What new aged and social care organisation leaders really walk into – and why transparency at the start makes all the difference.
As the weather cools and autumn sets in, I’m already thinking about the ocean swims that lie ahead each winter. Every time I hit that first wall of 16-degree water, the shock knocks the breath out of me. It’s hard at first, but once I get going and find my stroke it feels amazing.
It’s the same feeling many of the senior leaders we place get when they start their new roles. Because no matter how thorough the briefing, how detailed the job description or how experienced the candidate, there’s often a moment when the cold water hits. But the issue isn’t always the water temperature. It’s that nobody warned them how cold it was going to be.
What 40% of new leaders wish they’d been told
Over two decades of executive recruitment, I’ve seen a consistent pattern emerge. When we place a senior leader into a new role – a CEO, CFO or COO – around 40% of them will tell us within six months that the role is not what they thought it would be.
No matter how good we are at taking an in-depth job brief when we get engaged to recruit a leadership role, there will always be hidden surprises.
In most cases it’s not deliberate. Boards only know as much as the information that flows up to them – and when a longstanding leader has been quietly coasting towards the exit, a lot stops flowing. Add the pace of change currently sweeping the care sector – the new Aged Care Act, sweeping systems overhauls, new compliance requirements – and there’s often a significant amount of work needed to get things moving in the right direction again.
Here are three things we see catching new leaders off guard, time and time again.
- The legacy
Sometimes, the previous leader didn’t just leave a vacancy, they were mentally checked out anywhere from 12 to 24 months before they resigned. Decisions got deferred, standards slipped. By the time a new leader walks in, there’s a significant amount of mopping up to do.
- A team that hasn’t really been led
New leaders regularly inherit teams operating without clear KPIs, defined accountabilities or real direction. Building those foundations from scratch, while also being expected to perform at a senior level from day one, is an enormous undertaking that’s not always acknowledged upfront.
- A board that’s finding its feet
Voluntary, non-executive Director boards in small to medium providers frequently go through their own period of transition – high turnover, new Directors, not enough Directors, shifting dynamics – at the same time as a new leader is onboarding. Rather than a stable governance structure to lean on, a new executive can find themselves navigating a board that is storming and forming right alongside them.
You can’t warm the water. But you can help your new leaders prepare for it.
Some of the best leaders we ‘ve placed have walked into exactly these situations and come out the other side having built something remarkable. Success starts with organisations doing the honest, sometimes uncomfortable, work of understanding what they really need – and communicating that clearly.
Once you define what a successful new leader will achieve, you can work back from that to pinpoint the type of person you’re looking for. The definition of success will depend on the role and where the organisation is at in its lifecycle, but often includes one or more of the following.
New systems that are bedded down and working. Whether it’s a new care management platform, a financial system or a compliance framework, technology that’s ticked off a list but not embedded into daily practice isn’t success. Technology that’s ensuring high quality care and compliance is.
A team that knows its accountabilities. Clear KPIs, defined roles, regular performance conversations and a shared understanding of what the organisation is working towards. Joy and energy in a team are leading indicators of retention, performance and care quality. When people feel led, supported and purposeful, it shows.
A board that’s engaged and well-informed. Good governance doesn’t happen by accident. The leaders who are most successful are the ones who involve their leadership team at the board level – and bring the board the real picture, not just the polished version.
These outcomes are much more likely when the right leader steps into a role with full knowledge of what they’re taking on.
This is why we believe a truly comprehensive job brief isn’t a nice-to-have – it’s the foundation of a successful placement. When we engage with a client, we don’t do a ten-minute phone call. We visit the site. We meet the key decision makers. We talk about the team dynamics, the finances, the strategy – and the uncomfortable stuff too.
Because the leaders who thrive in these roles aren’t the ones who are afraid of a bit of cold water. They’re the ones who know what they are jumping into – and take the plunge anyway.
At P.J. Recruitment & Executive Search, we specialise in placing visionary leaders into aged care and social care organisations at every stage of their journey. If you’re navigating a leadership transition and want to get it right, we’d love to talk.