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The Leadership Pipeline, By R. Charan, S. Drotter and J. Noel, Josey-Bass, 2001
This book provides a clear and tested framework, along with detailed practical guidelines, for medium to large scale companies looking either to establish or improve their leadership development and succession planning processes. It describes six critical transitions that a leader must navigate, explains how organisations can provide appropriate development at each stage and illustrates the whole with real life examples.
Although I would highly recommend reading this book from the perspective of its stated purpose, my intention in reviewing it and summarising its key ideas is rather to challenge ambitious and high potential managers to turn the logic of this book on its head. I propose that they use it to consider how the ideas presented can help them better manage and take responsibility for their own career development and progression.
I have spent many years working with leaders who struggle with successfully managing the transition from one organisational level to another. During this time it has become clear to me that, although talent, drive and ambition undoubtedly play their part, the key distinction between those who successfully transform their career and those who do not is that of mastering the skill of unlearning habitual patterns of thinking and behaving. Patterns that perhaps served them well enough at lower levels of the organisation. Equally, successful career progression requires actively and consciously acquiring an alternative set of capabilities that are required to succeed at the higher level.
In short, therefore, leaders who progress rapidly in organisations recognise the need for alternating periods of transformational change with periods of consolidating their core capabilities. They then actively manage this process, most usually with the support and challenge of another interested party.
The authors emphasise thinking in terms of a leadership pipeline, talk about the importance of being able to navigate pipeline turns and of the need to be aware of the specific requirements for each level. The important point here is to think in terms of pipeline requirements rather than specific roles and responsibilities.
At each pipeline turn there are different requirements to master and pitfalls to avoid. Also the level of complexity to be coped with increases exponentially as one progresses through the organisation.
The six transitions they describe are:
o Transition one: From managing self to managing others
o Transition two: From managing others to managing managers
o Transition three: From managing managers to functional manager
o Transition four: From functional manager to business manager
o Transition five: From business manager to group manager
o Transition six: From group manager to enterprise manager
As well as acquiring before time the skills required at each level, at the point of transition managers need to substantially change how they allot their time and must reframe their attitudes towards the business.
For facilitating the successful navigation of each transition, the writers identify three key development tools. These are:
o Growth assignments
o Clear and challenging feedback
o Coaching
Rather than waiting for the organisation to provide these and paternalistically manage their career for them, successful leaders seize the initiative and manage their own career progression. They search for and demand enhanced responsibilities and challenging assignments that provide the critical areas of experience and knowledge they will require. They learn to seek out and welcome direct, unadorned feedback. Finally, to keep them focussed, supported and challenged, and to help them reframe their thinking and behaviour at key transition points, they find themselves an effective external coach.
Transition one: From managing self to managing others
It is at this stage that managers need to stop thinking solely about themselves and their own role. Those who transition successfully add to their prior technical / professional perspective a focus on getting things done through others.
They need to embrace and develop the skills and attitudes necessary to delegate, enable, motivate, coach, communicate, problem solve, plan, provide feedback, and define and assign work to be done. They also need to start developing the skills of choosing and allocating people objectively and decisively.
This means a complete reallocation of time, learning to value managerial work and viewing other directed work as critical to their success.
Transition two: From managing others to managing managers
As a manager of managers, coaching skills are essential, as is: performance management, resource management, selection and people development.
A transversal view of the organisation, which involves transcending boundaries between groups and functions, is essential. Equally important is the ability to set stretch goals and the integrity to remove those who fail to perform.
To manage authentically at this level involves becoming consciously aware of the sources, uses and, above all, potential abuses of power. It is about using it mindfully and sensitively to motivate and instruct rather than demean and demoralise.
Transition three: From managing managers to functional manager
Dialogue, communication and being a team player are important at all organisation levels, but at this level these factors largely become the difference that makes the difference between success and failure. Dialogue here firstly means being able to adapt your message to the needs of your audience. Communication must be constant and will be of necessity information intensive. The most important characteristics of dialogue, however, are those of listening with focus and interest, and then fully reflecting on what has been heard.
The other distinguishing factor at this level is the ability to think strategically and adopt a broad, long term perspective. This needs to occur at two levels. First, a clear functional strategy must be developed which addresses at least a three year time frame and is based on clear and up to date awareness at technical, operational and professional levels. Secondly, as a member of the executive team, along with other functional managers, a full understanding of the key business drivers combined with an ability and willingness to contribute to the long term strategic direction of the business is fundamental. Knowledge of and facility in using key financial, business and strategic tools is also an entry requirement at this level.
As an active member of the senior team, a judicious balance of collaboration and competition for resources should be combined with an ability to make trade-offs with the goal of achieving maximum profitability and long term competitive advantage.
Transition four: From functional manager to business manager
The requirements for successfully navigating the transition to this level are ones that many managers fail to grasp to the long term detriment of their career.
Here the job becomes vastly more complex, lonelier, more exposed and more autonomous. Managers have more rope with which to hang themselves.
Managers need to fully embrace a profit perspective and understand market and investor pressures and requirements. This means adopting a broader frame of reference and considering a wider range of external factors.
Just at the point where the pressure on their time becomes greatest, it also becomes essential that they frequently take time out to stop and think, reflect, review and analyse.
Excellent business managers know how to assemble a strong team, to trust people and to both give and, more importantly, receive advice and feedback.
For effectively managing complexity, the writers recommend using an “Alignment triangle”:
o Strategic direction / competitive advantage (products, markets, competition, customers)
o Collective competence (experience, skills, mindset etc)
o Organisational competence (structure, processes, culture etc)
Transition five: From business manager to group manager
With the challenge of running multiple businesses comes even greater isolation, ambiguities, uncertainties and risks. There is a need to consider longer time spans and factor in the demands of multiple stakeholders, including: the stock market, government, community and industry.
In fulfilling the critical role of developing and coaching business managers, performing effectively at this level means valuing the success of others and being able to inspire, support and challenge them to deliver superior performance.
Strategic focus must now become more like that described in the MBA textbooks. An awareness of portfolio strategy and competitive forces (eg. BCG and M. Porter) needs to be combined with a focus on core capabilities (eg. C.K Prahalad and G. Hamel). Although informed by key strategic models, however, this needs to be practical and applied.
Transition six: From group manager to enterprise manager
People at this level are completely driven by a need to achieve and deliver. This means assembling and energising a team of ambitious high achievers, as well as developing a deep understanding of the business in order to leverage superior business performance and shareholder / stakeholder value.
In addition to managing the constant and consistent delivery of short term results combined with long term growth and competitive advantage, it is necessary to shape the business culture and the “soft” side of the enterprise.
The writers point out that, in managing the business in a broader global context, leaders’ competence will be judged on the basis of three to four high-leverage decisions annually. Equally, they must set three or four organisation critical priorities that they constantly articulate and drive.
Preparing for transition six from transition one through to five
For those who are driven enough to want to be an enterprise manager, it is not enough simply to focus on one transition at a time. As early as possible in their career, they need to start assembling the knowledge, skills, experience, behaviours and beliefs required for success at this level. Such capabilities normally take twenty or more years to build in a robust and sustainable manner.
The would be CEO needs to experience: a range of increasingly large profit and loss roles, business start up, business turnaround, an international assignment, a corporate assignment, and a range of different business models.
The acolyte needs both formal and informal coaching and feedback, especially during periods of transition. In addition, almost all highly successful CEOs have benefited from the active long term support and encouragement of a much more senior and experienced role model / mentor. Finally, early exposure to the board of directors, stock market analysis, and relevant forums and networks is also invaluable.
| Related stories: |
 | Relationship Marketing, by Regis McKenna, Century Hutchinson, 1992 | | Living Leadership: A practical guide for ordinary heroes, by G Binney, G Wilke and C Williams, FT Prentice Hall, 2005 | | Simply Strategy: The shortest route to the best strategy, by R Koch and P Nieuwenhuizen, Prentice Hall, 2006 |
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