The new kid

The new kid 

You survived your first day, and your first week in your new role.  You're excited and keen to make an impact to the organization.  You continue to develop and revise your leadership strategy -- and you will probably continue to do so in the weeks to come. You are looking for that quick win that will help build your leadership momentum.  

You recognize that you are in active learning mode.  Not just about your new role, or organization, you are also learning a lot about individuals – those who report to you, peers and your boss, as well as yourself.  There is so much to learn that you may feel as if you’re trying to drink from a fire hose. But keep calm and be systematic about what you need to learn now and what you need to learn next. 

Systematic and focused

The key to ensure you learn quickly and thoroughly is to be systematic and focused. Determine what is the priority, and put your energy there for a defined period of time. You can tell individuals your plan and get feedback.  For example, the budget process has already been initiated so get all the information you can about the process and decision making to date. You may say to another colleague that you are putting your energies into the budget process, but you want to connect with them shortly to better understand their role, and further your understanding of the organization and its culture.

Your greatest strength can also be your greatest weakness

As discussed, everyone needs to watch out for his/her strengths.  Your identified weakness has the potential to make you vulnerable, but remember, your strengths can do the same thing. Diligent attention to detail may have served you well in the past. It helped you suceed and get you are where you are today.  It is a strength.  It can also work against you if you also feel as if you need a high degree of control.  Right now, people are watching you as you start your new role, and it may make you feel compelled to tightly control aspects.  Be careful that you are not micromanaging your people in the areas you know best.  Engaged staff want to make their own contributions but if you create too many tight controls, it can be demoralizing. Watch for this deadly combination of attention to detail and control.

Build your team

There are benefits of moving to a new organization.  You are not supervising people who were once your peers.  Often times, your peers can be jealous and may work to undermine you.  Unfortunately, there is nothing to say that individuals in this new organization may not feel the same way.  Expect early tests of your authority and plan to meet them by being both firm and fair.  If you don’t establish the limits early, you will regret it. We'll talk about team building in the weeks to come.

Getting others to accept your promotion is an essential part of promoting yourself.  You have the opportunity to make your own team.  Your team may ultimately include those who are in currently place, and as you get to know these individuals, you will have a better sense of what they bring to the team.  This is the time to have good conversations to get to know each other and start to develop trust.  If there are individuals who are never going to accept the situation and you in your new role, then you will may have to look for opportunities to have them relocated to another department or area of the organization as soon as possible.  But it is early days yet.  Individuals who are resistant may benefit from some good conversations.

Next, let’s discuss having those meaningful conversations that make connections and benefit everyone.