How to survive a management change in a startup

I started as an entry-level engineer at the general aviation company, AA. During my time with the company we have gone through several different management shuffles, additions, losses, and re-shuffles.

Each one of these adjustments can change your current position significantly, either through more responsibility, visibility, or a desired side step. If your not positioned well however, management will make its best guess as to where you belong and could get you locked into a new position that you are not to happy about.

The following steps should help get you get closer to what you are seeking.


1. Make your intentions known.

Not letting anyone know what you want to do makes it much more difficult to get it from them.

Develop and maintain your 2 min elevator pitch. You need to have an idea of where you want to be within the company in 2 yrs, and in 5 yrs. Upper management changes happen quickly and without much warning. When it happens there is generally a scramble to reorganize things quickly. When your boss asks you where you want to be in the company in 2 yrs, he is feeling around his group to determine who can be shifted where and still be happy/productive.

2. Build credibility and keep it/Stand Out of the Crowd

Having a position and projects that are on the radar of upper management is good exposure and opens doors for movement upwards later. Name recognition associated with successful projects comes in handy when the org chart gets shuffled. Your superiors will have you in mind when they need someone to step up and fill a new position.
This is especially handy when new upper managers are brought on board. If your boss and many others speak highly of you to new management you will be included in the new managements plans. If however you do not have a track record that the new management can use to understand your capabilities they will more than likely bring in new talent to cover it.

3. Be Flexible.
Usually accompanying management change is a slightly different company focus. Even though upper management tries to keep things moving forward in a similar manner, new managers have different views on how the projects should proceed. This means that you may need to stick out some less exciting work for the betterment of the company. Things change very fast early on. There is a good chance in 3-6 months there will be a chance for you to change your focus to more exciting projects.

aaron.berndt