It's Monday. Your first day as the new leader of your new team. Fresh new start. You can still taste the cake and punch from the farewell party your former co-workers had for you. You're wearing a freshly dry-cleaned suit. You're sitting in your new and empty office. So, now what?!
1. Savor the moment. Smile. Be happy. Appreciate the fact that someone has entrusted you to have this position. Someone saw the potential in you to become a leader. Every step you take from now on is a new step in your personal journey on becoming a leader.
Someone saw the potential in you to
become a leader.
2. Let it go. Think of this step as your break-up line with your previous job. Though you were hired for your skills, experiences, and past wins, it's important to realize that this is a totally new ball game. Separate the two roles by making clear separation points. It's even harder if it's a transition within the same company. It's so easy for your former colleagues to reach out to you for a question, or hover over your new office just to reminisce the "good 'ole days." You need to give your 100% focus on your new role. You owe it to the folks who picked you for the role, you owe it to the people who report to you now, and you owe it to yourself. "If I take one more step, it will be the farthest away from home I've ever been." - Samwise Gamgee (LOTR) Though in this situation, you're one more step "closer" to your new home.
3. Get to know everyone. When I say everyone, I mean EVERYONE. Not just your direct reports and those folks from other business units. Get to know the mail person, the janitor, the person making the coffee, the security guard...everyone. Walk around. Smile. Say, "hello." Don't spend too much time setting up your new office. Your new office can wait. It's time for you to explore your new playing field. Learn their names, their favorite sports team, their favorite food, how long they've been with the company, which school they went to, etc...For the first week, have your entire team wear name tags so you can learn each of their names faster. It's okay to do that. It shows them that you're priority right now is to "know" them. Wear a name tag yourself.
Listen, open your mind, take a lot of notes, and ask a lot of questions.
4. Learn. Learn. Learn. Don't just dive into learning everything about your new department. Have a plan. Look at your role closely and figure out what part of your business do you need to spend more time in, and what depth of learning will you need to know to be effective at your job. Without a plan or an agenda, you'll find yourself stuck in a learning limbo of things you may not need to have in-depth knowledge in. Listen, open your mind, take a lot of notes, and ask a lot of questions. This is not be the time to make changes in how things are being done. Just gather information and internalize the existing processes. Learning does not stop with processes and operations. Learning also means knowing "who-does-what" in the organization you're not part of. This has a direct connection with the "Get to know everyone" part of this article, but this time it means learning the individual's function and how they fit into your organization.
5. Secure early wins. You're not expected to come up with a mind-blowing, record-breaking win during this early stage in your new role. Think of small, value-adding wins that matter to your direct reports and to your new boss. After spending time "knowing" and "learning," you'll pick up some tidbits of information about some pain points. Figure out ways on how to eliminate those pain points. It can be as simple as ironing out a better lunch schedule, figuring out parking situations, a better leave calendar, or providing better work shifts for everyone--small, value-adding wins that improve the lives of the people around you in the office.
Creating small early wins infuse a positive energy toward your existence
in the company.
Creating small early wins infuse a positive energy toward your existence in the company. It excites the people around you, making them feel that you're here to make things better for them and for the company. It also builds your credibility as a new leader on the block. Earning the trust of the people around you will help secure bigger and more lucrative wins ahead of you. GOOD LUCK!