As a veteran of 26+ years of executive search,  I have formed an opinion on what a newly hired  executive or department head needs  to establish very early on.

I was reminded of these aspects while I was watching Jimmy Haslam, the new owner of my football team –  the Cleveland Browns,  during his introductory press conference.   He “owned the room “ as they say in media.  He communicated his vision in 7 words – “Bringing a winning culture back to Cleveland”.  From my TV set his enthusiasm was palpable and his vision could not be clearer .   His philosophy was conveyed to a win starved fan base in just 2 words – “Steeler football”.  We all understood and cheered his ownership.   I knew I was watching a very seasoned and very good executive at work.

Here are 5 things a newly hired  executive needs to establish :

Vision – what is the executive’s vision of the company / department  – its direction. “Here is where we are going together “

Philosophy – “Tell us the  principles by which will you be leading us”.  Corporate  ethics?   Values? Aggressiveness?  How will we treat employees?

Energy – the leader sets the pace

Pick great subordinates  –   No leader is successful if they do not pick a great support team.  What I have noticed the great leaders do, is they  keep a file of people who impress them and why.  They attend conferences and take the time to meet good people and keep a record of them. They  spend a lot of time recruiting the best people for their team.  They do not just “hire who they already know”.

Accountability – all employees must know  what they will held accountable for and how and when  they will be judged