A Team Introduction – How to Yourself to Your New Team
A Team Introduction
As Will Rogers so adroitly phrased it, “You never get a second chance to make a good first impression”. This is especially important when you are brought in to lead a new team. What are best practices to get off to a good start and avoid costly missteps? This case study on a team introduction provides actionable tips that can make a big impact.
The Situation
You have decided you want to live in a different part of the country. You land a job as a project manager, employed at a company in your current field.
Taking Over a New Team
You will be working with a team of five. However, other than some basic HR information and company website bios, you don’t know anything about the people on your team, and your predecessor is not available for a discussion. The company has mentioned that there may be budget cutbacks that could affect your team.
First Day as a Manager
You want to be able to create a high-functioning team as quickly as possible. You know that getting off to a good start with your new team is important. What should you do in your first day as a manager? As a Q4 leader, what is your best first step for a team introduction as their new boss?
Your Choices:
No, please try again.
No, please try again.
How to Introduce Yourself to a New Team
Don’t Make It All About You
While choice A–holding a team meeting–is a good idea, making it all about you isn’t. Your belief in collaboration should start right away; avoid the urge to have a meeting where you talk and everyone else just listens. Sure, they want to get to know you, but add the element of team participation in a team introduction right away.As in Step 2 of a Q4 one-on-one discussion, you should want to find out what others think before presenting your own views. Read Answer C for other benefits of encouraging team members to speak.
Don’t Meet Individually in Your Office as a First Move
This (choice B) is the weakest way to go. Bringing other people onto your turf is a traditional boss move, and not how you want to introduce yourself to a new team.Yes, you can certainly hold a Q4 discussion in your office, but since you’re a team leader, why not meet everyone together, as a fellow team member? It will strengthen your leadership role, not detract from it. A team meeting indicates that, as a leader, you intend to be collaborative. Everyone else will feel more comfortable in a team setting.
Introduce Yourself, But Focus on Your Team
Choice C is the best move. You might as well start by interacting as you will when you’re working together. Since you don’t know much about anyone yet, you can learn a lot by asking questions and observing. Without pigeonholing anyone, you can size up the behavior you see as a foundation for having productive team discussions.As the meeting progresses, you can certainly work in your goals and expectations, but if you emphasize everyone’s contributions early, you may avoid the bad team habit of everyone looking to the team leader for the answers. That’s not Q4 leadership.
After the Team Introduction, What’s Next?
Now that you have a team introduction under your belt, check out our other team resources, including our white papers, Team, Group or Mob: Which One Do You Have?, and Vision, Mission & Values.
We offer services to help your team be more high performing, and to help you be more effective as a team leader.
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