Nineteenth International Conference on Knowledge, Culture, and Change in Organizations

Abstract

Among studies of the transition of employees into a first-manager role a pervasive assumption is that the starting point for the transition is similar. It is of high importance to understand if and how the heterogeneity of starting points that new managers face is associated with different challenges they confront. We rely on over 70 hours of interviews with 45 managers of multinational companies in the time that immediately followed their transition into managers. We study what characterized their starting points and what challenges they were confronted with. Our preliminary findings show key differences in the challenges they face that are associated with the starting point the new manager has. We explore implications on what companies can do to support a successful transition.