The Supervisor’s First Day

Take a Deep Breath. The first day that a new supervisor steps into that role is a high-anxiety moment. Obviously for the new leader, but for the team as well. Everyone is watching and waiting. Is the new leader going to be a push-over, a hard-guy, timid, a friend rather than a leader? Are they going to turn things upside down?

As a new leader taking the reins, you want to get started on good footing and make unforced errors right off the bat. You might not know the answers to these questions yourself, but here are some tips on how to make this moment better.

1. Dress for the part. As much as we would like to think we are not books getting judge by our cover, depending on the cultural patterns, you want to look the part. If leaders wear suits, then wear a suit. Most workplaces are more relaxed than that but remember that you’re not Jimmy Buffet in Margaritaville either.
   
   
2. Get a Mentor. Many organizations will assign the new leader to a Mentor, but if that’s not the case, there’s nothing keeping you from taking the initiative. Through your Mentor, you will learn about the organization leaders, the culture, and get much needed meaning-making advice.
   
   
3. Bring your team together for an up-front conversation. As nervous as the new leader is, the team of direct reports are also jittery. Starting out humbly is always an easy approach that calms people. Reminding everyone that you are in a steep learning curve, and that you will be seeking out their input on matters that they are clearly more familiar with implies a) you’re not pretending to know everything, b) you’re open to listening and learning.
   
   
4. Seek out knowledge about the department. What are they struggling with? What has been tried? What ideas do people have for improving matters? What kind of leader works best with this team? How does communication work best (is there a preferred method)?
   
   
5. Gain alignment with the manager. If you report up to a manager, it I critical to meet with that person, understand their vision, how frequently you will meet, their top goals this year, their challenges, etc.
   
   
6. Establish your goals. In conjunction with your manager, talk about your goals, timelines, goal priorities, your autonomy to act, etc. Without a clear picture of your goals, you could be working on the wrong things.
   
   
7. Set up 1/1 meetings with your direct reports. Every culture may do things a little differently, but if your team is reasonably sized (5-20), you should be meeting with them individually and regularly to begin to develop better relationships, understand their challenges, and understand their aspirations.
   
   
8. Recognize your developmental needs. Too often, the new supervisor gets thrown into the fire and the general assumption is that the first year is the training program. Well, certainly every day you will learn new things, but remember that this is a new role, as if you were moving from human resources to accounting. There are different competencies, different challenges, different rules of the road. Why would you shortchange yourself? If the organization is unable to step up, figure out your plan B.

As a new leader, if you crash and burn in the new role, it’s hard to get back up, dust yourself off, and try again. Failure is a part of the learning process, but each of us has agency. We can alter our situations by preparing, seeking out wisdom, learning about the role, and stacking the deck in our favor.