After an extensive, perhaps national search, you were selected to take on the CEO role. You sign the offer and celebrate with a friend or loved one later that evening. It’s now Monday morning and it’s your first day as CEO. What are you excited about? What concerns you? What will you do during your first 90-days?
You already know, and have probably read books, on the importance of your first 90 days. So much gets set in these first three months. Below are three common, but critical actions that should be part of any first 90-day plan.
During Month 1
* Meet with your senior leaders.
The first meeting should be getting to know them as people and allowing them to get to know you as a person. Do they have a family? What’s important to them? Where did they grow up? How long have they lived here? Do they like it? Are they involved in social clubs? The second meeting should be about the business and about their business. What are their current priorities and what else do they find important? What keeps them up at night? What are some of the barriers that make their job difficulty? What aspects of their job do they like the most? Dislike? What are their future aspirations? During this meeting, it’s appropriate to share your preliminary high-level thoughts about the direction you see taking the company. Chances are, you came into the company or accepted this advanced role because you have a vision of what needs to be done and feel aligned with this vision.
During Month 2
* Build or strengthen relationships with the Board.
If you were an internal candidate, it is likely that you already have relationships with at least some members of the Board of Directors. That said, being directly overseen by the Board is different, for you and the Board members. Expect the Board Chair and other members to test boundaries as to where their role ends and yours begins. This isn’t necessarily malicious or even conscious but expect it to occur. Make sure that governance guidelines are in place and if not, make sure it gets done. In fact, querying the exiting CEO for insights about the Board Chair and other members can give you a head start in effectively managing your Board.
Towards the End of Month 3
* Define your strategy and key priorities.
Hold a retreat with your senior team to announce, define, discuss, and answer questions. The leaders shall then operationalize the strategy and priorities into deliverables that they will later share with their teams and convert into actionable and measurable plans. During this retreat, be sure to also discuss working style, clarify roles and responsibilities, discuss how to best work with one another, and agree upon a set of behavioral norms for meetings and day-to-day collaboration.
Dr. Jeff Kaplan is a business psychologist and executive coach who coaches executives and high potentials to lead with heart. Jeff helps leaders to work more collaboratively with others, recognizing that people are an organization’s greatest asset.