The First 90 Days

Picture this: You've just landed that promotion you've been working toward for years, or you're walking into a new company with high hopes and ambitious plans. The excitement is palpable, but so is the pressure. Within weeks, that initial enthusiasm begins to waver as you realize the complexity of your new role. You're drinking from a fire hose of information, navigating unfamiliar politics, and everyone is watching to see what you'll do next.

This scenario plays out thousands of times every day across organizations worldwide. Research reveals that nearly 90 percent of senior HR leaders agree that transitions into new roles are the most challenging times in a professional's career. The actions you take during your first few months don't just determine whether you'll succeed or fail—they set the trajectory for your entire tenure. The good news is that with the right framework and mindset, you can dramatically accelerate your path to effectiveness and create the momentum needed for long-term success.

Learning during a transition isn't just about absorbing information—it's about developing the right insights to make better decisions faster. Too many new leaders fall into the trap of the "action imperative," feeling compelled to make their mark immediately rather than taking time to truly understand their new environment. This premature rush to action often leads to costly mistakes that damage credibility and create resistance.

Consider Chris Hadley, who transitioned from a world-class software development operation to lead a struggling product testing unit. Armed with confidence from his previous success, Chris immediately declared the existing processes outdated and brought in consultants who delivered a scathing report. He quickly implemented a complete reorganization "the Dura way," convinced that importing his proven methods would solve everything. Within a month, productivity plummeted and morale collapsed. His boss delivered a harsh reality check: "You've alienated just about everyone. How much time did you spend learning about the operation?"

The most effective approach to learning involves creating a structured process that balances gathering information with building relationships. Start by developing a learning agenda with specific questions about the organization's past, present, and future. Focus on understanding not just the technical aspects of the business, but also the cultural and political dimensions. Interview key stakeholders using consistent questions to identify patterns and divergent viewpoints. This systematic approach helps you avoid being swayed by the first or most vocal opinions you encounter.

Remember that effective learning builds personal credibility. When people see you genuinely committed to understanding the organization's unique history and challenges, you signal respect for what came before while positioning yourself to make informed changes. The goal isn't to learn everything, but to learn the right things efficiently so you can begin creating value as quickly as possible.

Success in a new role requires more than good intentions—it demands strategic focus on the right priorities at the right time. The STARS model provides a powerful framework for diagnosing your situation and matching your approach accordingly. Whether you're managing a start-up venture, leading a turnaround, accelerating growth, realigning a drifting organization, or sustaining success, each scenario requires different strategies and emphasis.

Elena Lee exemplified this strategic approach when she was promoted to head customer service at a major retailer. Tasked with improving slumping satisfaction scores while changing an authoritarian culture, Elena could have tried to tackle everything at once. Instead, she focused strategically on two interconnected priorities: implementing new performance metrics and modeling the participative leadership style she wanted to instill. She appointed her best unit leader to design improved processes, provided consulting support for the project, and quickly implemented recommendations in a pilot program.

The key to securing early wins lies in choosing initiatives that serve double duty—creating immediate improvements while establishing new patterns of behavior. Elena's approach worked because she selected projects that addressed her boss's priority of customer satisfaction while demonstrating the collaborative culture she wanted to build. Her early wins weren't just about quick results; they were about proving that a different way of leading could produce better outcomes.

Focus on identifying a few promising focal points rather than launching initiatives in all directions. Evaluate potential early wins based on their impact, feasibility, and symbolic value. The most powerful early wins combine operational improvements with behavioral changes that model the culture you're trying to create. This approach builds momentum that carries forward into deeper organizational changes.

Building the right team is often the most important set of decisions you'll make in your first 90 days. Yet many new leaders either move too slowly on necessary personnel changes or fail to think systematically about the mix of skills and styles they need. The goal isn't to find perfect people, but to create the right combination of capabilities while managing the inherent tensions between stability and change.

Liam Geffen faced this challenge when he inherited a troubled business unit where previous leadership had created a polarized team dynamic. Everyone was rated as either outstanding or marginal, with particular tension between marketing and sales VPs. Rather than accepting these assessments, Liam conducted his own systematic evaluation using consistent criteria: competence, judgment, energy, focus, relationships, and trust. He met individually with each team member, asked the same structured questions, and observed their interactions carefully.

Within three months, Liam had made strategic changes that preserved the organization's stability while addressing critical gaps. He replaced the marketing VP with an internal promotion, retained and developed the sales VP who had been unfairly scapegoated, and signaled clearly that performance would be based on results rather than politics. His approach demonstrated the importance of being both decisive and fair in team decisions.

Effective team building extends beyond your direct reports to include the broader network of stakeholders whose support you need. Map the influence patterns in your organization to understand who really shapes decisions on issues that matter to you. Identify potential supporters, opponents, and those who might be persuaded, then craft targeted strategies to build the winning alliances necessary for your success. Remember that authority alone is rarely sufficient—you need genuine support from people who choose to commit their energy to your initiatives.

The intensity and ambiguity of transitions can amplify your weaknesses and test your emotional resilience. Without proper self-management, even capable leaders can fall into destructive patterns like isolation, brittleness, or work avoidance. The most successful leaders recognize that managing themselves effectively is not selfish—it's essential for serving their organizations and the people who depend on their leadership.

Stephen Erikson learned this lesson the hard way during his move from New York to Toronto for a senior media position. What seemed like a straightforward relocation became a personal and professional crisis when he failed to address the ripple effects on his family. His wife struggled with the move, his children resisted changing schools mid-year, and the resulting stress affected his performance at work. The pressure mounted until he was forced to choose between his marriage and his new role.

Self-management rests on three crucial pillars: adopting proven transition strategies, developing personal disciplines, and building strong support systems. The first pillar involves consistently applying the frameworks and approaches that accelerate transitions. The second requires establishing routines for planning, focusing on important work, and maintaining perspective during stressful periods. The third pillar means creating both professional support networks with trusted advisers and personal stability through careful attention to family transitions.

The ultimate goal extends beyond managing your own transition to accelerating everyone around you. When you help your direct reports, peers, and even your boss navigate their own transitions more effectively, you create a multiplier effect that benefits the entire organization. Consider how the frameworks you're using might help others in transition, and look for opportunities to share insights and support systems that amplify collective success.

The transition into any new leadership role represents both tremendous opportunity and significant risk. The choices you make and the habits you establish in those crucial first months don't just determine your immediate success—they create the foundation for everything that follows. As this framework demonstrates, there are systematic approaches that can dramatically reduce your time to effectiveness while building the momentum necessary for long-term impact.

The research is clear: "Success or failure during the first few months is a strong predictor of overall success or failure in the job." This reality should inspire both urgency and confidence—urgency because the window for creating first impressions and establishing credibility is narrow, and confidence because the principles and practices that drive success are learnable and achievable. Every successful career is built on a series of successful transitions, and every successful transition begins with the commitment to approach this challenge strategically rather than leaving it to chance.

Start tomorrow morning by conducting an honest assessment of your current transition using the frameworks in this guide. Create your own 90-day plan with specific milestones and success metrics. Most importantly, remember that you don't have to navigate this journey alone—seek out the advisers, supporters, and resources that will accelerate your path to making the impact you envision.