Filling the Leadership Pipeline

The Challenges of General Manager Transitions

Amy Kates and Diane Downey

Downey Kates Associates

There may be nothing more important to an organization’s succession efforts than building a strong cadre of general managers. Yet making the transition to the general manager role is fraught with difficulty. It is at this point where many successful careers derail (McCall & Lombardo, 1983; Shipper & Dillard, 2000). According to the Corporate Leadership Council, turnover among newly hired executives within the first three years of taking a new job is as high as 50 percent (as cited in Sweeney, 1999). In chapter 2 Arthur Freedman explains myriad psychological challenges involved in managerial promotions. We will use the pathways-and-crossroads framework ...