Stepping into the CEO role is both exhilarating and challenging. The journey demands new skills, a strong team, and adaptability to navigate the business's complexities. Our Commercial Director, Fraser Jones, recently interviewed Aaron Scott, CEO of UK & IE for DB Schenker, to learn of his transition to the top job and explore the realities of his early days in the role.
The following article introduces key advice Aaron would give to a person making a similar transition and insights from other CEOs through our research, which support Aaron's advice. You can obtain our 12 top tips guide for new CEOs here: https://www.cultureimpact.co.uk/post/the-ceo-survival-guide
1. Assemble and Align Your Team Quickly
Building a reliable team is a top priority for a CEO. This means sharing your vision early and identifying key people who share it. Aaron suggested arranging an off-site meeting to set expectations and priorities, even if your strategy isn't finalised. Communicating your short-, medium-, and long-term goals builds alignment and establishes your leadership approach.
One of the key aspects of this off-site should be a deep dive into the team dynamics. As Aaron said:
"Fools can rush in, so the off-site was to get to know the individuals and the team in a different environment. It is very easy to make early changes and destroy the team and the dynamic that goes with it. The off-site enabled us to identify the dynamic and call out the positive behaviours that would serve us well as a team going forward."
2. Cultivate External and Internal Support Systems
The many CEOs we have interviewed often describe the role as lonely, and the isolation can take even seasoned leaders by surprise. Many CEOs recommend securing both internal and external confidants. While family, friends, or an executive coach can provide external perspective, a few trusted individuals within the company are also invaluable. However, they caution against assuming everyone's motives are straightforward.
In positions of influence, it is natural for people to perhaps share insights and advocate harder for their perspectives, or subtly shape discussions with their motivations in mind. Developing the skill to discern these motivations becomes essential for a CEO.
"As a CEO, you have to be aware of balanced viewpoints, internal and external. The internal ones can be the hardest to find. It is easier to find an independent internal opinion the further away from the sphere of influence you go."
Ultimately, it's about cultivating a reliable, aligned team that can navigate the challenges of influence and agenda and leave the departmental hat at the door to focus on systemic organisational needs.
3. Find Allies Amongst Your Peers
CEOs in more extensive, global companies often comprise a peer network with leaders in other regions or verticals. Leveraging these relationships can provide a lifeline, offering insights into managing specific challenges or understanding a global organisation's 'unwritten rules', how things work, and how to get things done. Networking at this level can offer a buffer to the isolation of the CEO role while enhancing your understanding of organisational politics and strategy.
4. Balance Authority with Active Listening
New CEOs face the delicate challenge of asserting authority without being overly prescriptive. One executive describes this as a balance of "marking your authority" through decisive action, then shifting into "listening mode" to gather insights from the team and other stakeholders. A practical approach involves making necessary personnel changes and engaging in "skip-level" meetings, customer visits, and fieldwork to capture the organisation's strengths and pain points fully. Staying connected to the team and the business at all levels prevents the 'ivory tower' syndrome and gives a clearer understanding of operational realities.
"If we just sit in the ivory tower, taking everything back through the people that report to you, you only get one particular view. Perspective can be lost unintentionally. So I firmly believe you have to be out in the business, speaking to employees and customers."
5. Expect and Manage Increased People Issues and Politics
One of the most common surprises for new CEOs is the amount of time spent on people-related issues and internal politics. People would naturally assume that strategic and customer-focused issues would dominate at the executive level. In reality, however, team conflicts, alignment challenges, and internal politics consume significant time.
An experienced CEO suggests honing the skill of distinguishing between issues that genuinely need your attention and those that you should delegate back to the team with guidance. Not every problem needs your intervention; effective delegation and boundary-setting can prevent you from becoming a bottleneck.
"Navigating internal politics is not about refereeing or adjudicating both sides; it's about aligning people around a shared purpose. When you get alignment around our direction and how their role contributes, the noise of competing agendas fades, giving way to clarity, trust and progress."
6. Make Stakeholder Relationships a Priority
A successful CEO quickly learns the importance of managing relationships within their team and across the broader organisational landscape. Establishing credibility among peers, stakeholders, and higher-level executives can be as crucial as internal team alignment. In a complex, hierarchical organisation, understanding who makes decisions and how things get done is vital for effective leadership. Leaders who can navigate these channels of influence are better equipped to advocate for their region or division, ensuring that local priorities resonate globally.
If you like these tips and insights, you can gain more from our CEO Survival Guide. Gain access here: https://www.cultureimpact.co.uk/post/the-ceo-survival-guide
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