Don’t Move for the Title, Move for the Mission

5 Lessons From a 17-Year Corporate Journey Transformation to the New Position

Seventeen years in one company is long enough to weave its culture into your own DNA. During my time as Global Head of Mobility and Internet of Things at a leading global corporation, I had the privilege of working with brilliant minds across continents, helping scale platforms that connected millions, and learning the discipline of global operations. Those years shaped my professional foundation – they taught me how to think big, lead with empathy, and deliver with consistency.

 

Over time, however, a quiet question began to emerge – was my learning curve still steep enough? Had I continued to evolve, or had familiarity turned into a comfort zone? It wasn’t dissatisfaction that sparked this reflection, but rather a deep curiosity to test myself again – to build, to grow, and to lead in a new environment. That realization led me to a different arena altogether – to join a fast-moving fintech enterprise as its Chief Operating Officer, where agility replaces hierarchy, and innovation is not a department but a daily rhythm.

For those who find themselves weighing a similar decision, here are the five lessons that I’ve learned during this transition.

Listen carefully

People often assume that when you start a senior role, you walk in with authority and with a clear vision of what to do and how to do it. In reality, starting over at the C-level is not that easy, since it means changing places or even industries. So, your first sixty days at the new company should be about listening to your team. You should spend time with every function — engineering, compliance, product, operations, simply to understand how the company operates. 

Just like when you travel to a new country, you don’t land in a new city and start giving directions. You walk, observe, and learn how it moves. It works the same in any company — you are not there for auditing. Try to absorb and walk in with curiosity and humility.

Build trust by consistency

Don’t treat it, however, as starting from zero. Try to see it as applying the strength and depth developed at the previous job but in a new arena. To prepare mentally, I reminded myself of a simple principle from strength training: progress comes from changing the load and tempo. Use the same principle because you don’t get stronger by repeating what you’ve already mastered.

Then start to build trust by being consistent, by asking questions before offering answers, and by aligning with the mission. It’s not about metrics at all. Credibility, in my view, is about being the most dependable one when things get tough. In a new environment, people pay more attention to how you show up than to what you say.

Know what to keep and what to leave behind

Of course, a long period of time spent in one working environment gives a tuned instinct on how to do the job, so it can even become quite mechanical. That’s why you should think about what you want to bring with you from that experience and what to leave behind. In my case, I brought to the new fintech a few things that had served me well: how to scale, how to understand complexity, knowing when to push and when to pause. 

But other habits had to be left behind, for example, the luxury of the structure or the predictability. In a more flexible environment like fintech, everything changes in the blink of an eye and the constant feeling of urgency always chases you. That’s why it’s worth understanding that what worked well in your past company can’t always apply in the new one, especially if it’s fintech.

The best way I can describe it is like moving from training on machines to training with free weights. In a large company, the machines help you lift in predictable ways. In a fintech, every push demands balance and sharper form. You still grow stronger, but you use different muscles. 

Travel light, but bring your values

And just as important, don’t move for the title, move for the mission. You have to be excited about the new position and the new problem you’ll be solving. 

Leave your past role with gratitude, because how you exit says as much about your leadership as what you have achieved. And when you step into a new environment, travel light, but pack your values – integrity, empathy and purpose – but leave behind the urge to replicate your old playbook. Every organization and every team has its own rhythm.

Always be open to the new 

Finally, stay open to constant learning. At this stage of your career, you’re proving that you can still evolve, as no one needs the proof that you are a leader. That mindset where you have the willingness to grow and build with purpose is what defines lasting leadership.

So what comes after? It is a finish to one story, but also recalibration — a chance to take the depth of what you’ve learned and apply it in a new arena. Leadership, after all, is not measured by how long you stay in one place, but by how willing you are to grow when you move on.