️Believing that having served as Practice Head, Office MP or on the Executive Committee will be ADEQUATE preparation for taking on the role of leading the entire firm.

️Determining how to transition some or all of your client obligations to some other partner in a manner COMFORTABLE for the clients involved.

️Having sufficient time to prepare before day one and then being properly ORIENTATED to take on the new responsibilities on day one.

️Understanding that everyone SCRUTINIZES your every move and that the impact of your actions (and any missteps) will be magnified.

️Attending to the needs of your family as your change in responsibilities DEMANDS even more time and likely time spent traveling, which will affect them whether you wish to acknowledge it or not.

️Understanding you cannot be an advocate for your old team, department or office, and that building consensus requires you to balance COMPETING interests; recognize that you are now working from a larger landscape and need to serve the best interests of the entire firm.

️Suppressing prior leadership experience in a way that has you CAUTIOUS in assuming that any issue you now face is the same as one you saw in a prior leadership position.

️RECOGNIZING that you don’t have or know all the answers when you assume this position and that some answers you thought you knew, you soon discover aren’t really that workable in the real world.

️Being BIASED by your predecessor’s experience, programs or influence (the repository of the ‘good old days’) and not setting your own path for the firm (based on a thoughtful read of evolving trends and partners’ aspirations).

️Being unable to build new relationships needed with your peers and navigate around the POLITICS of the firm (identifying the power partners with influence).

️Feeling confused and uncertain about what is REALLY EXPECTED of you (with 72% of New Leaders claiming it takes over six months to begin feeling productive in this new role).

️Being adequately SELF-AWARE of your personal strengths and shortcomings such that you can take proper steps to counteract perceived weaknesses.

️Being OVERWHELMED by competing demands (telephone, email, meeting requests) that increase exponentially, for your time and attention.

️Facing a steep learning curve as you meet with colleagues and confront NOVEL issues requiring intensive analysis and thought.

️Believing your appointment represents a mandate for CHANGE — and not knowing the skills and techniques for how to effectively obtain partner buy-in to bring about change and overcome resistance.

️Recognizing that rather than promoting big bold initiatives, you need to achieve some quick, SMALL successes to inspire initial confidence in your leadership.

️Taking on far TOO MUCH, too quickly, in your first months in office.

️Dealing with ISOLATION of the job.

By Patrick J. McKenna

Keywords: Leadership

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