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Leadership Continuity at MetLife
Nathan Bennett
Mar 23, 2011 1:45 PM
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MetLife just announced that Steven Kandrarian, the company's chief investment officer, would replace C. Robert Henrikson as CEO later this spring.  Henrikson is fast approaching the company's mandatory retirement age of 65.  Commentary on the move has been positive.  Kandrarian has been credited for his role in helping to steer the company through the recent financial crises.  MetLife, the biggest life insurer in the US, enjoys a sterling reputation because of its financial strength.  In addition to his work in solidifying that reputation, Kandrarian has played a central role in strategic decisions at the company, including its efforts to expand globally.

Choosing Kandrarian came at the end of what was reportedly a yearlong succession planning process by the company's board.  During that process, both internal and external candidates were considered.  Boards are always in an enviable position when such a process produces more than one indisputably excellent candidate.  It is especially true in this case because Kandrarian, now 59, is himself guaranteed to be a short-term CEO.  Sure, he could serve what the numbers tell us is an average length term as CEO.  Unfortunately, something average is not necessarily desirable.  Kandrarian has only a bit of runway left; the board should not file their short list of candidates somewhere too far away.  Given the way they appear to have approached this easily anticipated need for a new CEO it won't be long at all before the board has to gear up to find Kandrarian's replacement.

The circumstances at MetLife are not unusual and they point to an opportunity where current practice can be improved.  As described in the press, MetLife's board has approached succession planning in a "batch process" fashion.  Each time a CEO is needed, a process is cranked up to produce one – just in time.  A better practice is to approach succession planning as a "continuous process" – in such an approach succession it isn't an event, it is a discipline boards develop and practice all the time.  This continuous process framework means that candidates – both internal and external – are constantly being appraised against what the board sees as the company's most significant upcoming challenges.

When a board is successful in developing the habits that support this approach to succession planning its ability to fill the CEO position, and those that provide logical stepping stones to that position, is greatly enhanced.  Consequently, the board has provided assurance that it has met its most critical responsibility – leadership continuity.

 

Should Your Facebook Friends Ever Meet Your LinkedIn Connections ?
Nathan Bennett and Stephen A. Miles
Mar 21, 2011 2:15 PM
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Marshall Goldsmith, executive coach and author, recently published a book titled What Got You Here Won't Get You There.  Goldsmith's premise is simple – the very characteristics that you believe got you to where you are today may indeed be the things that are now holding you back.  Much of his book focuses on helping us recognize and correct 20 bad habits that stifle our striving for success – from the need to show people how smart we are to the compulsion to add our two cents to every discussion.

In our work with executives on developing their career strategies, we have found that just as bad habits can prevent us from maximizing professional success there are instances when people in our lives place a false ceiling on our advancement.  In other words, poorly constructed personal and professional networks can be a weakness.  For us, the key is to recognize when who got you here won't get you there.

When it comes to personal and professional networks there are three important career risks individuals have to manage.  First, personal networks contain the risk associate with your image as co-created online by you and your friends.  When your personal network is not well managed it can hold you back as you pursue your career goals.  Second, risk in professional networks comes from a failure to invest in connections that could continue to provide you the mentoring and access you require as you advance in your career.  As you experience success it likely becomes the case that reaching the next position requires support from new professional contacts.  Failing to refresh your professional network may have the effect of your career ladder being pulled up so the next rung is out of reach.  Finally, career risk also arises when you fail to properly maintain the boundaries between personal and professional networks.  Rarely does it make sense for your Facebook friends to meet your LinkedIn connections.And when interacting online it always makes sense for you to remember which network is being built for what purpose.

The Career-Limiting Potential of Personal Networks: Never before have your career aspirations been more at the mercy of your friends' judgment.  The obvious and serious implications of this are, first, that you need to understand when your social network puts your career goals at risk, and, second, that you need to realize that social networking tools have blurred the lines between friendship networks and professional networks in a way that has not previously existed.

We see two challenges here.  First, it's essential that you recognize how personal relationships can create professional limitations of their own making.  We are all familiar with recent sports and entertainment examples of the career-limiting consequences individuals face when they fail to recognize the way their personal network influences their careers.  NFL quarterback Michael Vick found himself ensnared in a dog-fighting ring with friends – many of whom he had known since junior high school.  He spent nearly two years in prison – and of course away from his career – as a result of his inability to make good choices about his personal network.  Actress Lindsay Lohan has found it hard to surround herself with people who would be career enhancing; for years she has been involved in an ongoing saga of trouble with alcohol and drugs.  During one of her many efforts to pull out of her career nosedive she acknowledged that she had been associating with the wrong people.  So it seems that for her, too, the personal network has created a career limitation.

Why Keeping Facebook and LinkedIn Separate is a Smart Career Move: One of the most common career mistakes people make today is failing to manage the boundaries between their friendship networks and their career networks.  In some ways, this is a new problem.  Before the ubiquity of social networking websites it was fairly easy to keep personal and professional relationships separate.  Professional relationships took place at work or at company sponsored events.  Personal relationships took place in the neighborhood, at social events, and the like.  The Internet has removed the time and geography based boundaries that facilitated our efforts to keep these networks distinct.  By now, it seems everyone has a story of how they wrestled with the dilemma of responding to an awkward Facebook friend request from a co-worker or boss.  On the other side of the coin, treating professional networks such as LinkedIn as an overly personal stage is also a mistake.  One executive shared with us a post from one of his connections: "Went to Costco, checked out their deals on pre-lit Christmas trees."  This sort of post is an example of not putting your best professional foot forward.

There is a reason for separate Facebook and LinkedIn accounts: what you share on one is often completely inappropriate to share on the other.  Trying to professionally "network" through your Facebook connections is an easy way to alienate your "friends," who may not have signed up to be a party to your professional advancement.  In certain situations, using Facebook to announce job market availability or potential work opportunities may be helpful – but only if using a light touch. You have to honor the spirit of the Facebook "social utility," as the site calls itself.  Bringing too much of a professional "ask" to this context might be seen as a complete turn-off, and is often ineffective.  And of course you should expect to find potential employers, coworkers, and other professional peers curious about the pictures, anecdotes, and conversations you share with personal friends.

Here's To Better Network Management: Consider making two resolutions to better manage your personal and professional networks.  Our first recommendation is that you honestly assess and then address the professional risk you carry in your personal network.  We don't intend to claim you have to let old friends go like discards at the side of the road.  Instead, we want to emphasize that it would be a mistake to place long-standing friends from your past in roles that should be played by individuals who are connected in the way necessary to help you get what you want from your career.  Would you, for instance, put all – or any – of your friends from childhood on your resume as professional references?

Rather than letting happenstance rule, pledge this year to be deliberate and strategic about the wall you build to separate your personal network from your professional network.  How permeable that wall is should be decided thoughtfully, too.  It isn't the case that your Facebook friends need to meet your LinkedIn connections.  Nor should you allow yourself to mistake one for the other when it comes to the nature of what you share with each.

Our second recommendation is for you to become strategic about your efforts to refresh your professional network.  Over the course of your career, the people who have the ability to influence your future success change.  As one of the first author's students noted, "I realize now that the people who wrote the letters of recommendation that got me in to graduate school aren't going to be able to help me switch fields when I graduate."  Each new position changes the cast of characters who can help you learn the new job – and can help you prepare for the next.  If you don't refresh your network by building new relationships, you run the risk of stalling in your career.  If you continue to rely on the people who got you where you are, you run the risk of failing to get where you want to go.  Our advice is simple – analyze these players in your network on the basis of how instrumental they can be as you work to demonstrate you deserve your next career opportunity.

By effectively addressing each of these network challenges you will avoid both the situations where personal networks limit your potential and those where your professional network lacks the influence necessary to support your next career move.  Make a strategic review of the degree to which your personal and professional networks are positioning you to achieve your career goals – and then take action!  In the meantime, think about the lessons that you can learn from watching such a public career game. Are you aware of how others define excellent performance in your role?  Are you responsive to the other players in your career game and are you building a reputation that encourages others to want you as a part of their career game?  Are you properly balancing short and long-term career goals as you make each move?

 

Charlie Sheen's Career Game
Nate Bennett
Mar 1, 2011 1:45 PM
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Charlie Sheen is providing a target-rich environment when it comes to consideration of career moves. Celebrity careers make for fascinating case studies – brilliant ascensions, rapid falls from grace, and restorations of reputations happen and are publicly chronicled.

By now, it would have been hard to escape the coverage of Sheen's antics and the decision by CBS and Warner Brothers to cancel production of the remaining episodes of the hit show.

Coverage of the events has focused on two levels – one rather clear and the other still much more speculative. In terms of the former, it is clear that Sheen has no respect for the show's creator, Chuck Lorre. Sheen has called him names and even challenged him to a fight. There is no misunderstanding here – Sheen has been aggressive at seeking the most public venues to continue his diatribe about Lorre, Warner Brothers, and CBS.

The more speculative matter concerns the cause for Sheen's rants. Theories abound – drug abuse and bipolar disorder appear to be the favorites. These are serious problems and people close to Sheen have a responsibility to intervene – both for Sheen's sake and that of his young children.

In "Your Career Game" we propose that it's useful to think of the game metaphor in considering career decisions. Like games, careers have goals, moves, interdependent players, and rules – among other characteristics. Deeply understanding these game elements is useful in winning in both games and careers. Thinking about Sheen's recent moves in his career game raises some important issues.

First, does Sheen understand the criteria others hold for performance in his job? Sheen's basic case is that in spite of any personal choices he made during the show's production he "hit the mark" with every line. Evidence suggests he is correct – the show is wildly popular and his character is at the center of every storyline. Sheen defines his job as hitting the mark – if the lines are well delivered then his job is done. What Sheen has failed to do is to understand how others define a job well done. Hitting the mark while creating piles of collateral damage in the process isn't what his production company is looking for.

Second, does Sheen understand how his career moves impact other players? Does he understand how other players will view him based on those moves? Clearly he does not. He precipitated the shut down of a show and won't take any responsibility for it. He cost people jobs. Sheen either does not understand how his moves impact other players – or doesn't care. In the short run, Sheen may have enough money and distractions or want a break badly enough to not worry about how others view the way he plays the career game. In terms of projects that might take place in the future, though, he is building a reputation that will change the way other players approach opportunities to play with him.

Contrast Sheen's moves, for example, to those recently of Tonight Show host Jay Leno. When Leno decided last year to honor the writer's strike he himself paid his employees during the hiatus his decision created. That's a career move that will make people want to play with you - and that makes others want to see you win.

Finally, this distinction between the near and far term warrants a bit more consideration. Sheen is making career decisions that must feel good to him today – simple hedonism is a reasonable motive to explain his actions as he appears on morning news show after morning news show. The question he – like all hedonists – may face one day is whether or not the long-term cost of this short-term good feeling was worth it. He is, in effect, raising the "cost" people will assign to having him in a game. Sure, the lines may hit the mark, but who knows what else Sheen may be interesting in hitting!

As Sheen's drama unfolds, we may learn more about what has been driving this erratic behavior. And we will see how it plays out in his career game. Perhaps these are the last moves in a career game that ends in a crash. Perhaps they are the first moves in what becomes a great redemption story. Hollywood loves them.

In the meantime, think about the lessons that you can learn from watching such a public career game. Are you aware of how others define excellent performance in your role? Are you responsive to the other players in your career game and are you building a reputation that encourages others to want you as a part of their career game? Are you properly balancing short and long-term career goals as you make each move?

 

Are You Ready for Your Spotlight?
Nate Bennett
Jun 13, 2010 4:45 PM

Can BP CEO Tony Hayward help himself?  For that matter, can anyone on his top management team help themselves?  Since shortly after the April 20th accident on the Deepwater Horizon oil platform it appears that BP executives have made headlines more for their unfortunate comments than for their decisive actions.  Hayward himself has sought pity for the ordeal he has been enduring since the spill by lamenting on just how badly he would like his "life back."  He has tried to frame the ongoing oil spill that weeks long ago became the world's worst natural disaster as a drop in the bucket, relative to the size of the ocean.  Randy Prescott, one of Hayward's lieutenants, helpfully pointed out to exasperated restaurant owners along the Gulf Coast that there were lots of other places, besides the waters off Louisiana and Mississippi, to get shrimp.

It might be the happiest executives as the result of all this are those at Toyota – whose communication challenges over product failures and model recalls have been forgotten by many and now seem minor by comparison to those few who do remember.

What is remarkable about all this is that these gaffes have taken in a period when one would reasonably conclude that media training is a de rigueur occurrence for executives long before they get to the c-suite.  

From a career game perspective, Hayward's series of mis-steps are a great example of the sort of move we call a blunder.  Disasters like this allow great leaders to shine – or they reveal mediocre leaders for what they are.  Calls for Hayward's dismissal are heard widely and one would have to imagine it will be difficult for him to recover his career in any meaningful way.  Fortunately for him, he had the foresight to sell a large stake in BP before the Deepwater Horizon Accident.

For the rest of us, a lesson to take away is that you never know when the spotlight will find you.  As a result, you have to work to always be ready with vigilance and discipline.  And when the spotlight finds you because the company you lead has become synonymous with the most damaging environmental disaster of our time perhaps it makes sense to be ready with comments that convey concern for others, a commitment to accepting personally the responsibility everyone rightly associates with your position, and a desire to restore everyone's faith in your company's ability to operate as a responsible part of the business community – rather than comments that attempt to deflect blame and ask for pity – makes sense.

 

Good or Bad News for Millenials?
Nate Bennett & Steve Miles
Apr 21, 2010 6:45 PM

There was an interesting article in the Wall Street Journal recently. Reporter Jonnelle Marte described the fact that lean companies were increasingly leaning on younger, less experienced to do more, earlier in their careers. She rightly points out the benefits and risks these "opportunities" present.

Our view is consistent with hers – and with those of most of the experts she spoke to. But here are some additional thoughts that occur to us from the work we did in preparing "Your Career Game."

First, early in the career is a great time to take a big swing – there is plenty of time to recover if it goes wrong.

Second, there is no career accelerator like fixing something that is broken – particularly when it has proved difficult for others to correct.

Finally, many of the most successful executives we interviewed talked about the importance of taking on jobs for which they were "uniquely unqualified" – a phrase we have come to love. What it means is that the position is clearly a stretch for you – but there is also good reason to believe you can do it. You have the right background, the right support, and the right attitude. For us this is the key to leveraging the insights in Marte's article – savvy career game players understand better than weaker players when an opportunity truly is more than they can do.

As millenials experience these opportunities, we encourage them to use the career game framing we have developed so they can get at the real risk contained in each – and so they can find the one they are uniquely unqualified for – the one where, with the support of other players in their career game – they can find the kind of success that provides a reputational return throughout the remainder of their career.

 

Conan's Career Game
Nate Bennett & Stephen Miles
Wed, Apr 14, 2010 8:00 PM

The most talked about career move of the week belongs to late-night talk show host Conan O'Brien. TBS announced that O'Brien would debut his show on its network this fall, after its baseball post-season coverage concludes. Many were surprised by what they view as an odd move– as O'Brien himself noted: "In three months I've gone from network television to Twitter to performing live in theaters, and now I'm headed to basic cable. My plan is working perfectly."

The blogosphere has been filled with commentary. There is some surprise that Fox wasn't able to close a deal with O'Brien. But due to problems with local affiliates Fox couldn't guarantee a national audience. The E! on-line blog proclaims that O'Brien has let America down because he has effectively given up competing with "The Tonight Show" show on NBC, and in doing so "has likely doomed his countrymen to who knows how many more years of late-night rule by the unfunny one himself: Jay Leno." The Boston Herald is among those reporting the move shows the growing power of cable television.

Our take on the news is a bit different from each of the above perspectives because of our interest in understanding how different career moves are instrumental to the way individuals accomplish their career goals. We wonder if O'Brien's plan might actually be– to use his words– working perfectly. In our book, "Your Career Game," we discuss how understanding the timing of career moves has a tremendous impact on their effectiveness. For example, we encourage people to think carefully about how early career moves are made. Just as a change of a few degrees in the trajectory of a rocket's launch has a great impact on its flight, so too does a great early move have impact across a career. We also talk about things that pose risks to career success and suggest that people typically are poor at assessing what truly is a risky move. As a result, they may actually make decisions that put them at greater risk. Pursuing a career that is popular may seem safe– after all, if so many are becoming doctors, lawyers, or investment bankers it must be because of the great opportunity there. In fact, we contend it is riskier to follow the crowd– people who do so are effectively investing only to become a commodity.

Thinking about the timing of the move to cable television with regard to where O'Brien is in his career game makes it clear the move is safe and sound. O'Brien is not early in his career game. He has considerable experience early in his career as a comedy writer (Harvard Lampoon, Saturday Night Live, etc.) to go with the past fifteen or so years on network television. His skill is not a commodity. Even those who don't like his comedy would admit he is unique– from his pompadour to his wit.

Where someone early in a career game might be properly characterized as "buried" on cable TV, O'Brien will flourish there. TBS provides him access to his established audience– no doubt they will easily find and follow him to cable. TBS itself seems bent on establishing its brand as "quirky" and late night talk show hosts don't get much quirkier than O'Brien. The programming that precedes his show (comedy re-runs) will likely bring some new viewers on board. These viewers– younger and male– are likely to be converts to O'Brien's style– and they are viewers sought after by advertisers.

A move to Fox would have been quite different. Of particular importance was the network's inability to get local affiliates to give up their current, lucrative programming for something they didn't entirely trust in O'Brien's show. Late night talk shows with limited distribution generally have not posed any threat to established franchises like "The Tonight Show."

Some are saying that because of the move to cable O'Brien has a built-in excuse should his show flounder. We don't think he'll need it. He knows where he is in his career game, he understands risk, and he has made a smart move.

 

Making the Most Out of Mentors
Nate Bennett & Stephen Miles
Mon, Apr 5, 2010 5:25 PM

People are quick to understand that mentors matter, but fewer understand how to really get the most out of one.  Our contention is that just as with any other strategic resource, a key predictor of what will make one executive more successful than the next is the ability to leverage a mentor.  It isn't enough to collect mentors – you must be purposeful in how you select and deploy them!  Your ability to do this will have a dramatic impact on the trajectory of your career.

The first step in becoming more strategic in your efforts to make the most out of your mentor is to understand how what you need from one varies in some predictable ways over the course of your career.  For example, early in your career the best mentor is someone who can play Yoda to your Luke Skywalker.  At this stage, what you need more than anything is a sage advisor – someone who has seen, and understands, it all.  This individual might not be very highly placed in a company – in fact it would be difficult for someone early in their career to get access to someone near the top of the organizational chart.  They do likely have long tenure in the company.  They understand the politics and the people - and they understand how the organization really works.

As you move along in your career and absorb the lessons this first mentor offers what you need changes.  The second mentor you need to seek is a rising star.  This individual needs to be several steps above you on the organizational chart – they need to be far enough above you so that you won’t become a threat to them; but if they are too many levels above you it will be difficult for you to have access in order to make a case for their investment in your success.  This mentor is in a great position to help you learn what it takes to accelerate your career in the company and if you prove you merit their time you may be pulled along with them.

Finally, as you begin to operate as a highly placed executive the most important thing for you to find in a mentor is someone who is both willing and able to be persuasive as a truth-teller.  You need to find a mentor who isn’t taken in by you, who will keep you honest, and who is so legitimate that you can’t trick yourself in to dismissing their opinions of your thoughts and actions.  Such a mentor might not be available inside your company.  Someone outside can certainly serve in this role, but it will be important that they really understand your company and its industry in order for them to be, as necessary, a strong devil’s advocate.

Consider where you are in your career now.  Are you starting out?  Are you in a position where your feet are firmly underneath you so you are ready to climb the organizational chart?  Are you a more senior level executive who has trouble finding someone willing to challenge your thinking?  Based on your answer, do you have the right mentor?  How do you plan to act as a result?

 

 

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