CEO tenures are becoming increasingly nasty, brutish and short. Some 60% of today’s Fortune 500 CEOs have held their jobs for six years or less.
One significant contributor to senior leader failure is that CEOs, Presidents and other top officers often have few individuals with whom they can openly discuss organizational concerns. These individuals lament the lack of “agenda-free” confidants available on the Board or within the management team given the inherent nature of boss/subordinate relationships.
WJM Advisorship™ program provides a powerful solution to the isolation felt by CEOs and other senior management.
WJM Associates has identified a cadre of individuals with high-level corporate and/or board experience who are available to serve as trusted, objective, pragmatic and supportive confidants to corporate leaders.
The Advisorship™ differs from what is typically offered as “executive coaching” in that it pairs clients with peers who themselves have had many years of high-level management and direct P&L experience necessary to truly empathize with and advise top executives. These individuals can deliver objective and candid feedback and recommendations on an individual’s leadership capabilities. They become a sounding board, and a trusted advocate who will provide advice from a unique perspective of having “been there” in a similar role. In effect, a mutual teaching/learning dynamic is created. The Advisorship™ can be implemented for six or twelve month time frames.
WJM also offers The Advisorhip™ On-boarding program, a shorter (three months), but more intense program focused on addressing the challenges faced by the newly hired or appointed senior executive. Expert consultation is provided with regards to assimilating into the new culture, building successful partnerships with Board members, ELT team members and other key stakeholders, establishing a new direction and vision, identifying potential pitfalls, etc. The Advisor and client collaborate on identifying the critical few objectives that will be top priority and developing action plans and time targets for successfully meeting them.
Although the program is highly specialized to address the specific needs of each executive, The Advisorship™ is designed to enhance the overall effectiveness and performance of senior leadership. Depending on the focus of the engagement, the client will: