Page 87 - Just Promoted A 12 Month Road Map for Success in Your New Leadership Role

72 Just Promoted!

law of successful transition and served his boss’s self-interest while deter-
mining how to perform well in his job?

CLARIFYING YOUR ROLE AND WHAT IS EXPECTED
OF YOU: A PERCEPTION CHECK WITH YOUR BOSS
Given the differing sets of expectations for you, things can become very con-
fusing. Your own expectations can be both your greatest source of strength
and your greatest problem. If you conducted careful, two-way discussions with
your boss before you were hired, you will understand his or her expectations.
Ted felt he had a clear reading of his mission. His boss, who was the direc-
tor of learning and development (L&D), wanted new programs, “the ones
written about in the L&D journals,” including some internal consulting,
organizational diagnosis, and executive team building. That’s what Ted
thought he had been told, and soon after he was hired he was well on his way.
He conducted needs assessments with first-line supervisors and midlevel
managers, and he organized problem-solving teams. He instituted midlevel
and upper-level management development programs, planned and facilitated
a retreat for top management, and developed a succession plan. He was con-
fidently moving quickly ahead with what he had been told to do, and he
thought that he was regularly staying in touch with and tuned into his boss.
He was fired after about six months by a boss who felt that Ted had been too
pushy, had disrupted the organization, and had upset the people he was sup-
posed to help.
In getting the programs started, Ted had become more aggressive and
prominent than his boss had anticipated. Ted was becoming a star. Even worse,
he took credit for others’ accomplishments. He acted as the spokesperson and
leader for his programs. He gave little of the limelight or spokesperson roles
to his boss, and his boss got little of the credit for the new programs. In brief,
Ted had not met an important part of his boss’s expectations: that his boss’s
standing would be enhanced by Ted’s activities. Rather, Ted was building his
own reputation and role, and little of the activity was benefiting his boss. In
making himself look good, Ted had failed to make his boss look good and, in
fact, his boss viewed Ted as a threat.
Another common difficulty is a boss who hires you to implement his or
her solutions rather than solve a problem. You cannot be sure the solution
addresses the problem, or even that there is a problem.