On day one at CUA, I shared my 90-day plan with the
CEO. I had prepared this plan before walking through the company’s
doors for the first time. It was also shared with my peers over the next
few days and weeks during our initial one-on-one meetings.
From
day one, my diary was populated with meetings that were inherited and
my inbox was full of messages from internal and external contractors.
It’s likely that yours is too no matter where you are working.
First
things first, I meet with my executive assistant to determine how we
are going to work together. We discuss when I need some ‘think time’,
the priorities in my schedule, how to best deal with vendors and other
external requests, and my overall plans for the next three months.
Setting
out my own agenda was the most important task I completed during this
period at CUA and in other previous roles. I learnt very quickly that
events and meetings would consume me unless I was clear where I wanted
to focus my time and energy.
My next priority
was to get some regular face time with my direct manager, as there are
always going to be some tips and traps that are mentioned during the
interview process.
After securing time with my
direct manager, my first task was to determine his expectations. I ask
for clarification on the burning issues while actively listening to his
concerns. I knew that I only received a download of what was top of mind
for my manager; there would be other items on the agenda that weren’t
immediately communicated to me.
At this early
stage, it is critical that as a new CIO, you learn and challenge what
you are being told. Your honeymoon period ends quickly so the sooner you
are seen to be taking charge, the better.
My
advice here is to ask your direct manager where he or she expects you to
be from a broader leadership standpoint. Discuss specific areas that
you could provide energy and focus. Then walk your manager through your
30, 60 and 90-day plan and ask for input and ideas. I did.
It’s
also useful to understand some basics around how to work you’re your
manager; ask questions like: When issues arise, should I use voicemail,
email or field calls through his or her assistant?
Create your brand
While
you may be quietly confident you can succeed, you are aware of the fact
that the previous CIO was perceived by his or her peers in a certain
way.
But what the previous CIO did or didn’t do
is irrelevant. Creating your own brand is important and you will need to
consider what will be particularly valued and expected of you.
Remember
your brand is ‘what they say about you when you are not in the room’.
Being as explicit as possible in the first day, first week and first
months is vital. As the new leader, you are setting the expectation of
what normal means to you.
In my first 30 days at
CUA, I was feeling mixed emotions as I mentally transitioned from my
old position and started to understand what was expected of me in this
new role.
You may feel the same. It’s likely
that you feel that everyone wants a piece of you, and you may be a
little unsure about how to interact with others.
The
overarching theme for your first month is ‘people’. In particular, you
need to spend the bulk of your time with your internal customer. You’ll
also be well aware that your new team is anxiously waiting to engage
with you, so getting this balance right will be your challenge.
Engage your peers and staff
Be
sure to meet with as many people as you can at the organisation as
early as possible. At these meetings, tell them what you stand for, how
you like to work and what you expect.
Share your
30, 60, and 90-day plan with them. While some of this will be
sensitive, remember that telling them what you are focusing on will
eliminate much of their personal anxiety.
I
remember sharing a short list of 5 things that I expected from my team
when I started at CUA. It was interesting to see that many staff later
printed out this and stuck this on their cubicles.
In
one-on-one and group meetings, I smile but ask many questions, some of
these interactions are to learn about the culture and the people. These
innocent discussions get repeated and whatever I ask is shared around
and this helps staff form their perceptions of me as a person and my
agenda.
Engaging your peers and the business in introductory discussions is
going to be what seems like an endless series of one-on-one meetings.
Some of these will be very cordial and others possibly more contentious
from the get go.
After the initial meetings with
key internal staff, take some time to prepare a ‘stakeholder analysis
and influence map.’ Try to anticipate where they are now from a
relationship standpoint and how you will build your coalitions going
forward. Be sure to ‘test’ these assumptions with these persons in your
follow-ups.
From my last experience, I learnt
that your peer’s perception of your role has often been well formed from
your predecessor and it takes a concerted effort to shift whatever
baggage exists.
In these first meetings with my
peers, after the general niceties and understanding the context of their
role, I asked them what they thought was required to change.
I also made sure that I asked them to help with my own orientation to speed up my own learnings about the business.
More
specifically, these were great opportunity for understanding if there
were critical issues. Paying personal attention to this without taking
over is going to set the right tone with the organisation.
Make an impact
As
you examine your portfolio, you can make a large impact as a leader by
deciding early to ‘start’ or ‘stop’ something that is in progress.
It
is my experience that stopping an initiative before you start a new one
sends a balanced message that you are making the hard choices. Making
these choices is really the essence of strategy.
Being
decisive becomes part of your brand. At CUA, we had a number of
procurement concerns – one in particular was ‘shelfware’ that had been
purchased and never actually used. I engaged a peer to provide a better
solution for next to nothing.
This was a quick win and having one in your first
90 days is always going to be a preferred approach. However from a
bigger picture standpoint, you have a personal stake in creating a
culture of innovation and continuous improvement.
Thus
setting this environment and having a series of quick wins can start
your team on that journey. Once these wins or changes are agreed, be
sure to market them widely.
Don’t ever be afraid to self promote yourself and your team. The pride you demonstrate can become contagious with the troops.
Your
time will be stretched during these first 90 days and you’ll be
subjected to much stress, so be sure to devote time to yourself and your
family. Getting this balance right is difficult, but remember you are
the only person who can control this. Taking time out to reflect will
help you manage and think through where you spend your energy.
A
good technique I have used is to set yourself some goals around where
you want to spend your time and comparing this to where you actually
spend your time can be enlightening.
As a rule
of thumb, I spend 30 per cent of my time with direct reports and
coaching staff, 20 per cent networking with peers and 25 per cent on
transformation projects. I spend 15 per cent of my time in operational
meetings and on field visits, and 10 per cent visiting external
customers and learning best practices.
After I completed my first 90 days at CUA, I made sure my progress was very visible to my team and my manager.
Was
it a mistake to then not create a next 90-day plan? Probably, but as we
know events do overtake best intentions and the important thing is that
you establish a pattern that you and your team understands.
David Gee's 90-day plan is encapsulated in the graphic below.
