Settling into your new role
Congratulations, you’ve made a great impression in the interview and you’ve secured your new job.
But now the hard work starts all over again, as the first few weeks of your job will involve settling in. Things are a little different at the moment, as some offices are open, some not. The standard induction that many new employees may undergo might not be happening, or be happening remotely.
New employees will still have to get to grips with their new roles, even if it involves working from home. If you don’t meet your new co-workers in person, you’ll still be introduced to them online. Some meetings are even taking place in person now, so you may find you have more normality in your new role than you expected. Even in these usual times, you can still make an impression in your new company. Here’s some recommendations to make your first 100 days work for you.
New role goals
Make sure you schedule a meeting with your boss early on and agree on what your performance goals for the first year should be. These should be SMART and diarise a three-month review of these objectives. The meeting can be remote or in person, but is an essentially part of mapping out where you and they see your role and your part in the company. Identifiable parameters will ensure everyone’s on the same page and pulling in the same direction, towards an achievable goal.
Strengthen skills
Don’t be too hard on yourself or expect results and acknowledgement right away. Reward yourself at the end of the first day and at the end of your first week. Reassure yourself you are doing well. Feedback may not be immediately forthcoming and it may take longer – especially at the moment – to receive positive praise. Set yourself some professional development SMART goals. Identify your training requirements and select a variety of online and offline learning opportunities throughout your first year. Make good use of your time and look for facets of your skillset you can strengthen.
Remember to update your LinkedIn profile to include your latest news. Get in touch with anyone who helped you in your job hunting and let them know about your new role. Also, join any new social media groups that are now relevant to you. You have a new job now, but don’t neglect your ongoing career development too.
Learn and absorb
Familiarise yourself with every aspect of your new company. Read newsletters and annual reports, and spend time looking at its website. Absorb their world and become part of it, by setting up things such as Google Alerts, which will make you aware of any developments at your organisation and within the wider sector, which may be a new sector to you. Find yourself a mentor – either within the organisation or outside it – and as soon as you can set up your first one-to-one. A mentor can be very useful in guiding you in the company ethos and honing your skills to become an even better fit for the company. Learning from a mentor adds much to the experience of working at a company, as they will have a great deal of specialist knowledge and a wealth of information that will be useful in your new role.
Pace yourself
Don’t try to do too much instantaneously and expect everything to work first time. Set priorities for your first year and leave longer term planning for the next two or three terms. Don’t make changes for change’s sake, but do make notes and identify what you would like to improve. Perhaps there’s a workflow that you think could be managed better or automated further. Your fresh insights will be invaluable to your new company, but if it’s working, don’t try to change it. Make sure you are tactful in your approach when it comes to making any tweaks. The last thing you want is to put anyone’s nose out of joint. By pacing yourself, you can get a feel for the company’s ethos and its ‘personality’, so changes you make will fit well, whilst improving efficiency and productivity.
