Interviewing Isn’t One-Sided, Especially When the Mandate is Change

When you’re interviewing for an executive role, you’re not just being evaluated.
You’re evaluating the company just as much as they’re evaluating you.

Not every leadership role is the same.
Some roles are about maintaining stability, optimizing operations, and continuing a good trajectory.
Others are explicitly about driving transformational change, rewriting the playbook, not just playing the game.

When the mandate is transformation, I look for two things very closely:

1. Can I actually make a difference here?
- The best opportunities are the ones where you can see your impact clearly even during the interview process.
- You can see the levers to pull.
- You can see the gaps you could close.
- You can envision a better version of the organization, and your role in helping get it there.

2. Are they truly ready to change?
- This is the harder one.
- Change isn’t just about strategy decks and new org charts.
- It’s about discomfort.
- It’s about shifting culture, challenging old habits, and doing the hard things leadership teams have avoided.

If the executive team isn’t willing to experience the pain of change, then they’re not really ready for transformation, no matter what they say.

I sometimes think of it like an alcoholic hiring someone to help them get sober… but they’re not ready to stop drinking.

As candidates, especially as leaders, we owe it to ourselves to look for alignment between ambition and readiness.

A great executive role isn’t just where you have the capabilities to succeed.

It’s where the organization is ready to succeed with you.

Have you ever walked away from a promising role because the company wasn’t truly ready to change?

How do you assess “readiness for transformation” when you’re interviewing?

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