Q.Due to a restructuring, I will now supervise my former peers as head of global sales for my division. While my peers are professionals, I think they could be more effective if they did things differently. I’m also supposed to create and implement an Asia strategy that includes building our sales and marketing organization in Asia and dramatically growing our limited sales there. How should I approach this new role?
A. Congratulations on your new assignment. In a difficult economy, moving up is quite an achievement. Let’s start with six framing questions that one should ask when taking on a new role.
1) Is the organization I’m taking over a “burning bridge” in desperate need of turnaround or is it an otherwise “ok” organization in need of improvement?
Judging from your question, I’ll assume that you’re in the latter situation. That is, your division’s sales organization is, in your opinion, “ok” but could be better.
2) What objectives have been set for me by my management in this new assignment?
Some companies are very specific about goals but not how to achieve them, e.g., “you have 6 months to move the business to xx EBIT or shut it down”. Other companies are specific about goals and methods, e.g., “you have 6 months to move the business to profitability, you can’t change abc, qrs, and xyz, but you can play with your travel budget”. Then there are companies that are very ambiguous about goals and methods…they’ll know success when they see it and failure when they don’t. Always try to find out what objectives, if any, have been set for you and your organization.
3) What am I being graded on?
This is perhaps the most important answer to know from a career perspective. My suspicion is that you’re being graded on at least 3 dimensions. Achieving success against each dimension is very important for your continued career success.
Your ability to lead peers and build followership as a senior level leader. As you progress up the corporate ladder, you will find yourself managing former peers and supervisors. Your skill at retaining, motivating, and leading talent, while overcoming past rivalries or other relationship issues, is crucial to your career progression. Related to this, you’re probably being graded on your willingness to accept effective solutions that may be different from your own…i.e., does everything always have to be done your way?
Your capacity for corporate-level strategic problem solving. Your firm is not alone in needing an Asia strategy. You’ve been chosen for this assignment because your management (a) thinks you can succeed and (b) wants to test and develop your capacity for “big picture” problem solving.
Achieving results. Can you effectively juggle responsibilities, delegate, lead, and exercise multiple skills in a way that turns Asia into your division’s growth engine, delivers numbers around the world, and keeps people motivated?
4) What do I want to accomplish in this role?
Think about the goals that will motivate and sustain you in this new role. Where do you want to set an example for your organization? What are the 1-2 very important goals that only the head of global sales, because of his/her position and contacts, can best accomplish? How do you want this role to enhance your skills, reputation, and CV? What do you want to prove to yourself?
5) What is the company or division culture? What is the culture of the sales organization?
I’m intentionally exaggerating here, but does your company have a consensus-driven culture with the “turning radius of a supertanker” or is your company a leader-driven culture where successful leaders resemble Captain Kirk of the starship Enterprise? To push the metaphor and exaggeration further, do your sales people operate in a coordinated fashion with both each other and other functions or are they a collection of lone wolf 007s with complete latitude? The answers to the culture questions will help you determine the process to define, sell, and implement your ideas.
6) How am I perceived in the organization?
Whether you like it or not, in many cases “perception is reality” and organization politics will play a big role in your success. For example, if you are perceived as a “micro manager”, then what would be considered normal managerial involvement for other managers may be perceived as micro managing if coming from you. If you are perceived as a “big spender”, then having a team planning meeting on a 3-day cruise may be considered extravagant; even if meeting on the cruise ship is less expensive than meeting at any of the hotels near your corporate HQ. While you need to be aware of the perceptions about you to avoid pitfalls, you also have a job to do. My suggestions are to think before speaking and doing, communicate what you are doing and why, and keep in mind that leaders who are fair, consistent, and committed will lead organizations that accomplish more.
Back to your original question…with only the data contained in your question, how you approach this role would seem to depend a lot on the status of your division’s global sales organization and the objectives that have been set for you. Assuming that the sales organization is generally “ok”, the Asia piece of your new role is probably your top priority and where you should spend your energy.
With respect to your new sales responsibilities, ease into the role. With professionals who have been doing their jobs for a while, charging in, taking over, and making dramatic changes appears unwarranted and career damaging to you based on the data in your question. You should certainly learn the market segments, products, and key accounts; figure out how to help your sales people become more effective (both by asking them and from your own observations); find ways to leverage best practices across your organization; set and monitor business performance and individual development objectives; and stay connected with your sales people to make sure they have the intellectual, operational, and emotional support they need. However, these things can be set up over time, the first quarter or two of working together, maybe longer.
Q. Due to a restructuring, I will now supervise my former peers as head of global sales for my division. While my peers are professionals, I think they could be more effective if they did things differently. I’m also supposed to create and implement an Asia strategy that includes building our sales and marketing organization in Asia and dramatically growing our limited sales there. How should I approach this new role?
This is perhaps the most important answer to know from a career perspective. My suspicion is that you’re being graded on at least 3 dimensions. Achieving success against each dimension is very important for your continued career success.
Back to your original question…with only the data contained in your question, how you approach this role would seem to depend a lot on the status of your division’s global sales organization and the objectives that have been set for you. Assuming that the sales organization is generally “ok”, the Asia piece of your new role is probably your top priority and where you should spend your energy.