What to do when your old boss is your new chair

1 Renegotiate the relationship

Build alignment with the chair using this eight-step framework. It applies to all new CEO-chair relationships, but with a crucial difference here: you must do this work despite the fact that you know each other well. Written boundaries matter more, not less, when both parties assume they’re aligned.

1. Establish shared values and cultural norms early.
2. Deepen your agreement on strategic direction.
3. Clearly define roles and responsibilities.
4. Understand your respective leadership styles and motivators.
5. Establish robust communication protocols.
6. Create transparent decision-making and escalation processes.
7. Commit to regular performance-feedback discussions.
8. Consider creating a CEO-board alignment charter.

2 Establish your own strategic voice early

As incoming CEO, it isn’t your job to be a caretaker of your predecessor’s strategy. Communicate your own strategic perspective within the first 90 days, even if it largely aligns with the existing plan. If the organization understands the strategy as yours, you have room to adapt it. If it sees it as inherited, every adjustment looks like disloyalty.

3 Build your own team

Don’t keep your predecessor’s leadership team out of loyalty: keep them because they’re the right people for what comes next. If they’re not, make changes early. If you defer decisions about your new team, the organization will begin to assume the status quo is permanent.

4 Build relationships with independent directors

There’s a risk that the board defaults to the familiar relationship it had with your predecessor. This means you need to invest early in building direct relationships with independent directors and ensure that your performance evaluation comes from the full board, rather than being filtered through your predecessor’s lens. The board’s job is to support your success as its new CEO, so make that expectation clear.