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42 Rules for Your New Leadership Role: The Manual They Didn't Hand You When You Made VP, Director, or Manager
42 Rules for Your New Leadership Role (2nd Edition) describes practical and effective actions for you to make a strong start at your new VP, Director, or Manager job. Drawing from extensive interviews with corporate leaders and the author's 20 years as a strategy consultant and executive coach, these rules form the manual they forgot to hand you when you got that promotion or offer letter.
Topics include how to gain cooperation from your team, read the business culture at your new level, tee up smart "quick wins", show others how to work with you, assess the business risks in your new role, make the most of your strengths without overdoing it, work around your weaknesses, use team screw-ups to your advantage, redesign your undoable job, and stay focused on your plan when everyone wants you to fight fires and solve the problems on their desks.
Pam gives you specific guidance for each step of those first few critical months. Her recommendations are shaped by current and classic leadership research, as well as fresh insight from her interviews with executives and surveys of leaders at all levels. With her background as executive coach to top Silicon Valley companies, corporate strategist with Bain and Accenture, and Guest Fellow at Stanford GSB's Center for Leadership Development and Research, Pam translates the experiences of thousands of leaders into easy-to-read guidance.
Let this book remind you what you did right before, help you avoid common missteps that cause leaders to stumble, and give you new strategies for acing those critical first months. Adjust what you find here to serve team needs, market condition, cultural context, your goals and your personal leadership style.
Buy this book when you're making a step up, moving to a new organization, or for your friends as they move up. This book is also an ideal reference for executive coaches, HR business partners, management trainers, executive assistants, and others who help new leaders be successful.
Topics include how to gain cooperation from your team, read the business culture at your new level, tee up smart "quick wins", show others how to work with you, assess the business risks in your new role, make the most of your strengths without overdoing it, work around your weaknesses, use team screw-ups to your advantage, redesign your undoable job, and stay focused on your plan when everyone wants you to fight fires and solve the problems on their desks.
Pam gives you specific guidance for each step of those first few critical months. Her recommendations are shaped by current and classic leadership research, as well as fresh insight from her interviews with executives and surveys of leaders at all levels. With her background as executive coach to top Silicon Valley companies, corporate strategist with Bain and Accenture, and Guest Fellow at Stanford GSB's Center for Leadership Development and Research, Pam translates the experiences of thousands of leaders into easy-to-read guidance.
Let this book remind you what you did right before, help you avoid common missteps that cause leaders to stumble, and give you new strategies for acing those critical first months. Adjust what you find here to serve team needs, market condition, cultural context, your goals and your personal leadership style.
Buy this book when you're making a step up, moving to a new organization, or for your friends as they move up. This book is also an ideal reference for executive coaches, HR business partners, management trainers, executive assistants, and others who help new leaders be successful.
134 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2011
76 people are currently reading
244 people want to read
About the author
Pam Fox Rollin
4 books11 followersPam Fox Rollin coaches executives and teams to lead even more effectively at companies throughout the Bay Area and across the world.
Drawing on 20 years of experience in strategy consulting, management education, team building, and leadership development, Pam is known as a dynamic speaker and valuable thought-partner to people leading their organizations through complex change.
Coaches and consults with CXO through Director levels in technology, consulting, healthcare, government, and NGOs. Pam works across functions with particular depth in coaching CMOs and their teams.
Guides operating leaders and internal OD in designing and implementing programs that enable people at all levels to embrace and deliver strategic change.
Facilitates team building by helping members make the most of strengths and differences to achieve high performance, and helps business units and senior teams onboard new leaders successfully.
Pam’s IdeaShape clients in the Bay Area and beyond include Accenture, Autodesk, Blue Shield of CA, eBay, Genentech/Roche, LinkedIn, Charles Schwab, Verizon, and a variety of small and mid-size companies. Before founding IdeaShape in 1999, Pam guided executives of healthcare and financial service companies through major strategic change and team building efforts with Accenture Strategic Services and Bain & Company; clients included C-level executives at United Health Group, Kaiser Permanente, and Anthem BCBS.
Pam is recognized internationally as an expert in using assessments including the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI) and various 360 feedback instruments. In 2005, she was the keynote speaker for the bi-annual conference of the Association for Psychological Type, the professional organization for Myers-Briggs. Pam facilitated for 10 years a global professional learning community for coaches who use personality type. She is frequently invited to speak on her research into how leaders of different types develop emotional intelligence and leadership. Pam’s depth in Myers-Briggs and other psychological models enables her to customize her coaching and team building for extraordinary effectiveness. Additionally, Pam co-hosts Weekly Leader, a podcast on leadership research and practice.
Pam earned an MBA from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business, where she later consulted for eight years as a Guest Fellow and Master Coach. She has been Senior Facilitator for several courses, including the class alumni rate most valuable: Interpersonal Dynamics. She has also served as a featured lecturer and facilitator for executive education. Pam holds a Bachelor’s with Highest Honors in Organization Studies from the University of California, Davis.
With a deep commitment to community service, Pam has served on boards and led initiatives for Bay Area organizations in food banking, women’s health, and leadership development.
Drawing on 20 years of experience in strategy consulting, management education, team building, and leadership development, Pam is known as a dynamic speaker and valuable thought-partner to people leading their organizations through complex change.
Coaches and consults with CXO through Director levels in technology, consulting, healthcare, government, and NGOs. Pam works across functions with particular depth in coaching CMOs and their teams.
Guides operating leaders and internal OD in designing and implementing programs that enable people at all levels to embrace and deliver strategic change.
Facilitates team building by helping members make the most of strengths and differences to achieve high performance, and helps business units and senior teams onboard new leaders successfully.
Pam’s IdeaShape clients in the Bay Area and beyond include Accenture, Autodesk, Blue Shield of CA, eBay, Genentech/Roche, LinkedIn, Charles Schwab, Verizon, and a variety of small and mid-size companies. Before founding IdeaShape in 1999, Pam guided executives of healthcare and financial service companies through major strategic change and team building efforts with Accenture Strategic Services and Bain & Company; clients included C-level executives at United Health Group, Kaiser Permanente, and Anthem BCBS.
Pam is recognized internationally as an expert in using assessments including the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI) and various 360 feedback instruments. In 2005, she was the keynote speaker for the bi-annual conference of the Association for Psychological Type, the professional organization for Myers-Briggs. Pam facilitated for 10 years a global professional learning community for coaches who use personality type. She is frequently invited to speak on her research into how leaders of different types develop emotional intelligence and leadership. Pam’s depth in Myers-Briggs and other psychological models enables her to customize her coaching and team building for extraordinary effectiveness. Additionally, Pam co-hosts Weekly Leader, a podcast on leadership research and practice.
Pam earned an MBA from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business, where she later consulted for eight years as a Guest Fellow and Master Coach. She has been Senior Facilitator for several courses, including the class alumni rate most valuable: Interpersonal Dynamics. She has also served as a featured lecturer and facilitator for executive education. Pam holds a Bachelor’s with Highest Honors in Organization Studies from the University of California, Davis.
With a deep commitment to community service, Pam has served on boards and led initiatives for Bay Area organizations in food banking, women’s health, and leadership development.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
October 3, 2012
Winning markets is always a combination of a brilliant idea, created in collaboration with people. It is always a combination of the ‘what’ and the ‘how.’ Many books will offer you frameworks and models. This book will give you pure wisdom on ‘how’ you can lead, so you and your company can win.
October 2, 2012
This was a great book. I loved the format, which has easily-digested learning chunks. I wish I'd read this years ago, but more importantly, I wish I could have made a lot of former bosses read it.
September 28, 2024
Disclaimer: I read the first half of this book 3 years ago, finished the last half over the past few weeks, so mostly weighted by the second half of the book.
Having finished the book, I now think of it as a very handy manual and a reminder of best practices to follow in general management. The book covers a lot of ground, from what to research before stepping on a new company or a new role to how to run effective meetings. There are many things that you may have heard before, such as "have a point of view" before each meeting, understand the company strategy, among others. What this book does really well is give you a very concrete step that you should take for each of these. It covers all phases of the process: what to explore and research, how to get people on board, how to find data and metrics to study and follow, and how to execute effectively.
It's a great reference book for new leaders and a good refresher for veterans. I often found myself wishing that I could email an excerpt or chapter to a friend, colleague or previous boss to help them along.
Having finished the book, I now think of it as a very handy manual and a reminder of best practices to follow in general management. The book covers a lot of ground, from what to research before stepping on a new company or a new role to how to run effective meetings. There are many things that you may have heard before, such as "have a point of view" before each meeting, understand the company strategy, among others. What this book does really well is give you a very concrete step that you should take for each of these. It covers all phases of the process: what to explore and research, how to get people on board, how to find data and metrics to study and follow, and how to execute effectively.
It's a great reference book for new leaders and a good refresher for veterans. I often found myself wishing that I could email an excerpt or chapter to a friend, colleague or previous boss to help them along.
October 18, 2014
I was not impressed ...
I have seen this format and this topic before. Another book on how to be a leader in short and easily digested chunks ...
The Topic: How to succeed in a new leadership role ... others have covered the subject in some depth and from multiple viewpoints.
The Format: String together a flurry of short and pithy advice about how to be a better leader ... yes, I have read other books which opt for this format over the more traditional narrative or text style.
The Track Record: I know that Pam Fox Rollin hit the Amazon best seller list first time around. I also wondered what she could possibly have done to make a second edition that would meet the expectations for a strong reissue.
I am now very impressed ...
Pam has not just updated her materials, but made them even more useful than the original version.
One reason is the attention to mindsets paid by 42 Rules Other "how-to-do-it" volumes focus on the nuts and bolts of being a leadership, which is certainly important. Pam also talks about the attitudes and perspectives that mark effective leaders. Follow her guide about how to think and visualize like a leader and you will be ahead of the game before you actually do anything else.
An additional value of 42 Rules is that the book works for you and with you. If you are a new leader or simply aspire to be in a leadership role in the future, you will find plenty of useful and down-to-earth advice about how to present yourself as a capable leader, regardless of current position or title.
Example: Number 4 ~ Draft Your Strategic One-Pager (page 14)
Points of view are not something you develop as a leader. You need to have them from day one, as this section affirms. Take the time to write down your strategic impressions of what is in front of you. You have just moved ahead of most people in managerial and leadership roles.
If you are already in a leadership position or moving from one level of leadership to another, you will also find much of value here. The strategies Pam offers are timeless and apply nicely whether you are a person leading a very small group for the first time or are a seasoned leader in charge of many and much.
Example: Number 16 ~ Get Over Yourself (page 42)
This section directly faces one of the most potentially devastating issues for a Leader On The Move. As we grow and gain confidence, a very real possibility exists that our ego will take control. Down that path lies very little that will help you be a more effective manager. 42 Rules helps you combat this by a relentless focus on others with whom you interact.
A third compelling use of this book relates to others. The most gifted and effective leaders recognize the value of helping others achieve and grow. You just cannot build effective teams or a viable organization without doing so. 42 Rules provides the groundwork for personal coaching, small group development, and large-scale corporate leadership development. You may want additional information about some specific issue or topic, but you will not find that anything has been overlooked. 42 Rules has it all.
Example: Number 29 ~ Make The Most of Screw-ups (page 72)
I had to include this one. Mistakes are the real crux of leadership effort. Nothing is quite as dangerous or as potentially rewarding as the dynamics around your response to a major mistake, whether your own or someone else's. How we handle this leadership challenge reveals our seminal nature.
Originally published in Spring 2011, Pam Fox Rollin has refreshed and updated her first book. The 2nd edition of 42 Rules for Your New Leadership Role: The Manual They Didn't Hand You When You Made VP, Director, or Manager is a real gem and easily worth the cost.
Rereading my favorite passages and annotating like crazy in the Heartland ....
John
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of 42 Rules For Your New Leaderhsip Role for review. I was under absolutely no obligation to say anything positive about the book. I found it easy to do so and can openly recommend this book to new leaders, seasoned leaders, and leaders who are growing other leaders. If they called today, I would happily buy the book for a lot more than they are asking.
I have seen this format and this topic before. Another book on how to be a leader in short and easily digested chunks ...
The Topic: How to succeed in a new leadership role ... others have covered the subject in some depth and from multiple viewpoints.
The Format: String together a flurry of short and pithy advice about how to be a better leader ... yes, I have read other books which opt for this format over the more traditional narrative or text style.
The Track Record: I know that Pam Fox Rollin hit the Amazon best seller list first time around. I also wondered what she could possibly have done to make a second edition that would meet the expectations for a strong reissue.
I am now very impressed ...
Pam has not just updated her materials, but made them even more useful than the original version.
One reason is the attention to mindsets paid by 42 Rules Other "how-to-do-it" volumes focus on the nuts and bolts of being a leadership, which is certainly important. Pam also talks about the attitudes and perspectives that mark effective leaders. Follow her guide about how to think and visualize like a leader and you will be ahead of the game before you actually do anything else.
An additional value of 42 Rules is that the book works for you and with you. If you are a new leader or simply aspire to be in a leadership role in the future, you will find plenty of useful and down-to-earth advice about how to present yourself as a capable leader, regardless of current position or title.
Example: Number 4 ~ Draft Your Strategic One-Pager (page 14)
Points of view are not something you develop as a leader. You need to have them from day one, as this section affirms. Take the time to write down your strategic impressions of what is in front of you. You have just moved ahead of most people in managerial and leadership roles.
If you are already in a leadership position or moving from one level of leadership to another, you will also find much of value here. The strategies Pam offers are timeless and apply nicely whether you are a person leading a very small group for the first time or are a seasoned leader in charge of many and much.
Example: Number 16 ~ Get Over Yourself (page 42)
This section directly faces one of the most potentially devastating issues for a Leader On The Move. As we grow and gain confidence, a very real possibility exists that our ego will take control. Down that path lies very little that will help you be a more effective manager. 42 Rules helps you combat this by a relentless focus on others with whom you interact.
A third compelling use of this book relates to others. The most gifted and effective leaders recognize the value of helping others achieve and grow. You just cannot build effective teams or a viable organization without doing so. 42 Rules provides the groundwork for personal coaching, small group development, and large-scale corporate leadership development. You may want additional information about some specific issue or topic, but you will not find that anything has been overlooked. 42 Rules has it all.
Example: Number 29 ~ Make The Most of Screw-ups (page 72)
I had to include this one. Mistakes are the real crux of leadership effort. Nothing is quite as dangerous or as potentially rewarding as the dynamics around your response to a major mistake, whether your own or someone else's. How we handle this leadership challenge reveals our seminal nature.
Originally published in Spring 2011, Pam Fox Rollin has refreshed and updated her first book. The 2nd edition of 42 Rules for Your New Leadership Role: The Manual They Didn't Hand You When You Made VP, Director, or Manager is a real gem and easily worth the cost.
Rereading my favorite passages and annotating like crazy in the Heartland ....
John
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of 42 Rules For Your New Leaderhsip Role for review. I was under absolutely no obligation to say anything positive about the book. I found it easy to do so and can openly recommend this book to new leaders, seasoned leaders, and leaders who are growing other leaders. If they called today, I would happily buy the book for a lot more than they are asking.
April 13, 2025
Originally written over twenty years ago, Pam Fox Rollin's little book is an easy to read, practical guide on how to hit the ground running when you've either been promoted or hired into a senior management role. I found it eminently more useful than The First 90 Days: Critical Success Strategies for New Leaders at All Levels, which I thought was way too focused on simply "creating action" during a new leader's honeymoon period, when in real-life, the necessary pace of analysis vs. action varies a lot on the company, specific situation, team dynamics, and many other important points of context.
Although I read this book many months after starting a new senior director role, it was still a good litmus test for what things I had done well during the honeymoon period, what things I had missed (and perhaps could still recover from), as well as items to not miss the next time I take a leadership role.
Although I read this book many months after starting a new senior director role, it was still a good litmus test for what things I had done well during the honeymoon period, what things I had missed (and perhaps could still recover from), as well as items to not miss the next time I take a leadership role.
October 11, 2012
Author Pam Fox Rollin relied on her twenty years of experience in leadership development, management education and team building when writing this book and it shows. Included in the book are the stories from top executives who offer advice based on their own, hard learned lessons.
According to the article "The Revolving Door of Talent," by L. Kelly-Radford in CEO Magazine in August/September, 2001 one-quarter of senior executives promoted from within fail in the first 18 months; one-third of outside hires fail. I believe many of these failures could have been prevented if these leaders had read this book.
Although written for senior managers, it applies to anyone stepping into a new role. You'll learn about making the most of your first few weeks or months on the job, how to network and build relationships, how to engage and work with your team, how to set realistic goals, how to avoid mistakes and how to work with people who wanted your job but didn't get it.
42 Rules For Your New Leadership Role is divided into the following seven sections:
Part I Set Yourself Up For Success
Part II Map the Terrain
Part III Show Up Wisely
Part IV Start Your Wins
Part V Create Your Management System
Part VI Stay Smart
Part VII Set You and Your Team To Thrive
My favorite chapter was Rule 7 "Map What Matters to People with Power". If you follow the instructions in this chapter you will have a "Power Map" of the people who matter most, what they care about, what they want from you and much, much more. Keeping this "Power Map" updated will help you negotiate the treacherous waters of office politics.
42 Rules for Your New Leadership Role is the book I wish I was handed before I took my first leadership position many years ago. I believe every business can benefit by handing this book out to employees who are about to be promoted into a leadership role and to new leaders who were hired from the outside.
According to the article "The Revolving Door of Talent," by L. Kelly-Radford in CEO Magazine in August/September, 2001 one-quarter of senior executives promoted from within fail in the first 18 months; one-third of outside hires fail. I believe many of these failures could have been prevented if these leaders had read this book.
Although written for senior managers, it applies to anyone stepping into a new role. You'll learn about making the most of your first few weeks or months on the job, how to network and build relationships, how to engage and work with your team, how to set realistic goals, how to avoid mistakes and how to work with people who wanted your job but didn't get it.
42 Rules For Your New Leadership Role is divided into the following seven sections:
Part I Set Yourself Up For Success
Part II Map the Terrain
Part III Show Up Wisely
Part IV Start Your Wins
Part V Create Your Management System
Part VI Stay Smart
Part VII Set You and Your Team To Thrive
My favorite chapter was Rule 7 "Map What Matters to People with Power". If you follow the instructions in this chapter you will have a "Power Map" of the people who matter most, what they care about, what they want from you and much, much more. Keeping this "Power Map" updated will help you negotiate the treacherous waters of office politics.
42 Rules for Your New Leadership Role is the book I wish I was handed before I took my first leadership position many years ago. I believe every business can benefit by handing this book out to employees who are about to be promoted into a leadership role and to new leaders who were hired from the outside.
October 9, 2012
This book truly is a must for new leaders, and even people who have been leading for a while. Rollins has a way of taking lofty ideas and breaking them down into simple and memorable tips. I got my copy last night, and read it in one sitting--but I'm sure I'll come back to it again and again for refreshers. I also bought some copies for new leaders I know, and some more experienced ones who could benefit from from Rollins' wisdom.
December 1, 2014
This book consists for 42 axioms with brief accompanying explanations that will help you prepare for a new leadership role.
There is nothing earth shattering here, and it may be off the mark for many readers (it seems to be directed primarily toward Fortune 500 executives, which is a remarkably small group), but it does contain a number of very good reminders that could come in handy for anyone thinking about leadership.
There is nothing earth shattering here, and it may be off the mark for many readers (it seems to be directed primarily toward Fortune 500 executives, which is a remarkably small group), but it does contain a number of very good reminders that could come in handy for anyone thinking about leadership.
December 10, 2011
This is a very practical book to use every time you move into a new leadership role. Think through what you are overlooking, what you take for granted, and what steps will ensure launching successfully with new people and new responsibilities. And, if you're stuck, not sure what went wrong, go back through the table of contents. What rule might get things back on track???
October 3, 2012
This book is well organized with thoughtful, practical advice for any leader. This is the kind of book you want to keep on your desk as a reference. Highly recommended.
December 18, 2012
Excellent, targeted, accessible, easy-to-find and easy-to-read advice for new leaders. Read the contents, choose what you need to go, and get reading!
February 1, 2013
Another one that I read for my marketing gig. You can read my review here: http://www.wedomarketing.com/blog/boo...
April 11, 2014
Great book, love it!
Currently reading
August 1, 2015Good and compact. "Rules" make sense, and illustrated lucidly.
January 4, 2020
Alright prep
Good refresher on common pitfalls and traps in starting a new job in any company. Stakes are higher in leadership but prioritization is important for everyone.
Good refresher on common pitfalls and traps in starting a new job in any company. Stakes are higher in leadership but prioritization is important for everyone.
May 25, 2024
Worth re-visiting every couple of years
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews