The first 100 days
in your new job

You’ll meet lots of new colleagues on your first day. Make an effort to introduce yourself personally and, if possible, note their names. To quickly integrate yourself even more effectively, arrange appointments with your new colleagues to get to know them even better – on both a personal and professional level. But be careful: get to know people better before giving away too much personal information. If you have already been given your first tasks, make sure to ask questions, show interest and take notes.

Tip: This is still possible for digital onboarding. Simply add a “getting-to-know-you” session with your new colleagues to the calendar.

Of course, you and your colleagues know why you are there and what area of responsibility you will take on in the future. However, it helps to spend a little time in the first few days to more clearly define just what your tasks and responsibilities will be at your new job.

Find out if any of your colleagues are currently doing what you will be doing and coordinate with them. It’s always better to be safe and outline exactly what tasks you shouldn’t forget and which tasks lie within someone else’s area of responsibility. This helps to better set out expectations on both sides.

Do you have a question about the job or are unsure how certain processes are handled in the company? It’s best to have a personal contact partner or a mentor on hand. This can even be helpful for integrating into the team and you can use it as an opportunity to be introduced to some core team members.

If the company does not provide you with a mentor at the start, shadow your colleagues and ask the relevant team member personally to help you further. Don’t be shy! Everybody has been in your position and needed support in the first few weeks in a new job.

Sometimes starting at a new job is not as easy as you first thought. But you shouldn’t take it personally. Sometimes employees can be very critical of new colleagues, potentially feeling like their own job is at risk or comparing you to your predecessor too quickly. This is especially true if you are coming into your new job as a manager.

Take fate into your own hands and make a good impression on your new colleagues as early as possible, preferably in the first couple of weeks before the real work starts. Show your interest in your new colleagues, make your point of view clear and outline your responsibilities and starting points.

Whether it’s information about people, products, procedures or internal affairs – show interest, listen and write down the information if need be. Don’t hesitate to ask questions to get a feel for the company and its structures. You can also use this as an opportunity to get to know your colleagues better.

When learning the ropes in your new job, you might experience some idle times as you and your colleagues still don’t know how much time you need for certain tasks. If you finish a task more quickly than expected, don’t just sit and stare at the wall.

Use the extra time to familiarise yourself with other projects. It’s important that you show off your skills directly.

Make sure to follow the company’s established processes. This includes when completing new tasks (even if you’re familiar with the task from a previous job) as well as when you need information from other employees.

Don’t go over anyone’s head and stick to the procedures in place, especially during your first few weeks. You’ll gradually find space to integrate your own ideas. Initially, though, you should familiarise yourself with the existing guidelines. Except, of course, where you are asked to review processes critically and rethink structures.

You’ve finally found the job you’ve always wanted. You’re motivated and want to do everything right, taking care of your tasks as quickly as possible. But remember, your new job is not a competition you have to win.

You don’t have to answer every email within five minutes. If necessary, clearly set out your priorities and divide your time and, more importantly, your energy effectively. Do this and you’re sure to pass your probation with flying colours and save yourself a lot of unnecessary stress during the first 100 days in your new job.

Are you on the right track? Are you living up to expectations? For some companies, regular feedback sessions or meetings to discuss expectations are part and parcel of the induction process for a new job. If this isn’t a fixed component of your induction, ask your managers or supervisors for these meetings yourself, or get feedback from your colleagues directly in the meantime.

Use the time in these meetings to agree on general conditions, tasks and ways of working and evaluate your performance. After your first three months in the new job, these meetings will give you a good idea of where you stand, whether everything is going to plan and where work needs to be done.

Tip: Use feedback sessions to also address your problems and suggest improvements.