C-Level: is it worth taking the team to another company?

In the corporate world, the value and importance of human capital for business growth is indisputable.No wonder, it is common to see C-Levels that, when changing companies, usually move key people of their team along with them for a number of strategic reasons. The big question that few pay attention to this movement, and that needs to be better understood, is the extent to which, in fact, it is advantageous to maintain this training, disregarding the risk of disagreements with members of the new organization, cultural shocks and other losses in terms of productivity and performance of all. 

Looking at a positive bias, executives who change jobs and decide to take their teams together are often moved by maintaining the bonds of trust with those who have had good professional experiences and a proven delivery history. Or, still, who aim to achieve results with a greater speed in the new position, especially in cases of new business launches, turnarounds or specific skills requirements that you are sure that your old team has and will be able to continue developing. 

The idea, in this case, is to replicate the synergy that has already built previously, minimizing risks, reducing the adaptation curve and time for the results to start appearing. This increases the chances of obtaining a higher quality in their work and a greater union against the desired initiatives, especially in scenarios that seek this in a short time. 

But, just as every currency has its other side, this decision can also have certain disadvantages, from adaptation risks with professionals who are already in the company, having greater difficulty in building and strengthening close relationships between all; internal devaluation; decreased productivity and engagement; low diversity of ideas; even the very image of the C-Level that can be negatively associated with an executive with high dependence on specific professionals with whom he has worked, which can also hinder the opening and development of possible successors internally. 

Academic reviews on changes in top management teams (TMTs) even suggest that changes in the leadership team significantly impact organizational results and internal dynamics. This includes aspects such as governance, business adaptation and performance (TMTs) which reinforces that moving teams is not only a personal decision, but also generates wide effects. 

What, then, would be the ideal scenario, faced with a proposal to move to another organization? There is no rule or recipe to be followed, but rather balance common sense between these pros and cons, analyzing the real need to take your team together to the new environment, so that this process can be conducted in the best possible way. 

This is because, apart from the legal issues involving this type of movement, dismantling teams in any company always brings some kind of loss, especially if they do not have any kind of leadership development program that has been preparing potential successors so that, in scenarios that are not even this, operations are not impacted. 

In general, a good C-Level, while it will end a cycle in favor of a new challenge, usually seeks to form potential successors within its structure, aiming to impact, as little as possible, the company that was IOE even if this successor stays in the chair for a certain time until the coming of the new executive. This will not always be possible, however, when successful, it ends up being successful by the market and the business where it was.  

It is also important to apply a good deal of self-knowledge in questioning whether you are creating an excessive dependence on your old teams, rather than opening yourself to opportunities for development and growth with the new teams 'DO which can hinder the growth of both other people and the organization itself. 

It may seem difficult to find the balance between these possibilities, because taking the team to a new company is not, by itself, right or wrong. It is a strategic decision that requires an in-depth analysis of context, culture, business objectives and medium and long-term impacts. In the end, more than repeating formulas that have worked in the past, the role of the C-Level is to be open to build diverse, ethical and sustainable teams 'even if it means giving up the comfort zone. 

Jordano Rischter he is headhunter and partner at Wide Executive Search, an executive recruitment boutique focused on high and middle management positions.