How we think about success determines our direction of travel, pace of delivery and the work we prioritise and deliver against. Agreeing what success looks like in our new role assists with the prioritisation and consciously planning how we spend time.

Often job roles are not as clearly defined as one might hope. Understanding expectations, responsibilities and performance metrics can be challenging. However, for you to have an impact in your new role, creating direction and establishing momentum are critical to success. We frequently find newly promoted leaders are overwhelmed by the amount of work they have to do. The root cause of the overwhelm is often lack of clarity, jumping to action too quickly, doing work they are comfortable with, rather than the work only they can do, or they aren’t clear on what success looks like.

As you start your new role (or if you’ve been in a new role for a little while and still feel overwhelmed) consider the following three areas to support you in intentionally creating direction and subsequently momentum in your role.

1.   Take time to understand the role, business and context.

As you arrive in your new role there will be pressure to take charge and deliver, you will no doubt want to ‘make your mark’ quickly. You may be coming into a role where budgets are set, you inherit a team and there’s even a plan. It is tempting to act quickly without taking time to understand the context, the culture, history, ‘undiscussables’, or understand the views of stakeholders or your team but this is often a mistake.

Without a deep understanding of the above areas, how can you either verify the plan that’s there or create vision, strategy and a plan that will ensure your success in the role? In their book “Leadership Transitions How business leaders take charge in their new roles” Richard Elsner and Bridget Farrands cite two questions a new leader can ask that elicit a host of critical information.

• If you were in my position, what would you do now?
• If I could say exactly what you would like to hear, what would it be?

The answers provide outstanding insights and information regarding readiness for change, expectations, assumptions and thoughts about existing approaches, to name a few. Whilst taking fast action might make you feel competent in the role, it won’t necessarily equate to success in the role. Refusing to be rushed, taking time to understand the context, background and history will ultimately enable you to set vision, direction and priorities in a conscious way, ensuring success in your role.

Aside from the two questions above the following are useful ways to gather information and establish the current position:

• Think about what you already know about the expectations for the role and note these down. How was the role ‘sold’ to you? What has been shared about priorities and key areas of focus as you went through the hiring process.
• Consider the documents that exist that provide context regarding the business priorities and direction and therefore what your leadership responsibilities might be.
• Have a discussion with your leader to find out their expectations and priorities for the role? How will they measure your success in the role? It might be different to what you think.
• Talk to your team, find out what they are working on and why? As well as asking the two questions above.
• In your introductory meetings with key stakeholders, functional leaders and peers take a little time to understand their priorities and expectations and how your role fits with theirs.
• Undertake a SWOT analysis or capture your findings from your initial meetings using the SWOT categories to help you organise your thoughts.

We hear a lot about 90-day or 100-day plans however our experience shows the duration of transitioning into a new leadership role can vary depending on the organisation, the role and the individual. According to a study by IMD, 57% of executives attending their events said it took them six months or more to effectively assume their last new role. In our experience it takes a minimum of 6 months to transition and in fact often up to 12 months if the transition isn’t planned and intentional. McKinsey senior partners Keller and Meaney suggest leaders should take stock and then act, so having spent time understanding and making sense of the lay of the land then move to creating your plan.

2.   Create a Plan

Define goals and objectives.

a.    Clearly define short-term and long-term goals for yourself and your team.

b.    Ensure the goals align with your plan and the overall goals of the organisation.

c.     Break down the larger goals into smaller, manageable objectives.

Prioritise tasks.

a.    Identify tasks that only you can do and that align with the overall goals and consider delegating the remaining tasks.

b.    Prioritise based on urgency and importance.

c.     These steps combined will help you schedule and plan how you will be spending your time and the impact this is having.

Develop the plan.

a.    Create a strategic plan including your vision and outlining the steps to achieve your goals. Think about who you want to involve in this process, members of your team perhaps and where appropriate, key stakeholders.

3. Build Momentum

While direction sets the course, momentum is the force that propels you forward. It is the energy that enables you to transform the plans into action and results. Here’s how you can build and maintain momentum in your new role.

1.    Share the plan with your leader, team and stakeholders. This is an important step in gaining alignment and agreement to what success looks like.

2.    Monitor progress – think about how you will review progress toward your goals. Regular progress checks are useful in identifying when you may need to adjust strategies or tasks as necessary to stay on track – be prepared to adapt as required.

3.    Celebrate achievements and milestones – success is often a series of small wins, celebrate your achievements and those of your team. Recognising and appreciating progress positively boosts morale and helps create a positive feedback loop that sustains momentum.

Our research shows that success requires a dual focus on Creating Direction and Gaining Momentum which is pillar one in the Elevate Leadership Transition Framework. Establishing a clear direction provides purpose and alignment, while maintaining momentum propels you towards success.