Congratulations on your new job.  

Today, I would like to share some useful information to all new joiners to help you come up to speed smoothly for the first several weeks at your new company.  

Whether you changed your job for the first time, or you already made career changes several times in the past, you will be very busy every day right after landing your new job.

In many cases, new joiners find that time flies very quickly after joining. Before you realize it, you may be already in your fourth month since you joined the company. However, I would like to share some useful points to help you to come up to speed smoothly at a new company.

The most important thing is to “fit in” your new workplace.

Those of you who joined as mid-career hires, you are employed with the expectation of you becoming useful quickly at your new company.  On the other hand, even if you changed jobs in the same industry or found the same position at a different company, the new company may be similar to your previous one but will definitely not be the same.  After joining, most new joiners feel pressure that they have to deliver results as soon as possible to add value to the company. However, the most crucial thing is to put aside such feelings and first focus on “fitting in” to the new workplace.

The following are the stages that you go through after joining the company.  Please note that "fitting in to the new workplace" is the step that comes before learning how to work at the new company.  

To “fit in “at your new workplace, what exactly should you do?  In a nutshell, I suggest “imitating” what people do.  In a new workplace, there are a series of new set of terminology and new business customs. In the case of a mid-career hire, it is easy for anyone to feel uncomfortable because you have knowledge and customs that you are used to from your previous company.  At such time, I suggest you forget about your previous experiences, and "follow”” the new way of working first without thinking too deeply.  This alone will help you to come up to speed smoothly at your new workplace more than you think.

Maybe you feel that you should not fit in to the new workplace, because you joined the company with the expectation of making a difference in the new organization.  In such case, I suggest you not to get too eager and frustrated but first intentionally “fit in” to the organization and take this time as an “observation period” to build a foundation to initiate necessary changes in later stages. In order to change and transform an organization, it is very important to build trust with your colleagues and stakeholders.

• What are the differences between the new company and your previous company?

• What type of people are there in this company?

• What are the internal languages = internal terminology they use?

• What style of communication do they use? Email? Chat function? Or do they prefer face-to-face?

• Get to know your superiors, your subordinates, your colleagues, and the key people in the office.

I heard many cases where, just because you landed the same job as your previous one, you were eager to deliver speedy results at the new workplace. Or if you joined as a manager, you try to exert influence on your subordinates by taking the same approach as your previous job to work and communicate. This could backfire and create unnecessary distance from the people around you and make you have a hard time getting along in the new company.

As a newly joined Mid-career hire, you will certainly be nervous right after joining. On the other hand, your superior and your colleagues who will welcome you and accept you, may also be very nervous.

My advice to you all is to start to work by taking the first several weeks as an observation period to get to know each other and intentionally “fit in” to the new workplace.  

I hope my advice will help you to be able to start your work smoothly, and will lead to your enabling success at the new company!