Getting off to a great start in your new leadership role

Just recently, a former clients called me and asked whether I could support him during his 1st 100 days in a new leadership role. He is leaving his current organization and moving into an even more interesting leadership role even more responsible role.

This request made me think of similar projects during the past couple of years. I had a smile on my face. Yes, my professional backpack is full of tools and methods, and I can draw from a wealth of experience with different organisations and people.

Leaders that worked with me during the first couple of weeks in a new role gained additional certainty about critical topics, successful stakeholder management, their own strategic storyline and roadmap, and most of all: how to avoid serious mistakes.

Just a few thoughts

There are many things to consider, but the following six success factors are an almost safe way to get started in a smart way:

Knowledge: You use your expertise and industry knowledge to quickly distinguish between the important and the unimportant, so that your team, your peers and your superiors feel that they have hired the right person.

Network: You cultivate strong relationships with key stakeholders, but you also build broad relationships with leaders and key people to enhance your effectiveness in the future by your ability to draw on resources and relationships across the organization

Leading people: Articulate a vision for the future, and a strategy how to get there. The vision should be inspiring and achievable. Understand strengths but also possible performance gaps in your team. You are able to foster buy-in and collective ownership of the new goals, but also to adjust the skill set in your team if necessary.

Agenda: You seek to understand what key stakeholders expect from you, and align your priorities with your superior. You communicate your agenda and roadmap, and manage expectations. You wisely define milestones that can help build credibility and momentum, and that you will deliver during the first 30-60-90 days.

Balance: Ensure the necessary balance of stability and change, and balance short-term achievements with long-term strategy. Respect what the organisation achieved so far and start to introduce innovations carefully.

Focus: You set priorities, and you deliver as promised. Agree with your boss on what your success in the first year looks like and derive your key activities for your first months. Make your agenda and your mission transparent to other stakeholders.

More to come

While I was preparing my next meeting with a leader who is going to start a new leadership role, I decided to give my offer a new shape and started to describe and visualize the tools and methods that are crucial for the first 100 days.

The result is a practical workbook for leaders and a basis for coaching sessions that we will have during this critical first phase in a new job.

Do you want to learn more about how to successfully navigate the 1st 100 days in a new leadership role? Read more on the CambiaLINE website and contact me: contact(at)cambialine.ch