Keys to Properly Onboarding Executives Who Come From Larger Companies

The skills and experience possessed by an executive who learned and matured within a large corporation bring significant value to a middle market company. However, executives who come from such a different structure and culture are probably not going to be able to "plug and play." In other words, they'll need guidance during the onboarding process in order for them to fit usefully among the people and processes of their new middle market firm.

At large companies, the internal rules, support and competition for resources, acknowledgment and upward mobility dictate the way an executive must act from day to day. At midsized firms, though, the landscape is very different. If management decides to bring on an executive from a larger company, then it's likely the new hire has exhibited traits essential to operating in a midsized firm, such as creative thinking, self-sufficiency and self-awareness of strengths and limitations. In order to ensure those traits become standard operating procedure in the new role, it's necessary to train the executive as thoroughly as possible. On-the-job mistakes will burn time, resources and morale that a midsized company can't afford.

Here are four keys for providing incoming executives the right guidance to achieve desired results:

Reinforce the Need for Constant Action

The executive likely comes from an environment where employees often brought ideas and issues forward, but this isn't how midsized firms tend to thrive. Former Hewlett-Packard executive Ben Horowitz sums up his large-company leadership experience versus a similar role at a smaller company: "Big-company executives tend to be interrupt-driven" and spend more time "optimizing and tuning the existing business."

In contrast, at smaller firms "nothing happens unless (the executive) makes it happen. Without massive input from (execs), the company will stay at rest...(The executive should) be extremely creative about initiating new directions and tasks." The responsibility is on the new executive to initiate action among employees, rather than waiting for information, ideas or problems to come to them.

Emphasize Flexibility

While most midsized firms have processes for each distinct discipline and task, the new executive must understand that processes should be set aside if they compromise results. For instance, budgeting might have to take place on the fly when timely ideas pop up and more resources aren't available to exploit them.

Additionally, serial entrepreneur Michael Fertik notes in a Harvard Business Review article that executives should be ready to do things by themselves as necessary: "If you're going to do something bigger like investigate a new channel opportunity, research it yourself." Also, the executive should be pushed to test assumptions in hours, days or weeks, rather than months or quarters. "Drop the perfectionism," Fertik says. "If you can learn twice as fast by testing a half-baked product, do it. You'll make the final version faster and ultimately much better than you could otherwise."

Encourage Personal Interaction Throughout (and Outside) the Firm

By getting to know a large portion of your workforce, executives quickly build better trust among employees. This both shows the new executive is buying into a no-silo culture and acts as on-the-job training. Many large-company transplants were formerly surrounded by internal people who would fill in the blanks for them when necessary, and they also were able to use their firm's name as leverage for access to customers and prospects. However, there's only one way for new executives to quickly become attuned to a midsized firm's systems, products, customers and markets: by placing themselves in front of people, internally and externally. The result is an executive with holistic knowledge and perspective of the middle market firm.

Require Consistent Reporting Throughout the First Month

Actively monitor the early progress of a new executive regarding the aforementioned areas: initiatives, flexibility and interpersonal learning. This ensures the firm doesn't endure a costly leadership mismatch any longer than it must. On the flip side, such reporting will assist a well-matched executive in forming the desired habits during onboarding, and the firm can then conduct a performance evaluation at six months to gauge the executive's tangible impact on the operation.

What's the best way to introduce a new executive to the majority of the workforce (series of small meetings, company-wide meeting or some other format)? Let us know what you think by commenting below.

Rob Carey is an NCMM contributor and a features writer who has focused on the business-to-business niche since 1992. He spent his first 15 years at Nielsen Business Media, rising from editorial intern to editorial director. Since then, he has been the principal of New York–based Meetings & Hospitality Insight, working with large hospitality brands in addition to various media outlets. Circle him on Google+.