Ask Wharton
Dr. Greg Shea on Making the Leap to CEO

Q: I want your advice on how to prepare for a change in my position with my company. I am moving from leading about 200 people in a 700-person company to the president and/or CEO of the firm. My first inclination of this change is that it is most likely a very different job than the one I currently have. How can I prepare for this move?

A: In all likelihood, you have already made the transition. You already don't manage the work; you manage the people who do the work. The move to 700 people does mean that there is going to be more pressure on you to think systematically and strategically. You'll have to pay more attention to selection of staff, particularly to ensure there is complementarity with your own skills set. You also have to make sure you have the right administrative assistant for this role. If not, you are toast. The management of time and your file system is critical, and the smoothness of the relationship with that person is crucial. You are not going to be able to afford noise in this relationship.

Other skills you need depend upon the nature of your current work. Have you run a profit center? Have you been involved in developing strategy? Have you been visible as a spokesman for the organization? You could probably benefit from some classroom experience in general management, particularly if you haven't run a profit center in the past. Wharton's 2-week Executive Development Program could give you this foundation without taking you away from your responsibilities for too long. If you feel you already have a foundation in general management, our 5-week Advanced Management Program, while requiring a longer time commitment on your part, will also connect you with a network of high-level executives from around the world who facing similar career moves.

Greg Shea
Adjunct Associate Professor of Management

Do you have questions for Wharton’s experts? Send them to Barbara Gyde, and we’ll find people to answer them.

• Executive Development Program
  
  
• Advanced Management Program

• Wharton Executive Education
  
  
• The Wharton School

This month's articles:

• Senior Management Profile:
  Wharton Fellows: Terrorist attacks transformed the work of Suzanne DuBose of the Verizon Foundation.
  
  
• In the Classroom: Ian MacMillan offers a new program on business building.
  
  
• Off the Shelf: Paul Schoemaker on Profiting from Uncertainty.
  
  
• Thought Leaders: Marketing Competitively in a Down Economy.
  
  
• Brain Food: Free Wharton Breakfast Forums Offer a Smorgasbord of Knowledge.
  
  
• Ask Wharton: Adjunct Professor Greg Shea offers advice on assuming leadership responsibilities.
  
  
• Readers Write: Strategic versus Tactical Semantics: Were you telling the truth in the last poll?
  
  
• The Last Word: It's Not as Bad as You Think — or, As Good as You'd Hoped.