The Last 90 Days at a Company

This solo episode opens with Alexander's own transition after nearly ten years at one company. Giving notice is framed not as the beginning of the process but as a hard-to-reverse commitment point: before it, a person needs to recognize signals, test hypotheses, and choose among three outcomes — redesign the current role, move internally, or leave the company.

Diagnosis separates persistent dissatisfaction from one bad week, month, or project. An energy log reveals which tasks, people, and contexts restore energy and which drain it. Tasks, role boundaries, working rhythms, and authority can often change; the economics, nature of the business, and strategic choices often cannot. A redesigned job still needs to support autonomy, competence, and connection with other people.

A career retrospective gathers turning points, scale, recurring themes, contributions, costs, and evidence of results. The next role should be described through accountability, decisions, and outcomes rather than title. Internal informational interviews, a trial project, and part-time work can prototype the role, while the external market calibrates expectations. A move needs a mutual contract covering mandate, resources, boundaries, and evaluation criteria. In the EM-versus-IC discussion, Alexander stresses that his technically intensive style demands continuous learning and is not universal.

Handover is required for all three outcomes. A transition map covers decisions, people, systems, operating rhythms, risks, and informal connections. After the announcement, the departing leader becomes an adviser: first transferring decision rights and helping the successor make initial calls, then passing on context, relationships, and access. Documents do not replace knowledge, and post-exit support must be bounded. Success is demonstrated when the team can operate without its former owner.