WORKBOOK
The Path to Corporate
Leadership
LESSON 1: COURSE INTRODUCTION
We all have the desire to be successful in our profession. We often spend more hours
at work than we do at home, and more time with our colleagues than our family. Our
profession can become our focus and even our identify. Yet sometimes reaching our
career goals can be difficult, or even confusing.
Ask yourself... are you getting everything you want professionally? Are you developing
at the rate you should?
Investing in your career development makes sense. You have the ambition and the
desire to grow your career...to greater heights...and faster. Perhaps you are interested
in changing tracks, or looking for that first executive promotion. Or you want to scale to
a more senior leadership position in your company, with more responsibility. Perhaps
you feel stuck, or things just aren’t progressing at the speed you expect.
You can change that. You can accelerate your career trajectory, and reach your
professional aspirations. Let’s get started with some simple questions:
What are my internal motivations that drive my career ambition? What keeps me going day
to day, and year to year?
What am I trying to accomplish in my career? What are my goals and aspirations?
Is anything holding me back from achieving my objectives? If so, put a name to it, and start
working on it! (ex. skills or competencies, job experiences, personal, environment or
circumstances, other)
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Module 1
Personal Competencies
for Success
There are a few basic personal competencies required to be considered for higher level
leadership roles. Before we dive in, let's define the term "competencies." These are not
job specific skills, nor courses that you take in school. Executive competencies are
behaviors that you demonstrate through the course of your working life that impact
the way your colleagues and employers view your capability to take on bigger roles.
Although everyone has natural strengths and weaknesses, you aren’t necessarily born
with these competencies. You can improve and adapt over time, and in fact, its critical
that you’re able to demonstrate that.
LESSON 2: DEALING WITH AMBIGUITY
The higher you progress in an organization, the higher the expectations that you will be
completely autonomous in your role. You should be able to figure out the challenges of
your business, and how to solve them, without guidance. This means you will need to
be comfortable with ambiguity; developing the ability to find resources, talk to the right
people, conduct the necessary analysis, and execute the action plan. Don’t just answer
the questions. Find answers to the questions that haven’t yet been asked. If you are not
able to do that consistently in your current role, why would the company trust you with
even more responsibility? Consider your comfort level with ambiguous business
environments, and how you can bolster the capability in your current role.
How do I rate myself on dealing with ambiguity?
1
2
I prefer to receive
exact instruction.
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
I don't like to be
told what to do or
how to do it.
What was the last project/assignment I completed with very little structure or guidance? How
did I feel? What was the outcome?
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What challenges or opportunities do I see in my business that have not been fully identified,
resolved, or exploited?
How can I bring that issue to the forefront, along with potential solutions?
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LESSON 3: COMMAND SKILLS
Command Skills represent your ability to project confidence. Your willingness to be the
center of attention when necessary. Your ability to compel people to follow your
guidance, whether their job requires them to or not. It’s often a difficult concept for
people to grasp, but most likely, you know it when you see it. Sometimes, it’s referred
to as “executive presence”, and can often be the deciding factor as to whether you
receive that senior promotion. To be a leader, people need to be willing to follow. Your
command skills will make the difference.
What are the characteristics of people I respect and listen to in my company/life?
How do I feel when I am the center of attention?
What personal strengths can I leverage to enhance the way people view me as a leader?
What is ONE opportunity I have in my role to demonstrate command skills?
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LESSON 4: COMMUNICATIONS
No skill impacts the perception that colleagues have of you more than the way you
communicate. Communication is the only window that we have into the way someone
thinks, their attitudes, or how much they know. Of course, the topic of personal
communication is extraordinarily broad. For our purposes, let’s stay focused on how to
communicate with (and around) company executives, so as to leave the best possible
impression about yourself, your capabilities, and your potential. Assess yourself as a
communicator, and determine how you might improve.
Key Considerations
Keep it brief and simple, no matter what.
Tell stories. Don’t just bury the audience in data.
Overprepare, anticipating reactions and questions.
Be aware of your body language. Others are watching.
Inject personality. Be natural.
How do colleagues view me as a communicator?
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Never talks
9
10
Never shuts up
My emails are typically?
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Short and sweet
9
10
War and Peace
During my presentations, the audience is (check one):
Riveted/Engaged
Half-Asleep
Confused/Combative
My body language in the office could be described as (check all that apply):
Frantic
Friendly
Tired
Bored
Confident
Stressed
Enthusiastic
What is ONE key change I could make to improve my executive communications?
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LESSON 5: STRATEGIC ACUMEN
When you are leading a large organization, or a company for that matter, you must
deliver current results. But as importantly, you must also ensure the business is set up
to succeed over the long-term. A period of years, not quarters. Your ability to navigate
this challenge, and direct your energy and efforts primarily to that end, is what is called
strategic acumen. A successful executive understands the context of the industry, the
competitive dynamic, evolving customer requirements, and the company’s own
capabilities and uses this knowledge to lead the company into the future.
What are the strategic threats in my business?
How does my role relate to these threats? What could I do, within reason, to improve the
potential outcome?
What projects exist in my area that might allow me to develop or demonstrate my strategic
acumen?
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Module 2
Career Management
LESSON 6: CHOOSING THE RIGHT ROLES
Choosing the right role, at the right time, for the right reason is maybe the most
important factor in how fast you can grow your career. People often agonize over these
decisions, and rightfully so. The wrong choice can literally set you back years. The right
decision can provide an inflection point that accelerates your progression. Sometimes
there is a little luck involved, but there are several critical considerations that can help
create your own luck... good or bad.
Key Considerations
Have a specific career objective in mind (a role, a title, a responsibility), even if it
changes over time.
Understand the most critical segments of your company’s business (high margin,
high growth, strategic segment, etc.).
Identify specific roles that are interesting to you, and make you interesting to
others
Don’t proactively rule yourself out of important jobs the company may want you
to perform. Maintain the perception you are willing to “do what it takes."
When you consider new opportunities, try not to change too many variables at
one time.
Don’t take a new role solely because of a specific boss or personal relationship.
Which area(s) of my company is MOST critical to its financial and long-term success?
Which types of roles would deepen my understanding of the business, make me more
marketable, or show a track record of producing senior leaders?
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LESSON 7: BUILDING THE RIGHT RELATIONSHIPS
Relationships you build in the company are critical as you move from one level of
leadership to the next. You need people that will coach you, advocate for you, pull you
into new roles, and help you get projects done. Or people who will simply say positive
things in the background when you’re not even around. Every leader needs a support
system across the organization, both formal and informal. Being a brilliant lone wolf
may work in certain professions, but not in a corporate environment. Spend time
cultivating these relationships and build your network over time, so that you have allies
helping you accomplish both your business goals, and your personal goals.
Key Considerations
Try to find a personal champion that really knows you, and is willing to help.
Prioritize quality over quantity when it comes to building your network of
supporters.
Look for opportunities outside of the workplace to deepen relationships with
colleagues.
Understand the “informal” corporate network, and how to utilize it to your
advantage.
Name 1 person (at least one level above )in the company who is my unquestionable
advocate.
Identify 2-3 other company leaders who could serve to champion my career.
What are some appropriate opportunities outside of the office, for me to form closer
relationships with potential key career influencers?
Describe one situation, where the informal company network either helped or hurt my (or
someone else’s) career.
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LESSON 8: THE RIGHT TEAM
To be your most successful self as a leader, you are going to need the BEST people on
your team. No matter how talented or knowledgeable you are, having a team full of “B
players” will diminish your business and personal results. When you have a team of
tens, hundreds, or even thousands of employees, you can’t oversee everyone’s work.
You are completely dependent on those team members to deliver a result. If you have
great people, you’ll get a great outcome. If you have modestly talented people, you’ll
get a modest result and your career will stall. Hiring great people, and letting go of bad
ones, is obvious yet rare. It takes courage, conviction, and the willingness to be
consistently uncomfortable. The majority of managers are willing to accept status quo,
which isn’t fair to your company, your team, or to your career.
Key Considerations
Focus primarily on whether a team member is the BEST person for the role.
Take action on underperformers immediately. Waiting will hurt them AND you.
Free your team to do their job. Don’t try to micro-manage.
Who was the worst hire I ever made? What did I learn?
Think of a colleague or employee in my business who is solidly mediocre. Why are they still in
the role? What rationalizations have been made?
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LESSON 9: MAKING YOUR MARK
You need to be great at what you do. But if you are toiling in obscurity as far as the rest
of the organization, or the senior leadership team, is concerned...then you are not
going to achieve your higher career aspirations. To make it through the gauntlet of
promotion cycles during your journey, you are going to need a personal brand that
speaks for you. That brand will include big “moments” in time that people remember,
and that create positive associations in their mind. It’s the same in every field. In a
political election, maybe a debate comment sparks news coverage, creates momentum,
and leads to victory. In sports, a players makes an incredible play at a crucial moment
that makes every highlight, and MVP award voters remember that months later. In
business, there are similar instances and opportunities. For us, maybe its on a smaller
scale and not as public, but equally important in our careers. These moments help us
stand out from the crowd and make people take notice. Occasionally these moments
come to us. More often, we need to manufacture the moment. Make sure you are
remembered by the people that ultimately might hold power over your career.
Key Considerations
Be willing to take educated business risks.
Push your ideas. Don’t let them get killed by corporate antibodies.
Find a crowd, and get in front of them.
Always be fully prepared for your moment.
Package your work in a way that makes it more noticeable or impressive.
What ideas, even if risky, could I pursue that have potential for outsized impact on the
business?
What opportunities exist for me to be seen by large audiences in/around my company?
Name one opportunity for me to re-package my existing deliverables, in order to get more
credit for the great work I am doing.
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LESSON 10: MANAGING AND MEASURING THE BUSINESS
The business world has no shortage of metrics. Many of us see an almost unlimited
number of measurements and reports in our everyday work lives. The metrics are our
scoreboard and the final score drives our compensation, our promotions, and
ultimately...our success or failure. Yet, as leaders we don’t always pay close attention to
what we are measuring, and why. Or whether those metrics are really driving the
behaviors and outcomes that we want.
Maybe we are in a role that doesn’t even lend itself to easy scorekeeping. Maybe we
simply utilize the same measurement system as our predecessor because it “must be
right.” To maximize your effectiveness in a leadership role...no matter what that role
may be...you need to develop a rigorous management system that drives the behaviors
and outcomes that you need. Without that, you are captaining a rudderless ship. You
may work incredibly hard, but without having full control, or perhaps not even knowing
your destination...you are unlikely to survive.
Key Considerations
Measure what is important and get consistent visibility to those items.
Ensure your team’s compensation is tied to the outcomes you need.
Create a management system that is predictable, repeatable, and automated.
Try to minimize the organizational effort required to track and communicate key
business indicators.
Emphasize a culture of commitment and accountability.
Create a method to drive your short-term and long-term objectives
simultaneously.
What are the key metrics that will determine the success (or not) of my business? Do I have
consistent and accurate visibility to these metrics?
Do I have a rigorous, predictable management system that helps drive my behavior, or that
of my team? If so, briefly describe it. If not, why not?
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How do I hold team members and colleagues accountable for performance?
How much time do I spend simply producing, tracking, and communicating business
metrics? How much time does my team spend?
Do I have a reliable way to track progress toward long-term goals? How does this process
differ from my near-term management system?
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LESSON 11: OFFICE POLITICS
The idea of Office Politics has become a cliché. We’ve heard it referenced long before
we ever start our first job, even if we don’t quite understand the concept and how it will
effect us. We assume it’s a bad thing, because we always hear it spoken about in a
negative context, usually as some sort of grievance. You might have heard it from your
parents, or your friends, or your coworkers. Statements like:
“I hated that job, because the politics in that company were unbearable”, or “The only
reason I got laid off was politics."
Anytime a group of human beings gets together with any sort of reward on the line
(money, power, popularity), there are going to be political behaviors. While it doesn’t
have to be negative, you do have to play the game if you want to maximize your
potential in a corporate environment.
Key Considerations
Office politics is unavoidable, but it doesn’t have to be bad.
Balance your needs with your company’s needs.
Identify the key players. Who has the power in your organization?
Find colleagues you can trust, and lean on them.
Anticipate potential resistance to your actions, and gain support beforehand.
Who are my confidants at the company?
Name three people who have formal or informal power in my organization. Describe my
relationships with them.
Do I have an upcoming project that needs support? Identify ONE way I can get buy-in early,
and from whom?
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LESSON 12: REALLY BAD DECISIONS
Almost every week, you can find a news story about a corporate executive that got fired
for bad behavior. In a recent study of CEO turnover in the largest 2500 Global public
companies, 39% of departed top executives were let go due to unethical behavior. That
doesn’t include the ones that were dismissed for creating or maintaining a “toxic”
culture. The list of companies involved reads like a “who’s who” and touches every
industry. And for every CEO-related headline, there are dozens of other circumstances
involving lower-level leaders or smaller companies that never make the news scroll.
Otherwise normal, hard-working people that make bad mistakes. The stellar career of a
well-respected employee can disappear in the blink of an eye. If you think it only
happens in the news, or at some other company, or to somebody else...think again.
Identify one colleague whose career was impacted by a really bad decision. How could it
have been avoided?
Name one of my bad behaviors/decisions that could negatively impact my career. Now, keep
it to myself, and stop doing it!
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Module 3
Common Issues
and Questions
LESSON 13: TRANSPARENT FEEDBACK
One of the hardest things to do, no matter how many times you do it, is to give
someone critical feedback. We are told that “feedback is a gift.” We are taught how
critical feedback is to our development, and the development of our team. We are
given tools and timelines and mandates to provide feedback. And still...it stinks. It’s a
little uncomfortable at times to tell someone they are doing a nice job...and its REAL
uncomfortable to tell them they are doing a poor job. You would be shocked at how
many managers are bad at this...at all levels. Even the leaders that come across forceful
and candid in public, turn into a cowardly mess when its time to deliver a tough
message to an employee one on one.
Key Considerations
Your team members deserve the whole truth, no matter how uncomfortable.
Look for opportunities to provide feedback, both positive and constructive.
Be timely with your feedback. Don’t wait until review time.
Lack of “visibility” is never THE problem for an employee.
Have I neglected to provide completely transparent feedback to a team member? What is
stopping me, and how can I change that?
Identify a bit of meaningful, positive feedback that I could provide to a team member.
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LESSON 14: FINDING YOUR STYLE
We’ve seen examples of leaders for our entire life and we’ve been taught, either directly
or indirectly, what it takes to be a good leader. Somehow over the years, our culture
has put on a pedestal the idea of hyper-masculine, tough, charismatic leaders who are
in total control and get what they want by whatever means necessary. They project
confidence at all times, never have doubt, and are resistant to input.
Is that always the right answer? Do we have to conform to that expectation in order to
be successful as a corporate leader? The answer is NO, of course not. In reality there
are great leaders of every type and persuasion. Yes, successful leaders are probably
smart, determined, able to make decisions quickly. But they also may be humble, quiet,
and considerate. There is no one answer. The only RIGHT answer is that you need to
find a style that is right for you...that is authentic...and doesn’t require you to adopt a
different persona when you walk into the office every day.
Identify a leader (inside or outside of my company), whose style I appreciate, and most
represents my own. What are the aspects I like?
Have I ever “acted” differently from how I felt, or in a way that did not feel natural? What was
the situation and the outcome?
How might I behave differently to be more genuine?
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LESSON 15: LEADING WITHOUT EXPERTISE
As you begin to grow in your career, take on more responsibility over time, or even
change companies...inevitably you’ll find yourself in a role where you are not the
preeminent subject matter expert. You will have colleagues that have been there for
years, and can talk circles around you. You will have team members that have deep
expertise, and may even believe initially that they could do the job better than you. You
might find yourself in front of customers that are asking questions, and you have no
answers.
You start to wonder why you took the role. You might feel like a fraud. But you have
been put into this position for a reason. Maybe your communication skills, or your
operational background. Maybe your creativity or your strategic thought process. The
trick is to figure out how to leverage what you do know to improve the business, not
worry about what you don’t know.
Key Considerations
Show confidence as you enter a new role, being vocal and visible without being a
know-it-all.
Use questions as a tool to learn more, while also influencing the team.
Meet with team members of all job types and levels, to gain deeper
understanding of business.
Use customer meetings as a resource to learn and influence the business.
Invest in relationships with people who can help you get up to speed fast.
Be decisive and don’t paralyze your team due to your uncertainty.
Am I (or do I plan to be) in a role in which I am not a subject matter expert? What knowledge
am I lacking?
List 3 people who are willing and able to educate me.
What decisions can I make NOW that will inspire confidence in my ability to lead?
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LESSON 16: WORK/LIFE BALANCE
One of the biggest myths associated with becoming a senior executive, is that you are
in effect, giving up your personal life. An idea that the company will drain all of your
energy and attention, in return for a bigger paycheck and a nice bonus. In fact, there is
some truth to that. If you are responsible for a multi-million, or multi-billion dollar
business, and hundreds or thousands of people’s livelihoods, there are certain
expectations that come along with it. You have to be present and available to a certain
extent. And you have to set an example in terms of your work ethic and work quality,
for the rest of the organization to follow. Your flexibility decreases, as the demands on
your time increase. There is a constant flow of people or situations that need attention,
and you don’t have the option if ignoring it. But, the good news is that with careful
planning, solid time management, a little will power, and the selective ability to say
no...you can have the life outside of work that you want.
Key Considerations
Remember, balance will make you better at work, not worse.
Establish boundaries, and don’t compromise.
Use your work calendar as a help, not hindrance, in your fight for balance.
Ensure your administrative assistance understands your needs.
Travel when you need to...not when others want you to travel.
Is anything in my personal life being adversely affected by my work schedule? How could I
change that?
What upcoming business trips could I avoid that would have minimal impact on my business
or relationships?
Book 2 hours per week on my work calendar for MYSELF. What am I going to do?
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LESSON 17: HOW EXECUTIVE PROMOTIONS GET MADE
You feel like you’ve done everything to get that big promotion. You’ve worked hard at
developing yourself. You have taken on critical and challenging roles and done well.
You’ve built a solid network of supporters across different levels of the organization.
You have a few impressive accomplishments to hang your hat on. You’ve been noticed.
Now what? Sit around and wait, and hope for the best? Is there anything else you can
do personally to get yourself over the hump?
You need to understand how the promotion process typically works in most
companies. When it happens, who’s involved, how the final decisions are made, and
what outside influences can impact the results.
Key Considerations
Express your ambition to those who matter.
Become aware of potential leadership programs and development opportunities
in your company.
Identify the process, timing, and key players associated with executive
promotions.
Be patient and persistent.
Name the company leaders who are knowledgeable about my career aspirations.
Are there others that need to be?
What programs, forums, or opportunities (formal or informal) exist that can help me
develop and/or ensure that I am included when the promotion process kicks off?
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WRAP-UP
Nobody’s path to corporate leadership is exactly the same. It takes hard work, skill,
support, and some good luck along the way. But there are many commonalities
amongst those who find success. A foundation that most share:
A development of personal competencies that lend themselves to effective
leadership.
Solid and thoughtful decisions when it comes to career management.
The patience and humility to learn along the way, and persevere during tougher
times.
There’s no doubt that you possess all these capabilities. And hopefully after taking the
course, you are armed with a bit more knowledge to improve your chances of fulfilling
your career goals. Keep improving and keep at it. Your big break might be closer than
you think!
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