Congratulations on landing a new job! 

Now what? If the head of state or any political candidates are required to plan what they will achieve in their first 100 days in office, let’s have some strategies to help you lay a strong foundation in your first 90 days at work. 

Know your and your team’s role

First, understand your role and how it intersects with everyone else on the team, as this will help lay out a strong working foundation. You’ll also feel fulfilled in your job if you can integrate into the team quickly. Learning everyone’s name and the role will help you understand how to interact with them professionally.

Understand your product or service 

Assuming you have spent a lot of time and energy learning about your new employer, you will still need to spend some extra time in your first few weeks to understand your role within the company and the company’s role within their industry. It’s very understandable for new employees to get so caught up in their job’s details that they often lose sight of the bigger picture. The broad view will help you contextualize your work and better understand the product or service your company offers.  

Become autonomous

Your first couple of weeks on the job are likely to be a blur of new faces along with their roles and possibly places. However, try to absorb as much information as possible, as your immediate goal is to become self-sufficient quickly. It is highly understandable if you ask as many questions as necessary and performs as much research as possible to get yourself up to speed within your team. 

Get feedback

Most Canadian employers establish a probationary period to protect against bad hires, which traditionally lasts 90 days. This has been widely determined as a reasonable time frame to evaluate a new employee properly. Your benefits will likely become available once you pass this period as well. It is wise to actively request feedback from your supervisor within your first 90 days to ensure that you are on the right track and to correct any issues that may lead to problems. 

Recommend improvements

Organizations are usually reluctant to embrace the opinions of a newbie as they may need more context or institutional knowledge. However, many industries have now started to learn that having a fresh perspective can be highly beneficial for overlooked issues. Being new to the organization puts you in a unique position, so remember to use this for your own sake.