How To Run A New Leader Assimilation Session

This describes how to run the first of five essential executive onboarding tools:

Converging assimilation – New Leader Assimilation Session
Inspiring direction – Imperative mission and vision
Enabling resources – Imperative strategy
Empowering authority – BRAVE culture
Credible accountability – Milestone management

New leaders must converge into their new organization and team before deliberately and intentionally pivoting to evolving them. A new leader assimilation session aids the assimilation or converging by creating a forum for a critical mass of people to hear the same answers to the same questions all at the same time. Hastings et al, do a nice job describing the research behind new leader assimilation sessions and one approach.

An alternate approach, described here, is to run a new leader assimilation session on or close to a new leader’s first day in a new role and focus on five areas: Questions about the new leader 1) personally, 2) as a team leader and 3) as a senior executive, and then 4) things the new leader should know and 5) what they should do first.

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Approach

Prepare the room with five pieces of flip chart paper posted around the room, one for each of the five topics below. Draw a line a few inches below the top of each piece of flip chart paper. Have a pad of 3 x 5” Post-it notes and a large flip-chart marker for each participant.

STEP 1: Provide a brief introduction and an overview of the objectives of the session and review the process to all involved (team and new leader). [New leader exits.]

STEP 2: Team members, without the new leader present, generate questions or ideas about the following. Break the group into five sub-groups, one working on each topic. Participants should brainstorm their questions or ideas by writing their contributions on Post-It notes and then posting them on the flip chart paper below the line you drew towards the top, reading their post to their sub-group as they post. When the groups slow down, have them rotate to the next topic. There they should read what the previous groups have written and add their questions or ideas. Manage the time so each group gets to contribute to each topic.

Topic 1. The new leader as an individual.

Questions may concern professional profile, or personal hopes, dreams, rumors, preconceptions, concerns, etc.

Topic 2. The new leader as a team leader.

Questions may concern what the leader knows about the team, priorities, work style, norms, communication, rumors, etc.

Topic 3. The new leader as a member of the broader organization.

Questions may concern what the leader knows about the organization, how they fit, priorities, assumptions, expectations, rumors, etc.

The team should also answer the following questions that they’ll present to the new leader:

Topic 4. What does the new leader need to know to be successful in new role?

What are the top three issues?
What are the secrets to being effective?
Are there any ideas for the new leader?

Topic 5. What significant issues need to be addressed immediately?

Are there any quick fixes that are needed now?
Are there any difficult areas of the business that new leader should know about?

INTERSTEP: Have the group move the five most important questions or ideas from each flip-chart page above the line on that page.

STEP 3: New leader rejoins teams to answer questions, listen, and learn.

Have the new leader answer the five questions and address the five ideas or issues above the line on each page first. Then, when they’ve dealt with those questions, ideas and issues on all the pages, go back and tackle the ones below the line. Amazingly enough, some people use more words in answer questions than do others. Those people may tackle only the questions, ideas and issues above the line – which is fine because they were the most important ones. Other people may get to more questions, ideas and issues.

Coach the new leader not to try to spin anything, just answering directly and honestly what they can and to leverage the phrase “I don’t know yet” on anything they’re not sure about.

When they get to the last two topics and the groups ideas, they should read the idea and ask if anyone wants to elaborate.