone into an abyss and running away, versus throwing someone into an abyss and making sure they see you and hear you. ,” Dean said. Success lies in balance.
To summarize – as I bring on new team members and senior executives – finding the right balance between providing support and granting autonomy is a top priority. It starts with clearly communicating expectations, cultivating trust, integrating new leaders into the team, providing guidance, and encouraging independent decision-making. The tone set on the first day will impact the tone of the entire working relationship.
