Coaches see the same first year over and over. The fast start, the first misstep, the moment a new leader realises that what got them promoted won't carry the role.
In 2023, Forbes asked 14 members of its Coaches Council what they'd learned from coaching executives, and what a brand-new leader should take from it. I was one of them. Here are the 14 lessons as I read them today, measured against one question: What does leadership excellence look like in the first 12 months?
Many new leaders won't invest the time to facilitate. They prescribe instead, which produces poor delegation and trust problems. Learn to listen actively, ask open questions and run conversations instead of monologues. You'll be surprised how smart your team is.
Success will cost you something. As a young leader you might think you're giving away the least important things: Time, private life, energy, health. The value of those things changes along the way. Make a yearly investment plan for your personal life. What did you risk, and is the outcome still worth the price?
Everyone is inspired by something different, and even more so at work. Public recognition or an extra day off moves some people and leaves others cold. To know what lights the fire, you have to ask, genuinely, and then listen.
Your team needs to share, vent, talk and feel that they matter and belong. An employee who can't bring ideas, concerns and feelings to you isn't the full resource you hired. Show them it's safe to say things. If you don't, they'll say them in an exit interview.
Ask good questions to get up to speed. Use the expertise in your team and give people room to shine. Treat the experts as the experts they are, and trust grows. An effective executive leads experts. The expert on everything is a role nobody can play for long.
New leaders need to read their own thought patterns and emotions. More energy into your own cognitive processes means a better understanding of yourself and of how to improve. Once you're confident you can grow your own abilities, you can guide others to theirs.
Today's workforce expects support, encouragement and an investment in their growth. Open doors for opportunities. See the potential in your team and find ways to use it. Share what you know, welcome other perspectives, and take real interest in what people do. Then say so.
A new leader with a new team often sprints. They underestimate team dynamics. In Bruce Tuckman's model the team is still forming. Slowing down, leading with a clear vision, building trust and setting clear objectives builds the foundation. Skipping that stage costs more time later.
Your learning journey starts again and won't end. Don't rely on the skill set that got you into leadership. The job is to deliver the same high-level results, now through people. If you do more individual contribution than leading, you're doing it wrong.
New leaders often believe they need all the answers, because they were promoted for having them. Leadership requires breaking the telling habit: Set clear direction on what needs to be achieved, ask more questions, and let the team's expertise decide how to get there.
This one is mine, and it's still the core of how I coach. Feedforward is forward-looking feedback that helps individuals and teams improve toward their goals. It focuses on development instead of past mistakes. Leaders who use it build the skills of their team members, and the numbers follow.
Origin: Cristian Hofmann, Empowering Executives, SUPERGROUP AG
Almost every new leader wrestles with self-doubt, whether it's their first leadership role or their tenth. "Do I deserve to be here?" Combined with the misconception that leaders arrive with a big ego, that doubt stops most new leaders from asking for help. And that stretches the learning curve.
Executives work long hours and burn out when health and well-being aren't a priority. They need to recover, grow and thrive through rapid change. The practical answer is techniques for physical, mental and emotional health, so they can lead effectively and live well. Leadership excellence without energy is a short story.
Your success in the new role depends on the transition from doing tasks to managing relationships. It's a delicate balance, from being the doer to influencing how people perceive a strategy or a deliverable. Build relationships with authenticity, and the rest gets easier.
Eleven of the 14 lessons describe the same transition: From expert to leader of experts. The skill that got you promoted becomes the thing that holds you back. Listening, asking, letting go of the answer.
Whether every new leader needs a coach for that, I'm not sure. Some manage with a good boss and an honest peer. What I'm sure of: Nobody manages it alone and fast. The first year decides reputation, and reputation is hard to repair.
Further reading on hofmann.coach: How new leaders develop and manage relationships · 19 tips to conquer imposter syndrome as a new leader · Leadership Coaching
Note: The 14 lessons come from the Forbes Coaches Council expert panel "14 Executive Coaches Share Leadership Lessons For New Leaders", published 31 January 2023. Contribution no. 11 is my own. The other thirteen come from Council colleagues; my reading of them is mine, and it isn't a quote of their wording.
Cristian Hofmann is an executive coach in Zurich and Schaffhausen (MAS Coaching & Supervision BSO, Forbes contributor). Over more than 20 years he has coached more than 1,500 leaders: CEOs, executive boards and leadership teams in Switzerland, with measurably agreed goals and, on request, pay-for-results. More about Cristian Hofmann.
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