From Great Manager to Great Executive: 5 Ways

It might be hard to believe, but according to the US government, there are around 350,000 openings for executives nationwide. That’s a lot of top-level finance, HR, and CEO positions. Good economy or no, there are always opportunities for aspiring managers to step up and grab a big job.

But experts say that those managers need a whole different set of skills to become great executives. As many as half of newly installed leaders, including those in the C-suite, fail within their first 18 months. “A good line manager is looking downward, or maybe across, but if you’re an executive, you’re looking at the totality of the organization,” says Debra Nunes, Korn Ferry senior client partner and executive coach. Here, according to Korn Ferry experts, are five skills that can help improve your odds of success.

Understand the bigger—and broader—picture.

A successful jump from manager to executive naturally involves juggling higher dollar figures, more people, and bigger expectations. But experts say it’s how an executive handles the change in scope that’s crucial. A stellar executive will not only understand the business model for each component of the organization, but will also devise a successful strategy to combine those models.

Knowledge isn’t enough, either, experts say. A great executive will want to work with other parts of the organization, not just pay lip service to them. Nunes recalls a newly installed chief human resources officer who excelled at his own function but had little interest in the rest of the business. “He didn’t last,” she says.

Perform and transform.

Great executives are enterprise leaders, simultaneously running and changing the business. While a great manager can drive exceptional results, an executive must inspire stakeholders to make sometimes radical adjustments to improve the organization. For example, it’s not an executive who determines how to scale the company to multiple audiences or, alternately, focus on the existing customers; instead, it’s their direct reports (and often thousands of lower-level employees) who do.

It’s not easy. If leaders focus on transformation only, they risk failing to hit their numbers; if they focus on performance only, they can fall behind their competitors. “On the surface, these pressures seem paradoxical,” says Guangrong Dai, senior director of research for the Korn Ferry Institute. Indeed, a balanced approach will require an array of skills and traits, including the ability to visualize trends and influence a variety of people.

Handle everything, everywhere, all at once.

The onslaught of so many major disruptions at once—AI, trade fights, and economic slowdowns, to name just three—has rattled even the most battle-tested chiefs, not to mention their potential successors. “Crisis leadership is now the norm.” says Tierney Remick, vice chairman and co-leader of Korn Ferry’s Board and CEO Services practice. Even more than managers do, great executives need a temperament that helps them, and their direct reports, avoid feeling constantly overwhelmed. “You want leaders to be both confident and humble—that’s the sweet spot of leadership,” says Kevin Cashman, vice chairman of Korn Ferry’s CEO and Enterprise Leadership practice

There probably will be moments when executives feel drained or lack confidence. After all, 71% of CEOs admit that they sometimes feel like ⁠imposters. Great executives acknowledge this, however, and alleviate the pressure by confiding in coaches, mentors, partners, or trusted advisors.

Adapt.

Senior-level managers don’t get ahead without having a string of successes. But great executives will not rest on their prior achievements. They have agility—the capacity to learn from experience and to apply that learning to new, challenging situations. Agile executives are unafraid to challenge the status quo. They need to listen to views very different from their own and be willing to try new ideas rather than cling to old ones that aren’t working.

Find and develop other great leaders.

Part of becoming a great executive is creating a pipeline for other leaders who can step into larger roles in the future. Indeed, executives must have a knack for, and interest in, finding others who can instill trust, inspire courage, drive productivity, and build teams. Developing internal talent can reduce the firm’s reliance on external hires, preserve institutional knowledge, and make handling crises easier. “Without effective execution by frontline managers, the strategy remains just an idea,” says Scott Erker, a Korn Ferry senior client partner who works with digital teams in EMEA.

In practice, great executives first will set a good example for the firm’s leadership. Then they’ll empower high-potential employees, invest in their development, and mentor them. “At the executive level, what you’re thinking about is what type of experiences lower-level leaders should have to round out their understanding,” Nunes says.

Learn more about Korn Ferry’s Leadership Development capabilities. 

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