Richard G. Stieglitz - Leadership Conversations: Challenging High Potential Managers to Become Great Leaders

Table of Contents

More Praise for Leadership Conversations

Leadership Conversations is an excellent framework for executives to use worldwide in leadership training programs. It encourages grounded thinking around leadership and is a practical guide for developing leadership skills and discovering and forming ones authentic leadership style.

Carol Roche Austin, head of human resources, Permira Advisors LLP

Leadership Conversations is a practical and valuable book. The leadership and communication principles are presented in a clear manner that is relevant to leaders at all levels. The real-world insights will help readers be more effective leaders, driving high performance and success.

Tom Mutryn, EVP and CFO, CACI International

Cultivating leaders is key to the growth of any organization. Leadership Conversations translates years of experience into an easy-to-follow road map to help identify leaders and push them to reach their maximum potential.

Ed Erhardt, president, global customer marketing and sales, ESPN

Katervas rapid rise to a world stage with its thought leadership in sustainability could not have happened without following the principles in this book. Leadership conversations are the key to creativity and can spur global innovation.

Terry Waghorn, founder and CEO, Katerva

With multi-national operational challenges, I need practical advice that I can implement quickly. Leadership Conversations delivers with examples and guidance on how to have effective conversations.

Wesley J. Johnston, EVP and COO, Americas; Dimension Data

Cover art by Shutterstock and Thinkstock (RF).

Author photo by Gerard/Studio One

Cover design: Adrian Morgan

Copyright 2013 by Leadership Conversation, LLC. All rights reserved.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Berson, Alan S.

Leadership conversations : challenging high-potential managers to become great leaders / Alan S. Berson, Richard G. Stieglitz. 1st ed.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-118-37832-8 (cloth); ISBN 978-1-118-55188-2 (ebk.) ISBN 978-1-118-55186-8 (ebk.) ISBN 978-1-118-55187-5 (ebk.)

1. Communication in management. 2. Leadership. 3. Executive ability.

I. Stieglitz, Richard G. II. Title.

HD30.3.B476 2013

658.4'092dc23

2012042025

To all the teachers in our livesfamily, friends, and colleagues

Preface

Are You Having Leadership Conversations?

Whether you are the high potential who receives the news or the executive who delivers it, everyone feels good when he hears or says, Congratulationswe have an amazing new assignment for you. Its an opportunity to confirm that you are a rising star.

Exciting? Yes, but any new opportunity also entails new risks. Research consistently shows that nearly half of high-potential executives fail to reach their full potential. The fancy name for it is midcareer derailment. Considering that the derailment usually occurs within eighteen months of a major promotion, perhaps you should wait a while before uncorking the champagne. As the high potential who is being promoted or who is promoting others, you need to be prepared and clearheaded. But prepared for what? Armed with which skills and perspectives?

For starters, look at the subtle messages embedded in the typical statement that follows the promotion of a high-potential executive: I have no doubt that youre up to this new challenge. But if you run into a problem, call my assistant, and hell squeeze you into my calendar.

If you are on the delivery side of this conversation, your lack of active involvement is setting the high potential adrift to succeed or fail aloneyou have not provided leadership. If you are on the listening side, we hope you realize that you should expect little assistance from your bosswhich should scare you because, at a minimum, you need a conversation about expectations, your bosss and yours. If instead you take the statement as a sign of the bosss confidence that you can handle the new assignment simply by doing more of what you did in the past, then keep your resume up-to-date, because you may well find yourself among the half who are looking for another job within eighteen months.

Most high potentials are derailed not by things they know they need to learn but rather by things they did not even realize had changed. What new challenges do you face when you climb the leadership ladder? How must you think differently? What new actions must you take? The answers to these questions are the difference between success and failure. What we want you to avoid hearing or saying is Poor Dave, we thought he could handle more responsibility. But it looks like he just doesnt have what it takes to be a leader. His reputation may never recover from this disaster. Thats unfortunate because we had high hopes for him.