New organisation? New role? New team? Just how fast can you go from being the new kid on the block to a fully effective Exec? There’s a lot that’s been written about ‘hitting the ground running’ and ‘making an impact on day one’, but let’s take that with a dose of reality. Just how many decisions would you make on day one that would be ill-informed, opinionated and without the benefit of solid facts? Let’s talk about 7 things you can do to be effective and make your mark fast.
- Preparation is king. Do your research, understand the company you are joining and its competitors, sample the products if you can. But don’t forget about the personal preparation. Clear the decks of personal commitments and troublesome admin, get some R&R in and set some expectations with family and friends that the first weeks or even months will be intense. Be ready for some late nights to buy you the head space you need to get into your new role.
- Find a trusted mentor or partner. Once into the role who can you rely on to act as a sounding board? This may be the person who hired you or more likely someone recommended by them. You will save time, energy and endless amounts of frustration to get an insight into ‘how things get done around here’ and opening a small window on local politics and history.
- Manage the expectations. You’ve been hired as the person who can deliver, but being rushed into quick decisions is a trap to avoid. Far better to agree which decisions and actions are most important and get buy in to the steps you are going to take.
- Bring the team with you. It’s all too easy to criticise prior regimes and point out flaws, but remember your new colleagues were all part of that history and probably fixed a whole bunch of stuff before you arrived. Be seen to build on the past not lay waste to it.
- Set the agenda. You’re unlikely to have a complete strategy after 30 days. Lay out the top issues for the team, communicate it well and get the team behind it.
- Make a call on your team. You can’t deliver in isolation, so work out the go-forward players, gaps to fill and people to move on. Get your team right early and set yourself up for success.
- Finally make a stand. People need to know who you are and what’s important to you. So choose one issue, and be known for it. Whether it’s a product quality issue, factory floor walkabouts or fixing that “leaky roof” – make a stand and make a difference.
30 days isn’t long at all, what would you do?
