Quickly pick up his or her working style
and see how you can adapt yours to
meet his or her needs and expectations.
Look back at the information you need
to establish about your job. Be proactive
in planning some goals and setting an
agenda to discuss with your boss. Fix a
date for an early interview.
Understand the senior management team:
Other senior people in the organization
will be central to your success. Find out
how they work and what they expect of
you. Get a feel for the internal politics.
Be aware that a colleague may have been
passed over for your position.
Your first meetings will be important.
If asked for your first impressions, be
constructive - don't demolish the ideas
of a potential ally. Clarify what they
expect of you and choose the right
time to suggest any modifications you
think necessary. Find out how senior
colleagues communicate. Some prefer
written reports and may welcome a brief
summary before meetings outlining issues
and suggested solutions. Others prefer
informal meetings.
Systems: Familiarize yourself with both
the formal and informal systems. Learn
the organizational jargon.
Understand your job and
what's expected of you
The selection process will have given you
an insight into what your responsibilities
will be and your reporting structure.
However, initial impressions from
interviews are rarely fully accurate or
complete. Early on - ideally within
the first six weeks you will need to
clarify: Your precise responsibilities;
The expectations of your manager and
any other senior staff whose objectives
you are supporting; Your budgetary
and management responsibilities; The
structure of your department and its place
in the organizational hierarchy; How
your function or department is perceived
within the organization (is it held in high
regard, and if not, why not?); Lateral
lines of responsibility and liaison; and
86 MAL28/19 ISSUE
Key internal customers and suppliers
you need to establish effective working
relationships with.
Establish your performance
measures and targets
You are likely to operate in some kind of
performance review system, where you are
set for or agree on a series of objectives
with your manager. It is important that
you are given clear parameters and targets
to channel your contribution effectively.
If you are not given any specific targets in
the initial period, you should agree with
your manager: your key job functions - the
areas where you will make a significant
contribution; a series of measurable
objectives that you review regularly (e.g.
how you contribute to the overall corporate
pursuit; profitability and development of
your department and the organization as
a whole; and the measurement criteria
for you and your department (so you can
check that your performance targets are
realistic and achievable).
If your organization does not set objectives
or targets, set yourself a series of similar
goals to work towards and discuss them
with your manager. They will also help you
to monitor your own progress.
Consider your training
needs
Investigate both technical training, which
your employer is more likely to provide,
and 'softer' training in management and
interpersonal skills. Think about drawing
up a training plan that will address your
needs and act as a framework for your
personal development.
Quickly establish key
Personal relationships
Get to know your boss: Establishing
an effective working relationship with
your boss is one of your main priorities.
Get to know your team: You will probably
find your new team welcoming and
supportive. However, if you are replacing
someone they particularly liked, they may
be suspicious and uncommunicative. Stay
positive and allow time to get to know
each other.
Your team will be seeking reassurance that
you will not 'rock the boat' too much and
yet have something to offer. Be outward
looking and show an interest in what
people do. Be seen as someone who looks
beyond your own work. Avoid talking
about your old job: colleagues will soon
tire of constant comparisons or hearing
how good or bad people were at the old
place!
Get yourself known: Take steps to make
yourself known beyond your department.
Use your networking skills to establish key
contacts in other divisions and try to draw
out what their priorities are and where
any conflicts between your departments
may arise. Invest in your relationships
with external suppliers too.
Consider the impression you make: As
you get to understand the culture, think
carefully about the kind of initial impact
you want to make or the kind of impression
The first few weeks in a new job can be
quite traumatic. Your new organization
won't have the same standards and meth-
ods as the old one and may be very dif-
ferent from what you expected, especially
if you are moving from a large organiza-
tion to a small entrepreneurial company
or from public sector to private.
you wish to create: Is it important that
you appear decisive early on? Or will it be
more appropriate to spend time listening?
What kinds of expectations do you want
to create? Make sure you will be able to
deliver them later on.
A Strategy for the First three Months:
The next activity will help you to develop
an entry strategy for your new position
- one that will strike the right balance
between your need to make the most of
this opportunity and your other priorities
and interests.
One or two weeks in activity
Try to answer these questions about
the new organization: Culture and
philosophy: How are things done? What
are the organization's core values? Politics:
Who makes decisions? Who has actual
power? Your boss: What is their working
style? How can you best reflect this?
Senior colleagues: Who do you need to
build relationships with? How do they
operate? Team: Which management styles
will best suit the team? Your job: What are
your main work objectives? How will you
know if your performance is successful?
(Don't be too ambitious: choose attainable
targets which will boost your confidence).
Improving on the past: What can you
do better than you did in your previous
position? Family: How can you make
time for your family? Achieving balance:
What can you do to keep physically and
emotionally fit and to keep work balance
in your life?
The rest of your life starts now. This
program has given you the chance to
review your goals, to learn from the past
and to consider aspects of your life which
may need changing. Now that you have
found the kind of work you want, don't
ignore all that you have learned.
Changing technology, shorter job
retention cycles and flatter organizations
mean that no job can be seen as permanent.
You need to make sure you are ready for
the next move.
Acknowledge that your future will change
again: Many of the techniques you used
in gaining market information, in making
contacts and in finding work can be used
when you are preparing for your next
career move. Keep up-to-date on change
in your sector, changes in the economy
generally and other possible career options
so that you stay ahead of the game.
Be Prepared: You should now have a much
clearer idea of your ambitions, strengths,
weaknesses, goals and marketability.
Maintain your skills and develop new
ones. Keep an eye open for additional
tasks, which will broaden your skill
base and increase your profile. Market
yourself positively inside and outside your
organization and maintain your network
of personal contacts, including being a
helpful contact for someone else.
Dr. Clifford J. Ferguson is the
Managing Partner of Rainmakers,
and Chairman of Glad’s House.
You can commune with him on this
or related matters via email at: Cliff.
[email protected],
or
visit their website: Rainmakers.
uk.com.