Transitions

Navigating TransitionsLeadership ChangeNew Beginnings

Strengths Coaching for Leaders and Executives

One of the most difficult times in the life of an organization is dealing with personnel transitions. Every organizational shift, change, and reshaping of key personnel happens on a regular basis. Those transitions are normally designed to improve practice or minimally to maintain the current expectations. But transitions present great opportunities for improvement that can be too easily overlooked. Our work with transitions will help you avoid distractions, dangerous communication, and time-wasting problems. We will bring clarity to the transition process and help you and your team navigate the often-treacherous waters of transitions.

We already know enough to successfully teach all children whose education is important to us. We already know more than we need to do that. Whether or not we do it must finally depend on how we feel about the fact that we haven’t so far. ~ Ron Edmonds

Transitions

NAVIGATING TRANSITIONS

For lasting change, you need the help and guidance of others. Without it, you’ll be relegated to a plateau of existence where you’re always busy, but nothing really improves. ~ R.A. Weigel

It’s not the change that is hard. It’s implementing that change that’s at the core of transitions. Transition planning and continuity navigation is often a neglected priority. Making the transition of people from one project, idea, position, or responsibility to the next – should never be left to chance. Transitions require more thought and planning than most leaders are willing to make.

If you want to accomplish your vision and goals, then transition planning is essential. In order to improve your results, meet the needs of others, and provide the necessary support through the impending transitions, seasons of life, and movement into unknown territory, you’re going to need transition planning.

We will:
  • Take a deep dive into what needs to be done while addressing the clarity of roles and expectations.
  • Build a plan about the fundamental and exemplary tasks required before, during, and after the transition.
  • Establish fit within the moving parts to fill the inevitable gaps that happen when leaders leave, get promoted, changes roles, or are required to change direction.
  • Form a safety net for all the people who are affected by the impending leadership transition and the subsequent periods of uncertainty, abandonment, and change.
  • Frame a projection of how each loss from the transition will be replaced with gains that move the people and the organization forward.
Transition is not a failure or failing.

It is simply a transition. It is too often done with little support, training, or guidance. Navigating transitions includes the current and future leader – both leading with care, helping others to avoids negativity or hard feelings, overcoming resistance, and building positivity for the future.

Navigating transitions is the ideal time for gathering data.

That data takes many forms but should minimally include wellbeing, social, attitudinal, and performance expectation data. Navigating transitions requires gaining a pulse of the organization related to expectations, vision, values, and goals.

Navigating transitions involves some painful conversations and requires a great deal of asking the right questions to gather the needed insights. If you’re finding that it’s time to move someone up, move someone out, make a change in leadership, the retirement of an effective leader, or you see a change in leadership personnel on the horizon, then this is the time to get us involved to help you make that transition happen in the best way possible.
Transitions

LEADERSHIP CHANGE

Your future is only as good as the planning and actions you take today.

~ R.A. Weigel

There are many reasons why making a change in leadership is important, essential, or required. Consider the following:

  • Retirement,
  • Poor Performance,
  • Good Performance,
  • Promotion,
  • Financial Considerations,
  • Board Change,
  • Different Vision,
  • Different Goals,
  • New Position,
  • Personality Issues,
  • Poor Fit,
  • Better Fit,
  • Legal Issues,
  • Too Comfortable,
  • Too Stressed,
  • Ineffective, etc.

The mistakes that happen when there is a change in leadership are almost beyond comprehension. It’s not that things aren’t considered carefully, but in reality there is more to consider than someone on the inside has the time to work through. When there is a change is leadership, a plan needs to be formulated and people need to be coached throughout.

Purpose
  • The purpose for the change has to fit with the vision.
  • Clarity of the results that are expected.
  • Fit with the goals.
  • Establish new goals before making the change.
Complete the Change
  • Make the shift
  • Debrief and follow-up
  • Acceptance quotient
  • Measuring the change
New isn’t Always New
  • What growth is expected
  • What growth is demanded
  • Time for proving
  • Determine what is considered new
Find the Fit
  • Consider the costs
  • Assessments based on Strengths for everyone involved
  • What Strengths are expected, needed, anticipated, required
  • How the fit works for everyone
Process
  • Time factors and timelines
  • Financial factors
  • Learning factors
  • Communication factors
  • Responsibility factors
  • Accountability factors
  • Community factors
  • Legal factors
  • Outcomes – Results – Goals
  • Strategic plan
A leadership change has the potential to improve or hurt your school or district.

It’s not as simple as you’ve been led to believe. It also has the potential to ruin the leadership of the people who are making the change. You need an outside expert to help you design the change, take the heat, and coach everyone through the change.

Transitions

NEW BEGINNINGS

Future generations will require highly skilled school leaders. Now is the time to begin to build for that future. ~ R.A. Weigel

Letting go of the past sounds easy, but it isn’t. Everyone has a past, and that past can be helpful or hurtful depending on a great number of factors. There are times when decisions have been made and changes in personnel have happened, but something is not quite right.

Signs you’re struggling with new beginnings.
  • There is too much talking about the past.
  • Key people never had a chance to complete, end, or grieve what happened.
  • There is anger, resentment, or frustration that has not been addressed correctly.
  • There is envy and hurt feelings from the previous episodes of transition.
  • Key people are not open to doing things in new ways.
A few components that must be addressed by a leadership coach are:
  • Discover what type of waiting period may be necessary for key personnel.
  • Create an empowerment culture for the new beginning.
  • Find the “test drive” areas where others can see how things are going to go.
  • Determine how people may be seen differently in the new beginning.
  • Create a process for getting up to speed as quickly as possible.
  • Build an encouragement and support factor for the new beginning.

There are processes for people to move from what was in the past toward what is needed for the future. It is not as simple as “let’s all pull together and get the work done.”

Future successes often depend on how people are able to let go of the past. The transference of authority is a key issue for continued or improved success. Don’t let a new beginning fall flat without having the support necessary from an effective transition coach helping.