#136: You got the job. Now what? (PT 2)

You got the job. Now what? Today is our second letter on achieving success in your new job. Last week’s letter focused on some of the first steps you should take.

In summary, they are:

• Take care of yourself – your health, your emotions, and the relationships that support you.
• There is not a lot of time in the first 100 days, so prioritise your efforts.
• Align your expectations and action plans with your immediate manager or with your Board. Know that it will be an evolving conversation.
• Don’t think you need to have all the answers.
• Don’t challenge everything. Identify the organisation’s successes. Look for the good.

If you know someone who has just started a new job, please share today’s letter with them.

Let’s go to the rest of Neff and Citrin’s 8-Point Plan for a successful start to your new job.

/strategy

Each organisation, and each team within that organisation, has a distinct culture. Take the time to understand it. If your strategy doesn’t align with the culture, it won’t work.

Neff and Citrin quote numerous CEOs who say the same thing, you can’t decree change. They share examples of CEOs who tried to push strategies too quickly that didn’t align with the organizational culture. Those CEOs were forced out.

So, learn the culture. Become an anthropologist and a sociologist.  Understand both the history of the organisation and the biographies of the people who are in it. Both are critical.

Ask about the ‘keepers of the faith’.  Find them and listen to them. Each organisation has them. They’re not always in prominent positions, but they’re the people who know the culture, are passionate about its purpose, and can alert you to the landmines that are in every organisation.

You probably also need to be a linguist of sorts. Each business has its own language. Learn what it is. Be conscious of your language. You’ll arrive with defaults from your own career and whilst examples from your previous successes are useful, remember that you’re in a new home – especially if you’re coming from a competitor!

Tonality is important – a marketer’s enthusiasm may not inspire a team of engineers. Think about your audience.

Remember that different audiences have different needs, tailor your message and approach to the recipient. It’s not duplicitous to do so, it is communicating in a way that you’re heard. Be consistent in your values and your priorities but shape the message for your audience.

Learn the organisation’s essence. Ask about successes, both projects and people.

Understand the failures and what has already been attempted – it doesn’t mean that they can’t be tried again but know that there’ll be sensitivities.

If it’s possible, connect with your predecessor, invariably they’ll have useful insights.

As you deepen your understanding of the culture, you’ll deepen your credibility – you’re listening and you’re looking for the best in your context, both are powerful ways to build trust.

Of course, the culture may need to change. You have to be able to hold the paradox of fitting in, whilst not settling to the degree that you lose sight of what’s needed. Remember that you can’t instruct culture change, it needs to be created and it will take time.

One way to create change is through recruitment. Neff and Citrin remind us that “The team you construct will magnify your management methods and your message. Who you are and how well you recognise the strengths and weaknesses in your skills will directly affect how effective your team is. In fact, everything about your team is a reflection of you – for better or for worse”.

Identify quick wins but know that creating a proper plan will take time and ensure that you build it collaboratively. Even when there’s a crisis, you’ll need support, if you move on your own – especially as a new CEO – don’t be surprised when you find yourself alone.

When we start a new job, we confront the dilemma do we go fast or slow?

Jim Collins and Morten Hansen’s research is a great guide “We found that some of the best decisions happened fast and some of the best decisions happened more slowly. We learned that the critical question to ask in any given situation is, ‘How much time do we have before our risks change?’ In some situations, you’ll incur no significant increased risk (of either catastrophe or of missing a huge opportunity) by taking more time to decide. In other situations, however, you’ll dramatically increase your risks by waiting too long. The key is to know which situation you are in, not to have a bias for ‘always fast’ or ‘always slow.’ You need to be good at both. The right decision made in the wrong time frame is a bad decision.”

Let’s pause for a second and imagine that you’re the manager of a new recruit. Re-read the above. What can you do to enable their success?

Here’re a few ideas – be clear if there are immediate risks that need attention; explain how you like to work; set up regular meetings to discuss what they’re learning (at minimum once a week); be clear if you feel they’re missing nuances of the culture and be open to hearing what they’re seeing (after all you hired them for the fresh thinking); set up meetings with key stakeholders for them; be conscious that you both need to build a shared understanding – their success is your success.

/self

In the midst of all this awareness of culture, new language, building relationships, agreeing a future vision, acting at the right time, creating consensus, it is quite easy to lose sight of a fundamental fact, you were hired because you’re you.

Michael Meade reminds us that “If you don’t know who you are, anyone can name you”.

Marcus Buckingham and Ashley Goodall add the science, writing that  “… the research into high performance in any profession or endeavor reveals that excellence is idiosyncratic. The well-rounded high performer is a creature of the theory world. In the real world, each high performer is unique and distinct and excels precisely because that person has understood his or her uniqueness and cultivated it intelligently.”

So, know who you are. Play to your strengths. Be clear about where you’ll need help. Be you. And frankly, if you can’t be you, find a new place to contribute your skill and knowledge.

/soul

Artist, Louise Bourgeois’ comment “Work is a kind of voyage toward self-improvement” is a good way to end today.

A new job is a journey. Prepare. Plan it. Do it with good people. Take it easy. Enjoy yourself.

All the best

Karl

PS: You can subscribe to this letter here. If you’d like to work with me, you can learn more about my coaching practice here.

PPS: Here are some of the common mistakes made by new leaders and you might also want to read about being great at work.