“There’s a lot of onboarding going on and not so much extensive assimilation coaching,” says Diane Egbers, president of Leadership Excelleration, Inc., (LEI Consulting) (www.leadershipexcelleration.com). She is also a coauthor of The Ascending Leader: Conquer the Seven Enemies of Success—A Strategic Guide for the Newly Promoted (Smart Business Network, 2013).
Onboarding and orientation address the question, “What do I know about what it’s like to work here?” Assimilation support (coaching and/or training), on the other hand, focuses on the question, “Am I fully prepared to lead?” Egbers says, “Those are both important, but distinct, questions.”
Whether a company offers assimilation support generally depends on its size and complexity, says Egbers. While larger companies are more likely to offer assimilation training to executives, she says such support is helpful to new leaders at every level.
For new senior leaders, assimilation coaches are sometimes provided 3 to 4 months to help ensure a smooth transition into the new role. Some companies include an assimilation component in their onboarding process for mid-level executives, Egbers says.
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However, few companies offer assimilation support to frontline managers. That is a mistake when you consider that 40 percent of newly promoted leaders fail within the first 18 months, according to Egbers.
At a minimum, Egbers recommends that organizations educate all new leaders about common failures that newly promoted leaders face and train each leader’s manager to support them.
In their book, Egbers and coauthor Karen Schenck identify common failures and offer best practices to use assimilation support for new leaders:
- Manage job-related stress;
- Focus on the bigger picture and do not get “consumed by the crisis of the day”;
- Adapt to the culture before trying to lead;
- Calibrate with your manager, so you know what is expected of you and you have his or her support;
- Connect with stakeholders and peers, who can provide critical information about the organization;
- Engage your team; and
- Inspire your team by developing a vision and a business plan.
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