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Leadership Transition Playbook: What New CEOs (and Aspiring Leaders) Can Learn from Kim Harris Campbell’s Move

ffindjob

2026-01-27

10 min read

A practical transition playbook—what new CEOs and boards can learn from Kim Harris Campbell’s Century 21 move to hire smart, onboard fast, and lead with clarity.

Hook: New CEO? Your first 90 days will define your tenure — and your job postings, hiring, and board work must align now

Stepping into a CEO role or a newly created board seat is exciting — and terrifying. You need to move fast to build credibility, secure talent, and stabilize revenue, yet every misstep during transition can ripple through recruiting, retention, and company reputation. The recent leadership change at Century 21 New Millennium — where Kim Harris Campbell moved in as CEO while founders shifted to a newly formed board — crystallizes a repeatable playbook for leaders and hiring teams navigating executive transitions in 2026.

Why the Century 21 change matters now

Century 21 New Millennium’s leadership reshuffle is more than a personnel update. It models a modern succession playbook: a practiced external hire (Harris Campbell, with Compass experience), founders converting operational roles into governance roles, and fund/partner involvement (Peerage Realty Partners) shaping strategic continuity. For managers, HR leaders, and aspiring executives, this is a practical case study in aligning CEO onboarding with talent and hiring practices during a structural change.

Key lessons at a glance

Intentional governance matters: moving founders to a board stabilizes institutional memory while giving a successor room to act.
Signal alignment: announcing both the new CEO and an active board reduces market uncertainty and supports recruiting during transition.
Role clarity reduces churn: defined CEO vs. board roles protect both strategic execution and oversight.

The Leadership Transition Playbook — executive summary

This playbook adapts Century 21’s approach into a step-by-step plan for new CEOs, incoming board members, and managers promoted into executive posts. Use it to guide onboarding, succession planning, hiring strategy, and job posting best practices so your organization advances without disruption.

Core phases

Pre-transition preparation (30–90 days prior or immediate first actions)
Day 1 to 30: Stabilize & listen
Day 31 to 90: Set cadence & quick wins
Month 3 to 12: Scale, measure, and codify

1. Pre-transition: build a runway before you land

Whether you’re internal or an external hire like Kim Harris Campbell, pre-transition work shortens the learning curve.

Stakeholder map: Identify owners, board members (existing and incoming), top clients, and recruiting leads. Document expectations and open risks.
People audit: Ask HR for turnover metrics, top-of-funnel candidate pipelines, and hard-to-fill roles — this will inform immediate hiring priorities.
Communication plan: Draft internal and external announcement templates. Include clear role definitions and who will handle hiring and interviews during transition.
Early hiring posture: Decide whether to pause big searches (to avoid mixed messages) or accelerate strategic hires to signal momentum.

2. Day 1–30: stabilize with listening tours and immediate hires

First impressions set the tempo. Your goal: learn quickly and remove one or two obvious blockers.

Immediate actions (first week)

Public announcement that clarifies roles. Use the Century 21 example: founders remained involved via a board — that reassures staff and partners.
Conduct a structured listening tour with senior leadership, high-performing middle managers, and top revenue-generating teams—30-minute sessions focused on top risks and opportunities.
Confirm the hiring freeze or acceleration lists: which roles must be filled in 30 days to keep operations intact?

Hiring and job posting best practices for the transition

Job postings during a leadership change need extra clarity. They should market stability and growth simultaneously.

Title clarity: Use internal-consistent titles (avoid “acting” for core roles unless temporary).
Outcome-based descriptions: Write job posts that emphasize outcomes and KPIs for the role — this attracts performers who want impact over vague responsibilities. For help drafting clear outcomes and timelines, consider using prompt templates to speed copy iteration.
Leadership signals: Mention the new CEO/board only when it supports the role (e.g., “Work closely with new CEO to scale product-led growth”).
Remote/hybrid detail: State hybrid expectations, time-zone constraints, and travel cadence — by 2026 candidates expect this detail up front. If you use distributed tools, consult guidance on hybrid edge workflows to align processes.
AI and tools stack: Be transparent about tools candidates will use (e.g., people analytics, LLM-based documentation) — alignment reduces onboarding friction.

3. Day 31–90: set cadence, establish priorities, and show quick wins

This is the make-or-break period. The Century 21 transition used governance to protect continuity; your analogous card is early victories and structured governance.

Define your 90-day charter

Identify the top three company objectives and the top three hiring priorities that support them.
Publish a transparent 90-day plan for leadership and hiring teams so recruiters can align pipelines with business goals.
Hold weekly leadership check-ins and a monthly all-hands; keep the board updated with a clear metrics pack.

Onboarding your senior team

Role charters: Each exec should produce a one-page charter outlining scope, KPIs, and 90-day goals.
Hiring roadmap: A prioritized list of hires for the next 6 months with green/yellow/red risk ratings.
Succession mapping: Quick identification of who can step up if key leaders leave; this reduces panic hiring and protects institutional knowledge.

4. Month 3–12: scale, measure, and codify

After 90 days you should have momentum. The next phase is to institutionalize change and establish measurement systems.

People analytics: Implement dashboards for attrition, time-to-hire, offer acceptance rates, and diversity metrics tied to each hiring funnel.
Process documentation: Codify hiring workflows, interview scorecards, and onboarding pathways so new hires experience consistent entry.
Board engagement: Formalize the board’s role — advisory vs. governance — and publish meeting cadence and deliverables (e.g., strategic plan updates every quarter).

Board roles and founder transitions: the Century 21 pattern

Founders moving to the board is a common pattern in mature firms; Century 21’s approach gives leaders runway without exiting expertise. Here’s how to replicate it thoughtfully.

Designing a productive founder-to-board transition

Define boundaries: Publish a written charter explaining decisions reserved for the board vs. the CEO.
Maintain influence without day-to-day authority: Use the board for strategic input, fundraising, and major hires — avoid micromanagement.
Leverage institutional memory: Engage founders in mentoring and culture work to retain identity while empowering new leadership.

“I’ve been incredibly fortunate to build this company alongside exceptional agents and leaders. While my role is changing, my commitment to NM and its people is not.” — Todd Hetherington

This quote encapsulates the ideal founder shift: visible commitment without role overlap that hinders new leadership productivity.

Hiring guide: tactical job posting and recruiting tips during transitions

Hiring is one of the most fragile processes during leadership change. Use these 2026-forward tactics to keep your pipeline healthy.

Write job posts that reduce uncertainty

Lead with stability: State the company’s long-term vision and governance setup to reassure candidates.
Outcomes over tasks: Use measurable outcomes (e.g., “increase ARR by X% in 12 months”) instead of vague duties.
Flexible requirements: Prioritize skills and achievements over exact years of experience — skills-based hiring increases candidate pools.
Screening transparency: Describe your interview stages and expected decision timeline (e.g., three interviews in 3 weeks).

Interview design and scorecards

Use structured scorecards for consistency; attribute weighting should reflect role priorities (culture add, technical skill, operational impact).
Include a “fit with leadership transition” question to gauge candidate adaptability.
Use asynchronous video interviews and LLM-assisted summaries (where compliant) to accelerate screening and reduce bias — a common trend by 2026.

Employer branding during change

Publish a leader’s welcome video and a board statement to your careers page. Visual signals reduce candidate drop-off.
Highlight training, mentorship, and succession pathways in your job descriptions to attract career-minded applicants.

Metrics every incoming CEO should track

Use these KPIs to ground your early decisions — they link hire quality to business results.

Time-to-impact hires: Average time for new hires to reach defined performance milestones.
Offer acceptance rate: A signal of employer brand and competitiveness.
Attrition of top performers: Track voluntary exits of top 20% performers in the first year.
Customer churn vs. hiring pace: Align hiring cadence with revenue retention.
Board engagement score: Frequency and usefulness of board feedback measured via anonymized leader surveys.

2026 trends that new CEOs must use — and avoid

Transitions that ignore modern dynamics fail faster. Use these trends to accelerate, not distract.

Must-use trends

Generative AI for onboarding: Use LLMs to create role-specific onboarding guides, interview summaries, and training content, reducing time-to-productivity.
Skills-first hiring: Move beyond resumes to work sample tests and micro-assessments that predict on-the-job success.
Analytics-led recruiting: Link ATS data to business outcomes so hiring choices are evidence-based.
Flexible talent models: Combine full-time staff with fractional executives and strategic contractors for speed and cost control.

Trends to use cautiously

Overreliance on automation: Excessive LLM-sourced communication can feel impersonal — preserve human touch for critical stakeholder conversations. See simple briefs to keep AI output crisp and human-friendly.
Blurred governance: Keeping founders too active in daily decisions undermines new leadership — set clear decision rights from the start.

Case study checklist: Applying Century 21’s model to your company

Use this quick checklist to evaluate and act.

Did you publish a clear role definition for the new CEO and board? (Yes/No)
Is there a 90-day plan shared publicly with employees? (Yes/No)
Are top 5 hiring priorities aligned to the 90-day plan? (Yes/No)
Does the board have a charter and meeting cadence? (Yes/No)
Have you updated job postings to reflect stability, outcomes, and flexible work terms? (Yes/No)
Is people analytics feeding hiring decisions? (Yes/No)

Practical templates: sample day-1 announcement and job-post blurb

Day-1 announcement (short)

"Today we welcome [Name] as CEO. [Founder(s)] will join the board to support strategy and ensure continuity. Together, leadership will focus on [top 3 priorities]. We commit to transparency and timely hiring to support growth."

Job-post blurb (for critical hire during transition)

"We're hiring a Director of Sales to help scale ARR by 30% in 12 months. You will work directly with our CEO and Board to build a scalable sales engine. Hybrid role based in [City], flexible remote options. Key outcomes: grow pipeline by X, raise win rate to Y, hire and mentor a team of 6 in 9 months."

Common pitfalls and how to avoid them

Pitfall: Lack of clarity on who owns hiring decisions. Fix: Publish a recruitment RACI (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed).
Pitfall: Too many public changes at once. Fix: Stage announcements and keep candidate-facing vacancies stable.
Pitfall: Ignoring culture risk. Fix: Run pulse surveys and set retention targets for top performers.

Final recommendations for aspiring leaders and hiring teams

Leadership transitions are a choreography of communication, hiring discipline, and governance. Century 21 New Millennium’s move — positioning Kim Harris Campbell as CEO while creating a strategic board with founders and strategic partners — shows how to respect institutional legacy while enabling fresh executive momentum.

As an incoming CEO or a hiring leader in 2026, your winning strategy mixes 1) quick listening and stabilization, 2) outcome-based hiring and clear job postings, 3) analytics-driven recruiting, and 4) a transparent board/CEO boundary. Do these well and you’ll shorten time-to-impact, retain top talent, and steer growth without unnecessary churn.

Call to action

If you're stepping into a CEO or senior role, download our free Leadership Transition Checklist and the 90-Day CEO Plan template at findjob.live — or contact our employers' team to align job postings and hiring pipelines to your first 90 days. Start your transition with a plan that hires for impact and governance that protects legacy — then build lasting momentum.

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