More than three months have passed since the transfer of Brout's founder Ton to our new CEO Annelies: Handing over your child. In Part 2, they discuss together how the past months have been and what lessons they have learned from them. What is the importance of a fresh perspective for an organization? And how do they deal with giving and taking responsibility within the company?
company shareholders
The new pair of eyes
When you start as a new CEO in a company, it is important to assess whether and where improvements are desired instead of simply conforming to the existing situation, as that is often one of the reasons why you were brought in.
Annelies: "Before you know it, you're busy all week with the day-to-day operations of a company, but you also need to make sure that you keep looking critically. You are the one with a fresh perspective because as an outsider, you enter a company where there already exists a status quo."
A new pair of eyes is valuable in every position within the company, not just in the context of being CEO. "Recently, new colleagues started in finance and HR. The tendency then is to quickly involve them in everything that's going on at the company, but it is also important for them to determine where priorities lie and what the ultimate goals are."
A helicopter view
Ton was also able to look at his company with fresh eyes. He saw it as it is (as-is) instead of how he would like it to be (as-wish). "Because I suddenly had distance from the organization, I had a clearer picture of what works well and what doesn't. For example, I see that processes haven't been running smoothly for years. But I also see which colleagues are extremely valuable for this company."
