Why interim leadership makes sense

Yesterday, I left a 19-week assignment as interim news director at XETV San Diego 6. Today, the new news director is meeting the staff and starting work, a smooth, well planned, transition.

When I arrived at the station in April, I replaced a news director who was at the station for less than two years. I was presented to the staff as the interim leader who would help the station keep moving in the right direction and also assist in finding the next news director. That person would commit to three to five years, the amount of time necessary to take the striving news operation to new levels of success. About one month into the assignment the general manager asked if I would be interested in the permanent job. The difficult but correct reply was “no.”

This was my fourth interim leadership assignment and second as a TV news director. While it is good for my ego to report that each of the four times I’ve filled this role I have been offered the position on a permanent basis, that was never my goal. As an interim leader you do things a bit differently than someone in for the long haul. I hope to continue serving in interim leadership roles as part of my consulting business. So, at the risk of engaging in shameless self-promotion, I want to urge anybody who hires leaders to consider using individuals on an interim basis to serve as a bridge for organizations in transition.

Interim leadership is especially valuable for organizations overcoming serious challenges. A skilled interim leader often has to serve as an organizational healer or fixer. Sometimes it is simply a case of bringing new energy to an enterprise that may be stuck or languishing. Another advantage of hiring an interim leader is that he or she can quickly learn the organization’s personality and dynamics. This can help in recruiting the permanent leader who will follow. Most important, successful interim leadership requires substance. Knowing a business or organizational culture is critical. Interim leadership means getting to work quickly and setting the right tone from day one. That’s nearly impossible to do if you do not understand how things work.  

For me, the most gratifying part of going to work everyday is interacting with people. Although I am an early adopter of technology and recognize and appreciate the value of digital media, interacting with other human beings in face-to-face communication fulfills a specific human need. That daily social interaction is what I will miss most. When a new person comes in and engages with a positive approach and smile it serves as powerful medicine for those in the workplace who may have felt disconnected. Of course, this only works if the interim leader knows what he or she is doing. Empty suits with smiles can actually make things worse.

So thank you to my friends at XETV. I already miss being in the newsroom. And if this first blog after 19 weeks in the trenches of TV news sounds like a bit of an advertisement, I plead guilty. I would enjoy working with other stations and organizations where I can be of service.

I look forward to getting back to blogging about media, culture, communication, and inevitably a little politics around this time of year. Right now, on to projects put on hold and clients old and new. No doubt, I’ll also find a little time for tennis.  

Two very different paths

 I just saw the CNN homepage with a picture of James Holmes, who grew up in San Diego, sitting in a Denver area courtroom with his comic book red hair, looking deranged and barely there. On the other side of the page, a picture of Sally Ride in her days as a space shuttle astronaut heads the column that is her obituary. She was a physics professor at the University of California, San Diego. They are two local news makers--visually juxtaposed--representing the best and worst of what gifted people can become.

James Holmes booking photo

For now, I will not attempt to make sense out of last Friday's gunfire in a Colorado movie theater; Ross Douthat in Sunday's New York Times did about the best job of that I have seen. But I will simply say we should celebrate the life of Sally Ride and her contributions to improving the world. As for James Holmes, the pain he inflicted is beyond words. The side by side view of these two pictures struck me as not only odd but haunting--two San Diegans who will be remembered for years to come for very different reasons.

I mean no disrespect to Dr. Ride by discussing her on the same page as James Holmes. To the contrary, the point is to show that in the  dark and disturbing aftermath of Holmes' brutal acts, creative and life affirming memories--in this case, the life and work of Sally Ride--need to be celebrated and honored. Though today's news marks her death, it is her life that has, at least for a moment, pushed Holmes off the lead spot in the news.

Remembering a great teacher

I learned the other day one of my mentors died. Professor George C. Stoney was 96 years old when he left the living last week in New York City. George was my teacher at NYU. As much as anybody I’ve ever known, he dedicated himself to using film and television for positive purposes. As a teacher, filmmaker, and visionary who saw the power of visual media as a tool for community improvement, George lived a life that mattered. The lead obituary in Sunday’s New York Times explains George’s accomplishments and impact.

On a personal level, I cannot adequately express how much George meant to me. He helped me get my first job at ABC News; he believed in my abilities and me as a producer when I had personal doubts; he taught thousands of students that telling stories about real life-–not today’s so called reality TV—could make a difference and improve the world.

In the mid 1990s I contacted George and sent him a copy of a documentary KNSD-TV produced while I was news director. Not That San Diego, followed community activist Stan Hay as he explored the poorer parts of the place that calls itself “America’s Finest City.” George sent me a thank you note for sending him the documentary. His comments were mostly positive. He pointed out that perhaps the most noteworthy achievement was getting such a documentary on a commercial television station. As usual, he was right. That was the last time I had any communication with him but not the last time I saw him.

When my daughter, Amy, graduated from NYU in 2006, Professor Stoney was part of the procession. As the oldest active teacher at the university—he was 89 at the time—it was his privilege to carry the torch, NYU’s symbol. When I saw George on the big screen in Washington Square Park, I smiled. Last week, when I learned of his death, I shed a few tears.

Tom Brokaw famously called the men and women who lived through and fought in World War II, “The Greatest Generation.” George was part of that group. He served during the war and continued to serve the world in other ways the rest of his life. He will be missed. And even though he preferred to be called George, I want to publicly say thank you, Professor Stoney, for what you did for me personally and for everything you did for the rest of those whose lives you touched.

Interim News Director

I noticed that it has been a longer time than usual since anything new appeared on IrvsEyeView. So here's what's happening. For the last four months I have been serving as the interim news director at San Diego 6, XETV. After nearly 14 years doing other work, serving again as a TV news executive has been exciting, eye opening, and gratifying. We are currently searching for somebody who will take the job on a permanent basis, willing to make a three to five year commitment. I will have much more on this latest adventure once the new person is on board and I go back to organizational leadership consulting. This is now my fourth interim leadership position, an interesting vantage point to see how organizations work.