Situation: A company delivers specialized consulting services. The founder CEO is also a lead consultant. As the company has grown, the CEO has struggled to prioritize her time as she shifts from consultant to leader. How do you reprioritize your time?

Advice from the CEOs:

• Look at the skill sets required to run the company and compare this with the skills of current staff. While the company has excellent consultants, do some of these people also have experience in business development or management?
  • Prioritize the skill sets needed and focus hiring efforts on those that can’t be filled by current employees.
• If the CEO is also the chief rainmaker, then a top priority is hiring a manager/leader. The next level of development within the company will require a level of management.
• Accept that the company can’t get an A+ grade on every project or detail. Learn to accept a B when this is enough. It will do.
• Recognize that as priorities shift, vacuums will develop. Identify what will be missing. For those vacancies:
  • Write job descriptions for the roles.
  • Replace the leader’s roles with flexible teams instead of individuals.
• Reapply financial resources to fund the transition as incentives for individuals to take on new work and responsibilities.
  • Look at profit-sharing models. Use profit sharing to facilitate the shift in priorities by adjusting payout incentives.
• Anticipate the risks within the plan. Think through these thoroughly and develop contingencies.
• As CEO, you will not be able to do everything that you do now. In your new role you won’t want to do everything you do now. Your view and responsibilities will change.

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