Achieving a new senior leadership position is an important indicator of professional growth. By assuming this role, the employee gains a new status and more responsibilities within the company and sees their routine and obligations change.
This is a position that moves away from routine tasks and focuses much more on strategic decisions, therefore having a greater weight in decision-making and in the search for achieving the organization’s objectives.
Although the title “senior” is commonly associated with age, it actually represents vast experience in your field, which, of course, is often gained over time.
What is a senior leadership position?
Each company has its own hierarchical structure, but generally, especially organizations that outline a career plan for employees, tend to work with positions divided into junior, mid-level and senior.
Thus, each stage indicates a step in professional development. When it comes to leadership, the process is similar, even if the term “senior” is not used. This position, however, indicates a professional who already has leadership experience and will occupy higher positions, such as director, president or executive positions.
Their role, therefore, is more related to the organization’s macro objectives. Understand some characteristics of senior leadership:
Comprehensive management
This role usually does not involve just one team, and this professional has to manage several departments. For this reason, he or she may not be focused on the day-to-day activities of the teams, but must monitor overall performance to ensure that each team is meeting goals.
Strategic decisions
This professional will not always be contacted by the team to deal with unforeseen events that occur on a daily basis, but their role still requires the ability to make decisions strategically.
This is because he is directly involved in the organization’s strategic planning, and it is his role to oversee financial and operational goals.
Dissemination of culture
The company’s values and mission, as well as its organizational culture, serve as pillars for everyone’s performance. However, the best way to ensure team collaboration is to lead by example, and a senior leader has a central role in this process.
In addition to transmitting best management practices to leaders, their behavior and performance directly contribute to the company’s organizational climate.
External representative
Holding a prominent position also means representing the company in the market in which it operates. This can be done by becoming a spokesperson, participating in events and meetings, or simply becoming an expert in the segment.
As a senior leader, what should you do?
As we said, this is an important moment in your career, but like any other promotion, it requires an adaptation process. It is possible, for example, that your professional commitments are more related to other leadership roles than to more operational levels, which implies a change in your routine. Understand better what is required when taking on a new senior leadership role:
Develop a vision for the future
This is one of the skills that a senior leader will use most in his or her role. By distancing himself or herself from day-to-day tasks, he or she occupies a position where he or she thinks of ways to get the company to where it wants to be. In fact, he or she contributes to the creation of these goals, and his or her experience and knowledge of the market contribute to a vision of where the organization can be in one, three or five years.
Stay updated
Even though the position may be “senior,” it is not, and should not be, associated with traditional or outdated practices. This is a position where innovation should be valued, so the professional must continue to seek new knowledge, in addition to understanding new technologies and behaviors that may affect the market in which the company operates.
Train new leaders
The role of a leader, regardless of their hierarchy, is to prepare the team to take on management roles. Therefore, when achieving this new position, it is important to contribute to the dissemination of the company’s culture and help other leaders improve themselves so that they can also grow. They can even become a mentor, indicating opportunities and offering their knowledge to other employees.
Develop efficient communication
Even if you are not present at departmental meetings, this is a position that is in direct contact with the leaders of each team, so creating good communication not only allows you to align expectations and ensure that everyone is focusing their efforts on the same goal, but also creates a climate that is more conducive to collaboration.
Focus on results
Decision-making at this level involves higher risks, so in addition to always being aware of the financial aspect, it is necessary to focus on results. Conducting periodic assessments of teams and evaluating relevant indicators is part of the routine, and basing yourself on data and numbers helps to make more informed decisions.
