Leadership Change: Here's How to Make It as Painless as Possible

“You want to lead a group, the organization and the staff with minimum disruption,” Morillo says.

That means avoiding what Tandon calls the “white knight attitude” — coming in with all the answers before even understanding what the issues are.

It helps to have a mentor in the organization as well, whether it be a board or staff member, as a sounding board and teacher.

The more help within the organization the new CEO can solicit, the more painless the transition will be. Once again, it all comes back to preparation.

“Good endings have good beginnings,” Tandon says. “… Most successful CEOs were there in their own time thinking about what they’ll leave behind at the organization. Find that kind of person to lead, and you know they’ll be successful and the organization will be successful.”