From Struggling to Successful : A case for Transition Coaching

“Transition coaching provides tailored guidance to help leaders quickly gain confidence, navigate their unique challenges, and align their strengths with their new role’s demands”

Rohan (name changed) a bright, well-educated and dynamic professional in his late thirties, had recently moved into a new role as CEO of a mid-sized IT services company, part of a renowned financial services conglomerate. He was one of the youngest CEOs in the group and had made it to that position by the dint of his exceptional performance.

However, having transitioned from operational and execution heavy roles to this high-stakes leadership position, Rohan, for the first time in his career, faced a landscape riddled with so many challenges and opportunities.

This transition  required him to shift from an operational mindset to developing strategic leadership skills, managing a large team and its dynamics and delivering some quick wins.

Rohan’s excitement about his promotion was soon tempered by the harsh realities of his new responsibilities. The business unit was in the red and the pressure to perform was immense. He was still getting to know the team and figuring out the dynamics.  

Recognizing his need for support to settle down effectively in his new role, Rohan’s organization sought the help of a coach specifically to help him through this tough transition and set him up for success.

Coaching for Transition 

Coaching for a smooth transition  is a vital support mechanism for executives stepping into new, high-stakes roles. The shift from functional expertise to strategic leadership can be challenging, as new executives often face heightened expectations, unfamiliar responsibilities, and complex team dynamics. Transition coaching provides tailored guidance to help leaders quickly gain confidence, navigate their unique challenges, and align their strengths with their new role’s demands, accelerates the settling-in process and empowers leaders to drive sustainable success from the outset.

This transition coaching case illustrates how Rohan overcame his struggles and  challenges with patience and timely coaching support.

Current Reality vs New Role demands

I found Rohan warm, open and  keen to commence his coaching journey. Referring to his early background, he spoke about his nomadic childhood and the challenges he faced  growing up and attending different schools.  Of particular significance was his having to face  ridicule and being bullied by classmates on account of his accent and appearance. He had a supportive family but peer approval was important to him and he used to try every trick in the book to win them over.

These experiences had shaped him into an empathetic leader, though driven by a constant need for approval. Despite his strong analytical and people skills, Rohan often struggled under pressure.

His default leadership style was one of trying to win over people by being a nice guy and a pleaser but in his new role as CEO , this was not serving him well. He had a large team of senior leaders reporting to him who were looking up to him for direction and finding ways to set the business back on track. There were some quick and tough decisions that he needed to take regarding people as well the business. Managing the stress arising out of handling his new role demands was affecting his performance and decision-making abilities.

He needed to show he was up to the task and not lose the confidence of the team, management and the board.

Discovering the Depths: Unveiling Insights

To better understand Rohan’s strengths and developmental needs, especially in the context of his new role,  I used a couple of diagnostic tools, including a detailed interview based 360-degree  feedback and feedforward with his team and peers.

These stakeholder conversations were particularly insightful and pointed to some clear areas of focus for Rohan :

• Conflict Handling: He was seen as empathetic and patient, but he often avoided conflict and hard conversations
• Consensus-Building: His desire to build consensus delayed decision-making and cast doubt on his decisiveness.
• Executive Presence: He was seen as smart but needed to project more gravitas and confidence.

Transformational Moments: Breakthroughs and Realizations

While sharing the feedback with Rohan , he acknowledged that he preferred consensus and avoided conflict at all costs thereby  affecting his ability to act decisively without a complete buy-in from his entire team

A significant breakthrough came when Rohan connected his early need for acceptance with his current struggles of having to take contentious decisions.  

Understanding what was holding him back and connecting it with this intrinsic part of his personality was an AHA moment for him. He realised that he needed to learn to balance his empathy and desire for approval with the need for effective leadership and needed to build trust through fair and informed decision-making rather than an endless wait for consensus.

Together we devised an actionable plan that could be put into practice immediately : 

• Work on becoming more decisive for quicker and  effective turnaround:

a. To focus on listening to understand, give everyone a chance to give their views and finally making a reasoned decision, by reducing reliance on consensus-building.

b. Focus on the issue rather than the person. When delivering tough messages, be empathetic but firm to ensure delivery timelines and that performance is not compromised

• Work on building his Executive Presence

a. To work on broad basing his domain & industry knowledge which would give him the confidence to deal with clients and the management, with authority.

b. Consciously network both inside and outside his organisation, a crucial requirement in his role as CEO and business head.

Change journey

Rohan was committed to change and growth and owned his goals from the get-go. He enlisted the help of a superior and a peer to stay focused on his goals. He scheduled regular reviews and feedback sessions, deep dives with business units, and ensured he set aside the time committed to external networking and customer interactions.

He practiced conscious listening and probing to improve decisiveness and prepared thoroughly before meetings to make informed decisions. He was a people’s person and could quickly connect with everyone and he used this strength to create an atmosphere of trust and transparency in the team. Fact based decision making helped him handle conflicts well as he was able to stay calm and didn’t succumb to his need for approval.

Visible Changes: Gaining Confidence

Rohan’s progress was soon evident. He diligently adhered to his plan of action  with full ownership and the changes in his work style and decision-making approach were quickly noticeable. Feedback from team members and other stakeholders highlighted visible changes in his demeanour, confidence & decisiveness as well as his ability to create a culture of open communication and trust. Being seen and heard in the right forums, helped him enhance his professional network and influence.

A leader Emerges

Rohan’s journey from an operational expert to a strategic CEO was marked by significant milestones and personal revelations. Goals and action plans tailored to his new role and unique developmental needs helped him develop the skills and confidence to lead effectively, make decisive decisions and project a commanding executive presence , all the while retaining his key strengths of empathy and being approachable.

As he so eloquently put it, “he had now  learned the art of navigating the challenges and demands of his new role without losing the authenticity of who he was and what had brought him here. And the lessons of this were replicable for his future transitions as well”

Rohan’s story of  transformation from an overwhelmed executive to a successful leader underscores the power of timely coaching support especially during tough transitions and the importance of personal authenticity in professional success.

Author – Saroja Kannan, CFI Coach