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I have internal interview for high level position... tips on making suggestions for change without looking or being critical of current management.

The Wandering Dev Manager
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jason
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    Voting to close as too broad. Without knowing anything about your company, the position, and your opinions it's hard to give meaningful answers. They could be about the car park policy, the refusal to offer health food in the cafeteria, requests to fix the airconditioning not coming through, your denied salary raise, or the condescending tone your boss uses when you enthusiastically talk to your colleague about the latest Pluto pictures during work hours. –  Jul 16 '15 at 12:59
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    You might want to expand your question, are you filling the shoes of a successful manager, looking to be promoted within your department or moving into a failing team. Without more information I agree with the vote to close. – Dustybin80 Jul 16 '15 at 12:59
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    An "I will make things around here work better" attitude will probably be better recieved than "There are a lot of problems around here". Make your answers be about improvements not deficiencies. If you have to mention deficiencies do not assign blame. – Myles Jul 16 '15 at 13:34
  • it is for leading a major division on an organization... a VP is leaving and economic conditions internally have been on the slide and department moral it at an all time low. Most importantly they are looking for someone with ideas and vision ; however, I know they will touch upon current conditions and ask what "do you think?" – jason Jul 16 '15 at 20:57

2 Answers2

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tips on making suggestions for change without looking or being critical of current management.

  1. Present ideas you believe would provide the company with operational efficiency improvements internally or competitive advantages in the marketplace as you see it from your role/potential role in a new position.

  2. Highlight the successes and current strengths existing practices are providing the organization but do it in a fashion where you want to add to it. Don't come off as wanting to just outright change or outdo what current management has done. Present yourself as an ally and asset to the current senior management.

  3. Present your ideas as a visionary. You have to breathe and live the company vision and high level objectives as though they are your own. You want to be seen as an ally, not someone who's going to generate too much change too quickly and cause friction in the management ranks. Sometimes being a good leader means you have to be a good corporate politician.

Alex
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If you're going to be in management, you better become proficient at this. You're going to make changes and hold people accountable, so they better embrace what you're proposing and not be made to feel like idiots.

Constraints change over time.

  • resource and time availability
  • personnel skill sets
  • customer/market trends
  • technological improvements

All of these factors can affect decisions. It's important that you understand why things are done the way they are, so you can compare and contrast the changes in the constraints that lead you to do things differently.

Style People just do things different. It can be due to personality and/or experiences. You may be more hands-off than the last manager. Both styles work, but you just have a different preference. There could be certain traits of different teams and departments that may require you to lean one way or the other (not all things are clear cut). Recognizing this can make a difference.

Things change. People change. Some people have their way of doing things. It doesn't mean having a different perspective makes the other person inferior. Just different.