---
id: "prereq-2012-transitions-framework"
type: "prereq"
source_timestamps: ["¶2"]
tags: ["leadership-theory", "foundational-knowledge"]
related: ["framework-evolved-seven-transitions"]
reason: "The author builds the entire article as an update to his widely adopted 2012 framework; understanding the baseline definitions of the original seven shifts is assumed."
sources: ["reskilling"]
sourceVaultSlug: "hbr-seg-reskilling"
originDay: 10
articleStem: "hbr-nm-100-3-forces-manager-to-leader"
sourceUrl: "https://hbr.org/2026/06/3-forces-are-redefining-the-transition-from-manager-to-leader"
sourceTitle: "3 Forces Are Redefining the Transition from Manager to Leader"
---
# The Original 2012 Seven Transitions Framework

**Prerequisite — why it's needed:** The author builds the entire article as an update to his widely adopted 2012 framework. Understanding the baseline definitions of the original seven shifts is assumed.

The article references the original seven transitions — **specialist to generalist, analyst to integrator, tactician to strategist, bricklayer to architect, problem-solver to agenda-setter, warrior to diplomat, and supporting cast to lead role** — as a known baseline that is now being evolved in [[framework-evolved-seven-transitions]]. Note that the seventh shift's name is deliberately corrected in the update (see [[concept-unit-leader-to-enterprise-leader]]).