How do you honor a predecessor’s legacy while leading boldly?

Very few new executives would be excited to take the helm of a sinking ship. But there is an advantage to stepping into a troubled situation: There tends to be openness to change.

Contrast this with following a respected, beloved leader. Often the incoming leader finds this to be intimidating. Will they be able to live up to the legacy? Can they continue the success? Will they be able to earn the trust and loyalty of others?

Not only this, but the new leader often discovers that change is needed. No outgoing leader or situation is perfect. Most leaders leave behind something that needs to be repaired, replaced, or improved. Even the ones that don’t often leave a team or organization that was tailor-made for them. The fit may not work for the new leader.

The incoming leader often feels they are in a sticky situation: How to honor a predecessor’s legacy while boldly leading to the future?

Three great questions about succession

I was recently asked a series of great questions about succession. I’ll repost them here with brief answers:

How can I seamlessly take over the responsibilities of a longer-standing CEO? 

I wouldn’t worry about being seamless. You are a different person with different relationships and a different approach. There will be a seam. The question should be, “How do I ensure the seam will hold?” 

First, clarify what your core responsibilities are: Outgoing leaders are usually involved with all kinds of activities. Especially if they’ve been in the role for a long time. Not all of those activities are tied to their core responsibilities. 

To clarify this, a CEO (or whatever title is being used) is primarily responsible for doing four things: 

• Articulate and architect the vision. 
• Build and align the people. 
• Oversee and manage performance.
• Ensure adequate resources.

The first two are crucially important. They cannot be delegated away. A leader who doesn’t prioritize vision or people has nowhere to go and isn’t leading anyone. 

The second two are also important but much (not all) of those responsibilities can be delegated. The CEO, at a minimum, needs to provide accountability and momentum. The entire organization will take its cues from the standards and pacing of the leader. 

Once the core responsibilities are clear, focus on the decisions and activities that contribute the most to each of these. Delegate, drop, or delay everything else. 

What are some common mistakes new CEOs make and how can I avoid them?

In my book The Successful New CEO, I describe four common mistakes: 

• There’s a New Sheriff in Town: The Sheriff shows up planning to “clean up the town” whether it needs it or not. This alienates everyone. Even if the change is necessary. Instead, identify and talk to your key stakeholders. Gain a sense of their perspective on organizational strengths, priorities, and concerns. In most cases, they will have a valuable perspective. Pursue the wins that matter most to the most stakeholders. 

• Everybody’s Buddy: Buddy just wants to be friends. But no one respects Buddy. Buddy can’t get things done. A leader should be respected than to be liked. Both are great but don’t sacrifice your credibility to get people to like you. Focus on consistency, and doing what you said you would do. This includes aligning people towards the values and vision and ensuring that the team makes progress towards goals. 

• Toilet Bowl Cleaners: The Cleaner misunderstands servant leadership principles. Instead of providing leadership, they get sucked into doing the work no one else wants to do. The attitude of being willing to do anything you ask someone else to do is admirable. But that attitude shouldn’t mean that you neglect doing your actual job or requiring (or staffing) others to do theirs. Only you can provide leadership. Many people can clean the toilet. Your people need you to do your job. 

• The Watchful Enigma: The Enigma is always learning, thinking, observing, and preparing. Never acting. This is nearly always an expression of a fear to act or make a mistake. Leadership, intrinsically, means stepping into the unknown. You’ll never know or understand everything. You’ll make more net gains from relentless action (and quick corrections) than you will from trying to be precise and accurate every time. Take action. 

How can I honor the legacy of the previous CEO while bringing in my vision? 

That’s the wrong question. Unless you bought the company, you were hired by someone else. Their vision matters more than yours. Even if they told you that they want your vision – they don’t. They want their own vision. They just haven’t put in the work to figure out what it is and are hoping you can mind read.

But you aren’t a mind reader. So, you have to ask them. The first thing you should do is understand what the vision is of the people who hired you. If they haven’t articulated it, your goal should be to help them do so. This is primarily done through a lot of listening to understand their priorities and values. Then use those ingredients to draft a vision. Here is a link to an article on how to inspire a shared vision. 

To sum up

It’s a great opportunity to build on the legacy of a strong leader. But don’t build a museum. Build the organization. Focus on core responsibilities, avoid the common mistakes, and learn to inspire a shared vision. Those three recommendations will take you a long way.

Take good care,

Christian

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