What I keep and hand to clients.
A working library of reading, tools and reference material on organizational change and leadership transition. Kept current, and open.
Leadership Decisions After Restructuring, Transformation and Post-Merger Integration: A Guide for CEOs and CHROs
For CEOs, CHROs and transformation leads making the senior leadership calls that follow a restructuring, transformation or merger: who leads, how the top team is rebuilt, and how culture holds. Curated from Stanford GSB, McKinsey and Harvard Law School research by Carly Vivian, leadership and organizational change advisor and Stanford GSB Sloan Fellow.
- Selecting the Post-Merger Top Team and Operating Model
McKinsey on why CEOs should define the top two levels of the combined organization first, and how to handle top-team selection when executives are jockeying for position.
mckinsey.com - Equipping Leaders for Merger Integration Success
McKinsey on preparing three leadership cohorts, from the top team to the top 100-250 leaders, to lead the newly combined company after close.
mckinsey.com - Integrating Cultures After a Merger
McKinsey on setting cultural direction early and why an aligned top team that role-models new behaviors decides whether integration sticks.
mckinsey.com - Stanford GSB: Why Most Mergers Fail on Culture
Stanford GSB professor Amir Goldberg on cultural mismatch as the leading cause of M&A failure, and how data now shows whether two cultures are actually integrating.
gsb.stanford.edu - Stanford GSB: Leading Through Layoffs and Restructuring
Stanford GSB masterclass on handling workforce reductions, phasing cuts, and protecting the people who stay after a restructuring.
gsb.stanford.edu - The Role of the Chief Transformation Officer
McKinsey on what separates effective transformation leads: full integration into the executive team, balanced accountability, and role-modeling the change.
mckinsey.com
CEO Succession and Leadership Change in PE-Backed Companies: A Guide for Operating Partners and Boards
For private equity operating partners, CEOs, CHROs and boards deciding when to keep, replace or rebuild senior leadership after a deal or leadership change. Stanford GSB succession research plus PE-specific playbooks, curated by Carly Vivian, leadership and organizational change advisor and Stanford GSB Sloan Fellow.
- The CEO Decision: How PE Investors Select and Reassess Leaders
Russell Reynolds research via Harvard Law School Forum on CEO transitions in PE-backed companies from entry to exit, and why lost time, not the change itself, is the real risk.
corpgov.law.harvard.edu - Closing the Leadership Gap in Private Equity
Heidrick & Struggles on how PE firms can support, challenge or change portfolio leadership teams across the hold period, beyond CEO and CFO appointments.
heidrick.com - A Playbook for New PE Portfolio-Company CEOs
McKinsey on rebuilding the C-suite after a buyout, including how many level-two and level-three roles new portfolio CEOs typically replace.
mckinsey.com - Stanford GSB: CEO Succession Planning Quick Guide
Stanford GSB Corporate Governance Research Initiative on how boards hire, evaluate and replace CEOs, and whether insiders or outsiders perform better.
gsb.stanford.edu - Stanford GSB: Senior Executive Succession and Talent Development
Stanford Rock Center research on C-suite succession gaps, and why succession plans fail when they are disconnected from executive development.
gsb.stanford.edu - Stanford GSB: Is Your CEO Irreplaceable?
Stanford GSB survey of Fortune 250 directors on how thin the CEO talent pool is, including for turnaround leaders, and what that means for succession.
gsb.stanford.edu
Maintained on Stacklist. Each entry links to its source. Updated as the library changes.