No Exit: Examining Career Mobility within GBS

Lest you think I’m channeling Jean-Paul Sartre’s 1944 play Huis Clos (No Exit for those of us English speakers), rest assured I’m not reliving my school French classes. But the title’s been swirling around in my head as I see global business services (GBS) ponder the next steps in their careers. Some are GBS careerists, happy to leap to a role in another enterprise, with (hopefully) more prestige, scope, and pay, while others simply want to do something else. With mobility relatively high, jumping from job to job seems to be within our leaders’ gift; however, moving into a non-GBS business or functional role, not so much. Are there enterprise career paths for GBS leaders who move from job to job, or is it a case of No Exit?

“I’m fully qualified to take on the role of (COO) (CTO) (Chief Transformation Officer) (Chief Digital Officer) (Head of X business). Why is my company passing me over? I’m a perfect match for the role.”

Amongst us chickens, we’d like to assume that a GBS leadership role is the pinnacle of enterprise purview. We see across functions and processes. We know how to work globally. We transform. Relative to the rest of the enterprise, we are early adopters of technology tools. We own the data and can derive insights (like no one else likely can if only we’d focus on it). We can juggle the interests of a myriad of stakeholders. We have our CXOs’ attention. Capabilities such as these allow me to perform well in a range of roles. What’s there not to like?

Despite these impressive credentials, empirically, a relatively few GBS leaders brought in from the outside move into progressively responsible roles elsewhere in the enterprises they serve, as opposed to those leaders that come from the inside. The former are branded GBS; the latter group are seen as loyalists who live and breathe the company.

Now, it’s not impossible to stay, but there are barriers as well as conditions that foster mobility. Based on what I see, an internal move is less likely when the leader:

• Is pegged as a GBS expert. This is the primary hazard for external hires. The justification for hiring is to scratch the enterprise’s GBS itch, but branding as the GBS tsar or tsarina is not a good look when seeking enterprise mobility. Continuing to set oneself as special and apart can be hazardous; most enterprises ascribe to a standard leadership template when placing internal candidates in other roles. If a leader can help the enterprise see that GBS capabilities are much the same as those of any other good leader, internal mobility is a lot easier.
• Joins a company where long tenure is valued. Any senior executive brought in from the outside is on probation for a longish period of time, whether it’s written down or not. Will they be a cultural fit? Are their capabilities adaptable to our culture? Will they drink the corporate Kool-Aid? Will they actually deliver tangible value, or will they prove to be an empty suit? When introduced to an employee, and the first thing they tell you about themselves is the length of time they’ve spent in the company, it’s obvious that the enterprise tends first to take care of those they perceive as their own. It takes time to build the trust that says you are one of the boys or girls.
• Has a reputation as a bolter. GBS leaders, because of the nature of the role, more often than not have careers comprised of short stints. Enterprises are institutions; they are often suspicious of these short-timers.
• Hasn’t met CXO expectations. Despite the rhetoric, many CXOs have no rational idea of how long it takes to deliver sustainable value from a GBS model, nor how many bumps in the road will materialize. Despite green dashboards, there may be a nagging feeling that GBS is not delivering as expected, especially when the functions or the business constantly carp about (the lack of) GBS performance. So they see red, and blame that outsider for a multitude of sins, usually down to “they don’t understand our culture.”
• Has no relevant experience in the core business or function. Few enterprises take bets when it comes to appointing what they deem as a neophyte to run their core business. We can argue all we want that GBS is an operational role, but for many, connecting the dots between operating a service and a business is difficult. Without career experience in pretty much the same job, it’s an uphill battle.
• Demonstrates poor political nous. If learning about corporate politics doesn’t start on day one of employment, bought-in GBS leaders can face an uphill battle when it comes to corporate mobility. Sure, delivery had better be stellar, but GBS success is down to mastering the matrix of interests. Those leaders who are tone deaf when it comes to politics usually have no internal exit ramp.
• Walks in day one looking for the next move. Some GBS leaders think it’s wise to show versatility and value by pitching for the next role before their name is on the proverbial office door. The message usually doesn’t land well; it signals that the external isn’t focused on the job at hand.
• Works in a virtual company. Working from anywhere has its downside, especially for companies that haven’t settled into a virtual workforce. At executive levels, the strength of relationships can play an outsized role in consideration for other roles. Sure, there’s that excuse that the GBS leader is always on the road running a distributed empire, but out of sight can be out of mind.
• Doesn’t have visible, consistent support for the model. If the enterprise’s endorsement of the model is lukewarm at best, or CXOs consistently flip-flop on sponsorship, not only isn’t the model sustainable, but the leader will be tarred by association. Internal opportunities will likely be foreclosed.

But moves into other enterprise positions are possible for bought-in GBS leadership. What needs to be true for those seeking internal mobility?

• Functional pedigree: GBS lifers, take note. A track record of success in a function such as finance or a strong functional pedigree prior to a GBS career—think finance or IT—is accretive to the leader’s chances of mobility.  When the enterprise is evaluating internal placements, it’s easier for them to see a candidate’s GBS stint as building upon capabilities they know and success in roles they understand. There’s an off-ramp into lateral or larger functional roles.
• Analogous business experience: Career trajectory moving from sales management into GBS? Managing a region? Even plant operations early on in a GBS leader’s career? The subliminal message is that the GBS leader understands the business and is a good bet to take on another internal role.
• Proximity to stakeholders: Not only does proximity to business leaders support the sustainability of a GBS model, but it also boosts the mobility of the GBS head—that undefinable concept of being viewed as a known quantity when considered for a new role
  Rotation obsession: Employment in an enterprise committed to moving executives around after a specified period as a developmental strategy increases the chance of internal mobility for qualified GBS leaders.
• Reputation as a good manager, not just a GBS operative: When the enterprise views GBS and its leader’s value in broad business terms, it sees it as a fully aligned backbone rather than a management trend.
• Someone’s protégé: Nothing much to say on this topic; having a trusted, ascendent internal CXO as godfather or godmother can boost internal mobility.
  Now, you are probably thinking these barriers and conditions aren’t specific to the mobility challenges of GBS hires—and you’d be right. However, because we still have difficulty defining GBS capabilities and aligning them to those in other enterprise roles, the GBS leader fetched in from the outside, more often than not, has to move to a new company in the quest for career growth.

Are moves possible? Of course. Parting words for those leaders who have bought into their enterprises’ culture, align with the mission, admire the leadership, and want to stay put?

• Don’t make GBS leadership a “thing” —define it as just another enterprise transformative operational role that aligns with the business.
• Constantly connect the dots in corporate speak. Use business terms, not GBS terms.
• Send the message that you are all in!