What questions should you ask during your one-on-ones with your cross-functional teams during your first month at the company?

First and foremost, I love this question. Thank you for asking it. How you work with others, build relationships with your stakeholder groups, and invest time in understanding their world is one of the most important determinants of success in a new role. This question recognizes the importance of relationships, listening over telling, and being willing to accept that what worked before may not work the same way here. That mindset alone is a great starting point. To your actual question, I tend ...Read More

Scheduling one-on-ones with your new colleagues is one of the first steps to tackle in your 30/60/90 day plan. In fact, those conversations should influence what makes it into your final draft. You should lean on the team that has seen it firsthand versus thinking you have all the answers. When I first join a company, I make sure that I schedule meetings with at least one representative from sales, customer success, finance, business intelligence, product, and engineering. I also ask these very ...Read More

Meeting with cross-functional partners when joining a new company is so important, especially if you're working remote. It helps to build general rapport and understand where each person fits into the organization and how you'll be working with them. It also can help you further identify what initial projects might be - what are the main pain points for these people? Questions will vary depending on the role of the person you're meeting with, but there are some that are universal. I'll ask every ...Read More

During your one-on-ones with your cross-functional teams, you want to get a solid understanding of who to go to for what. I also recommend getting to know folks on an individual level - you are going to be spending a lot of time together! Here are 7 example questions that will vary depending on the audience, but will help you get started: What is the biggest challenge you currently face that I can help with in my role? What feedback do you consistently hear from customers that we have not been a ...Read More

I'm breaking this down by functions and the sort of questions I'd ask if I was trying to understand the lay of the land, and start to build. In every conversation, I would listen for themes that are coming out of those convos, the friction points, the misaligned definitions, the recurring bottlenecks. Those are your quick wins and your roadmap for the next 60-90 days. Sales / SDRs What does a good lead look like to you? Where are leads falling short right now? Which campaigns or channels are act ...Read More

This is a key part of your discovery process and can also work to improve collaboration, identify near-term wins, and demonstrate both humility but also servant-minded leadership as you step into your role. It takes the emphasis off of you having to come in and fix everything and seeks the insights (whether you ultimately agree or not) with those who have been there and will be working alongside of on a regular basis. What do you believe are the top priorities we're focused on right now? Do you ...Read More