Initiating an executive hire is a critical decision for any organization. Many statistics show that between 40% and 50% of new leaders fail or leave the company within their first 18 months. What can your organization do to encourage the successful integration of a new executive?

1. R e t a i n e d E x e c u t i v e S e a r c h
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Onboarding:
Promoting the Successful Integration of a New Executive
‐ by Tracy L. Boczkowski
Ques&ons to Consider Before and During the Hiring Process
Onboarding is a long‐term, strategic plan
for assimila&ng a newly hired execu&ve 1. Are there current employees who believe they could be a natural
fit for the opportunity and may feel slighted if not considered?
into an organiza&on.
Having conversaEons with these individuals to discuss the role,
IniEaEng a new execuEve hire is a criEcal decision for any their own qualificaEons, and the company’s plan for idenEfying
organizaEon. Much thought and effort goes into determining the candidates can go a long way in gaining the support of these
responsibiliEes of the role, the qualificaEons exisEng employees. In some cases, it may also
and personal characterisEcs of an ideal be appropriate to have these individuals
candidate, and who on the execuEve Even with appropriate
involved in interviewing candidates to gain
management team will be involved in the planning, many sta<s<cs show their support during the hiring process and
interview and selecEon process. Even with that between 40% and 50% of when the new execuEve joins your firm.
appropriate planning, many staEsEcs show new leaders fail or leave the
that between 40% and 50% of new leaders 2. What impact would hiring an individual
company within their first 18
fail or leave the company within their first 18 from an outside organiza<on have on exis<ng
months.
months. What can your organizaEon do to staff? Is the new execu<ve going to replace an
improve its onboarding process and outgoing leader or is this a new role?
encourage the successful integraEon of a
Companies that don’t ini<ate Considering the potenEal consequences and
new execuEve?
onboarding strategies before issues surrounding the hiring of the new
Onboarding takes into account the specific the execu<ve begins execuEve, and engaging in early
role and its responsibiliEes, and is considered communicaEon with staff members who will
employment are missing out
by many to be a criEcal component in be directly affected can help to prevent rumors
on key opportuni<es to
determining the success of a new execuEve. and speculaEon, while earning the support of
In a recent survey conducted by the Society improve their integra<on the employees.
for Human Resource Management, only 14% process.
3. What personal characteris<cs are most
of parEcipants indicated that their company’s
appropriate for the new execu<ve to have?
onboarding programs begin during the
What type of leadership style will be required? Is this execu<ve
recruitment stage. The majority iniEate the process at the
going to be expected to implement significant changes within the
acceptance of an offer or upon the new execuEve’s start date.
department or organiza<on?
These organizaEons may be missing key opportuniEes to develop
and launch a successful onboarding strategy, which should begin as OZen, when a new leader is being brought in to reorganize an
soon as the company determines that an execuEve posiEon needs organizaEon, business unit, or department, it is the individual’s
to be filled, and may conEnue for several months or even up to a personal a8ributes that can have the most influence on the
year aZer the individual joins the company. outcome. IdenEfying the personal characterisEcs and leadership
style that will best suit the organizaEon and its goals will help in
assessing candidates and allow interviewers to consider those
aspects of the individual in addiEon to his or her experience and
qualificaEons.

2. Ques&ons to Consider Prior to process. These consultants can provide an objecEve view, offer
the New Execu&ve Joining the Organiza&on suggesEons for gaining employee buy‐in, and serve as a sounding
board. Likewise, assigning a colleague within the organizaEon who
1. How will the new execu<ve be introduced to the organiza<on,
can share his or her experiences and provide insight into the
department, business unit, etc.?
company’s culture may be another effecEve or supplemental
On the first day of employment, consider holding a brief meeEng opEon.
with the new execuEve’s staff with the sole purpose of introducing
the individual. NoEfy the execuEve in advance so he or she can be Why is a Successful Onboarding Program Important?
prepared to make a statement and answer any potenEal quesEons.
Discussing the new execuEve’s qualificaEons and past successes, as ✤ The direct and indirect costs of the unsuccessful integraEon of
well as what opportuniEes he or she presents for the staff and the a new execuEve can be significant. Consider the Eme and
organizaEon, will begin to generate excitement about the potenEal money invested in recruiEng, hiring and training the individual,
that exists. In the case of a new execuEve who is replacing an as well as the effects on employee morale and lost
outgoing individual, it is important to avoid comparing or criEcizing producEvity.
the past execuEve; there will inevitably be remaining staff
✤ Research indicates the most important differenEators of
members who were close to and thought highly of that individual,
performance of leadership hires are the experiences they
and doing so may alienate those employees.
encounter during their first few weeks and months on the job.
2. How can the exis<ng management team ac<vely foster the new
✤ As baby boomers reEre, the demand for senior level execuEves
execu<ve’s successful integra<on, par<cularly as he or she begins to
will increase and a well thought‐out and defined onboarding
implement new ini<a<ves? program will become an effecEve tool for most organizaEons.
The onboarding process is a shared responsibility of the
✤ It creates a compeEEve advantage because many companies
organizaEon as a whole, the exisEng company leadership, and the
have insufficient programs.
new execuEve. Key areas to focus on are relaEonship building,
understanding of the corporate culture, and expectaEons for ✤ Studies have indicated that direct reports of a new leader who
results, including Emeframes. By discussing the challenges is effecEvely assimilaEng into the organizaEon will outperform
associated with the transiEon period, all can work collecEvely to (by as much as 15%) the direct reports of a new execuEve who
resolve potenEal issues while maintaining a focus on the goals and is having difficulEes.
objecEves of the new execuEve. The transiEon period requires a
careful balancing act in order for the new execuEve to posiEon
How can your organiza&on implement
himself or herself as a leader, to gain the support and confidence of
or improve its onboarding program to
the staff, and to demonstrate to the company’s management team
encourage successful execu&ve integra&on?
that they chose the right execuEve.
3. Is it appropriate to have individual or small group mee<ngs
between exis<ng staff and the new execu<ve to establish a rapport
and allow for the sharing of ideas?
OZen, with changing leadership comes anxiety about what the
future holds for the current employees. By developing an open‐
door policy and allowing people’s concerns and ideas to be heard,
much of this can be alleviated and an atmosphere of collaboraEon
can be developed.
4. Would it be effec<ve to employ an outside consultant or
execu<ve coach, or to pair a peer within the organiza<on to serve
as a mentor?
Some organizaEons engage an individual to work closely with the
new execuEve to guide him or her through the assimilaEon

3. SUCCESSFUL ONBOARDING TECHNIQUES The selected candidate’s credenEals and proven success in leading
sustainable turnarounds with past organizaEons, as well as his
Scenario #1: temperament and leadership style, has been well‐received by his
team and within the corporaEon. AddiEonally, the company paired
Vice President of Opera9ons with a non‐profit organiza9on
the Group CEO with another business unit leader, who had been
hired approximately one year earlier, to serve as a sounding board
We recently conducted a search for a client that was seeking a Vice
and mentor for the new execuEve. In the Group CEO’s first nine
President of OperaEons, which was simultaneously somewhat of a
months of employment – a criEcal Eme for a new execuEve – this
new role as well as a replacement within the organizaEon. Our
individual has successfully made significant changes and
client recognized that they needed to expand the responsibiliEes
implemented a variety of iniEaEves, supported by his contagious
and scope of an exisEng posiEon, essenEally creaEng a new role.
energy and ability to moEvate exisEng staff. The Chairman of the
Through conversaEons with the individual in the exisEng posiEon,
organizaEon has commented that many exisEng staff members
the client’s management team knew that he didn’t have the
have indicated they were craving the leadership and change that
interest or skill set to take on the new challenges, making it
the new Group CEO has brought to their business unit.
somewhat of a replacement.
The individual in the exisEng role had been with the organizaEon Scenario #3:
for nearly 30 years and would seem at first glance to be the most
John Deere Corpora9on
natural choice for the “new” role. When the client decided to go
outside of the company to fill this posiEon, they realized that doing
so could cause internal issues – with the other Vice Presidents and When discussing proven onboarding programs, one that is oZen
with the staff who would report to the Vice President of referenced was developed and implemented by the John Deere
OperaEons. The client’s approach was to involve the other Vice CorporaEon. Within their comprehensive program, one iniEaEve
Presidents as well as the incumbent employee throughout the that they have found to be very effecEve is to email selected
interview and decision‐making process. AZer meeEng with several individuals within the organizaEon to let them know that the new
candidates who clearly had the qualificaEons to successfully execuEve will likely need to interact with them or call them for
perform the role, the final decision came down to a ma8er of assistance within his or her first few months. Through the email,
“chemistry and fit”, and the other VPs unanimously agreed on the these individuals are asked to reach out to the new execuEve and
individual to hire, which eased the integraEon of the new schedule a Eme to meet and make an introducEon. John Deere
execuEve. AddiEonally, the incumbent was very supporEve of the CorporaEon has found that this approach is successful because the
selected individual, in large part because the new Vice President exisEng employees genuinely look forward to becoming acquainted
demonstrated an excellent change management style and had with the new execuEve, who appreciates the outreach and is then
been successful in taking on a role in a similar environment with his familiar with colleagues that he or she can turn to regarding
most recent employer. Those a8ributes were important in gaining specific issues and areas when developing and implemenEng his or
the approval of the staff members who had developed a loyalty to her new iniEaEves.
the incumbent.
‐ Tracy Boczkowski is a Managing Director with Helbling & Associates
and she has been with the firm since 1995. Her role encompasses
Scenario #2:
responsibili<es that span from informa<on management to proposal
Group Chief Execu9ve Officer for a mul9‐na9onal contractor wri<ng and research. She is an ac<ve member of the Society for
Marke<ng Professional Services’ PiWsburgh Chapter.
Recently, we completed a search for a global organizaEon to secure
a Group Chief ExecuEve Officer for its largest business unit, as a
result of a planned reErement. The client knew that they were
seeking someone who could restructure and reorganize the To subscribe to Helbling’s quarterly newsleWer, visit our home
business unit to increase efficiencies, growth and profitability. page at www.helblingsearch.com and click on the green buWon
on the boWom right.
Because they were looking for someone to make immediate and
significant changes, they knew that the key to a successful Social Media:
integraEon would be the new execuEve’s ability to earn the trust Blog: blog.helblingsearch.com
and support of his team. TwiWer: @helblingsearch