This is a true story of one of the worst onboarding cases in history as told by Wharton Professor Michael Useem.
May 31, 1862. The Union forces were about to overrun the Confederate capital, Richmond. Confederate President Jeff Davis went out to the front to see what was going on for himself. There he found his commander-in-chief, Joe Johnston lying on the ground, wounded and unable to continue as commander.
“General, who is your deputy?”
“Gustavus Smith.”
“General Smith, you are in command.”
“Thank you sir.”
“What is your plan to defend Richmond?”
“May I have 24 hours sir?”
Davis left. He returned the next day.
“General Smith. What is your plan?”
“Sir, I have no plan. Do you have any ideas?”
Davis had an idea: put someone else in charge. So he turned to his aide, Bob, and had him take over. Fortunately, this was not the Bob from a temporary accounting agency, but Robert E. Lee.
What went wrong?
- Neither Johnston nor Davis had a true succession plan in place
- Smith did not step up and take charge
- Davis did not give Smith any support
Essentially, they blew all three basics of onboarding: 1) Prepare in advance and get a head start; 2) Manage the message; 3) Build the team. They blew it. Lee did not. Neither will you.