I could not agree more! I also like doing a “listening tour” for the first 30 days and then summarize what I’ve learned and publish it back out to the organization. It shows that you are listening and synthesizing.
Absolutely… the added benefit is that you get face time with a wide group of people early on. At Facebook, someone encouraged me to meet 100 people in 100 days… knowing that would kick-off key relationships throughout the company.
In a new role, it's critical to get well-informed, unfettered advice. A lot of your advice will come from people in your reporting line - your new boss and the senior leaders they report into. However, those same people are evaluating you so it can be difficult to have unfiltered conversations with them. A personal board of directors, designed around your new role, can help. In fact, some larger companies recognize this and help with assigning mentors for new leaders.
As you build a personal board of directors, I think its helpful to seek out three different perspectives: 1) a senior leader, outside your reporting line, who is currently at the company (they will be able to offer well-informed advice and, since they are outside your reporting line, you can be more authentic with them, 2) a former leader at the company (someone who knows the culture and who can speak with candidly), and 3) a coach or mentor you trust implicitly.
This is a great framework to get your first 90 days in. One thing that I would add to this is a strategy for when you join in the middle of a migration (post acquisition). Everyone is in the middle of doing everything, and depending on how the company is structured, and the VC/PE influence, there are "synergies" to be achieved, and systems to be integrated whilst running the business, and solving current and new problems.
This sounds like a unique/challenging situation. Have you gone through this before? What were some of the biggest hurdles you encountered that were measurably different for you?
The biggest hurdle was balancing the expectations for the migration of systems with actual product work. It hurts more when the company did not have a product team before, and the new product guy was supposed to make magic happen. And on top of all this, the pressure to cut a few of the people who you have just inherited.
I could not agree more! I also like doing a “listening tour” for the first 30 days and then summarize what I’ve learned and publish it back out to the organization. It shows that you are listening and synthesizing.
Absolutely… the added benefit is that you get face time with a wide group of people early on. At Facebook, someone encouraged me to meet 100 people in 100 days… knowing that would kick-off key relationships throughout the company.
Wow! Did you make it to 100?!
I think so! I didn't keep close track. Facebook helped with that too... lots of opportunities to meet people throughout the org.
Can you elaborate on building personal board of directors?
I understand this for career and personal life & am looking to get some advice on how one goes about building it w.r.t starting a new role
In a new role, it's critical to get well-informed, unfettered advice. A lot of your advice will come from people in your reporting line - your new boss and the senior leaders they report into. However, those same people are evaluating you so it can be difficult to have unfiltered conversations with them. A personal board of directors, designed around your new role, can help. In fact, some larger companies recognize this and help with assigning mentors for new leaders.
As you build a personal board of directors, I think its helpful to seek out three different perspectives: 1) a senior leader, outside your reporting line, who is currently at the company (they will be able to offer well-informed advice and, since they are outside your reporting line, you can be more authentic with them, 2) a former leader at the company (someone who knows the culture and who can speak with candidly), and 3) a coach or mentor you trust implicitly.
This is invaluable advice, Ravi.
Thank you for the prompt response.
This is a great framework to get your first 90 days in. One thing that I would add to this is a strategy for when you join in the middle of a migration (post acquisition). Everyone is in the middle of doing everything, and depending on how the company is structured, and the VC/PE influence, there are "synergies" to be achieved, and systems to be integrated whilst running the business, and solving current and new problems.
This sounds like a unique/challenging situation. Have you gone through this before? What were some of the biggest hurdles you encountered that were measurably different for you?
The biggest hurdle was balancing the expectations for the migration of systems with actual product work. It hurts more when the company did not have a product team before, and the new product guy was supposed to make magic happen. And on top of all this, the pressure to cut a few of the people who you have just inherited.