McKinsey Classics | April 2023

Getting executive transitions right

As more corners of the corporate world increasingly become “table stakes,” executive transitions are about the biggest bet a company can make. Indeed, organizations whose leaders have successful transitions not only meet performance goals but also see less attrition, experience greater discretionary effort, and generate higher profits than average. Yet despite the high stakes, less than a third of global leaders feel fully supported in their new roles, and even more feel unprepared. It’s no wonder that nearly half of executives are considered to be failing within the first two years of stepping into their new roles.

To help ensure a successful transition, leaders can take stock and then take action across five key dimensions: the business function, the corporate culture, their teams, their stakeholders, and, of course, themselves. And while timing is important, it’s not everything: executives can forgo the famed “100 day” mantra—the evidence just doesn’t support it. As senior partner Scott Keller’s classic 2018 article “Successfully transitioning to new leadership roles” shows, focusing on these five areas, without a firm timeline, will do more to help make the transition a success.

— Drew Holzfeind, editor, Chicago