The UK’s New Boss, Theresa May sent a clear message with her new Cabinet. Out with the public school posh boys and in with good state educated, working class stock (apart from Boris but he’ll be out of the country most of the time).
All Change
Our ‘new boss’, the Prime Minister has sat at the top table of UK politics for many years and was aware of the strengths and weaknesses of her colleagues. As a ‘new manager’ should she have opted for some degree of continuity?
Did George Osborne deserve the rapid, back-door exit from 11 Downing Street? Most people felt he had done a good job under difficult circumstances. However he’s been in politics long enough to know that few careers end on a high.
Internal promotions can be challenging. Former colleagues are now subordinates and the status quo has been changed.
I took over a team where the previous manager was effectively demoted to the level of his former subordinates. He couldn’t stop himself from giving orders to his now colleagues and the tensions in the group meant that I had to move him out of the department within a few months.
Definitely a case of change over continuity.
At another company I was warned by HR that I was about to inherit “some difficult employees”. They were right but these employees bought over 60 years of business experience that I simply didn’t have (and would never gain).
These ‘difficult employees’ just wanted their expertise recognised and the freedom to get on with their job. They were demanding but it was my job to manage them properly. We got on fine and this was a case where continuity was the right thing to do.
Wholesale change for the sake of it never ends well. Sticking with what you have been given can also lead to a staleness of approach; “this is the way we’ve always done things here”.
As ever, it’s a decision to be taken by the manager and it will end up being a compromise. The ability to mix experience with ‘fresh blood’ is a key skill that is necessary in any team leadership.
What has been your experience of such changes? What did you do when you became a New Boss and took over your current team?