From Senior Manager to Board Director: How to Manage the Transition Most Effectively

With over 125 years collective consulting experience, The McLane Group believe one of the biggest challenges faced by leaders in developmental terms, is making the leap from managing a brand or a small team to taking over an entire function or department.

When a Senior Manager takes on the role of Board Director, he/she has to learn to comment objectively on organisational issues; being a good marketer is simply not enough to be a great Director. The McLane Group have discovered that many FMCG/blue chip multi-national organisations do not equip their senior managers well for this transition and often make the mistake of thinking that being a naturally good leader is enough. Companies often send away a Senior Manager on a course but this can actually dip the individualís confidence as theyíll come back with half the equipment required to make that transition smooth and successful. The McLane Groupís Leaders in Transition programme addresses that gap and the need to equip our people better.

Dominic Turnbull, Managing Director at The McLane Group comments:
ìOne of the biggest steps a leader can take is from functional to board position. Organisations donít go far enough to equip their people for this transition, hence our development of the Leaders in Transition programme.î

Jim Keen Professor Antioch Business School - Independent Programme Evaluator:
ìThe first LIT was very well received by its participants, every one of whom indicated, at its conclusion, that it met or exceeded the expectations they brought to it. The LIT curriculum is multidimensional. It is my view that LITís greatest strength lies in bringing together three strong components of learning – leadership development, Action Learning on issues from the business and personal vitality - in a relatively seamless and reinforcing manner which creates a sense of whole experience developing through the week.î

The McLane Groupís Top 3 Tips on How to Handle the Transition from Senior Manager to Board Director
Understand the difference between managing tasks and leading people
Embrace the whole of the organisational and differentiate this from the functional issues
Manage yourself effectively and develop a deeper level of self-awareness; learn what to say, when to say it and to whom

The McLane Group – Company Background
Formed in 1996, The McLane Group is a consultancy specialising in people, transformation and breakthrough performance. The company works with leaders and teams in some of the worldís top organisations, delivering company-wide programmes and personalised executive coaching. They deliver and implement major changes in blue chip multi-nationals and have worked closely with ITV, Unilever plc – Worldwide, ICI – UK, Abbey National – UK, IBM – USA, Sweden & Italy, Black & Decker – UK, Quest International – Worldwide, Campbells Soups – Canada and Gerber Foods – USA. They are currently working closely with Unilever, IBM, Bakemark and Alliance Boots to name a few.