I am currently reading a book called “the first 90 days". I did not expect much initially because these types of books typically yield very few powerful insights. However, I was pleasantly surprised.
First, the author argues that leaders that have been assigned to new positions often fail because they have not reassessed exactly what are the skills and learning experiences required for the new job. Perhaps the biggest pitfall that people make is assuming that's what has made them successful to this point in their career will continue to make them successful in the future, but the new job require a different approach, different skills and a different learning experience. What skills will you now need to be excellent at and where do you need to focus your learning in the next 6 months?
Second, in light of the new job, you should assess your new key responsibilities and understand how they will differ from your previous job. How is the situation different? If you fail to self reflect on the new job and fail to understand how the new organization differs from the previous companies you worked in, you will become vulnerable. Engage in a systematic learning process: write down a list of questions about the organization (including questions about past performance, goals, organizational design, benchmarking, marketing campaigns, strategy, technical capabilities, culture, politics, etc). Customers, distributors, suppliers, employees, company reports and outside analysts can help you understand the company situation – and ultimately how you fit in.
Third, build a productive working relationship with your boss, with your direct reports. Define expectations and agree on a diagnosis of the situation with your boss and direct reports. Take 100% responsibility for developing the relationship. Understand that you may know about 20% of the solution and you will need to talk to a lot of different people to be where you should be - understand about 70% of the solution. Work on coalitions and networks within the firm. Relationships are critical to get things done.
