How can a new manager quickly understand and align with the organization’s culture, values, and informal power structures?
RS: Go in with the mindset of a researcher. Listen, observe, note, mull, and draw tentative conclusions. As they say, ask questions, don’t question.
The culture of any organization is mostly about patterns of behavior, understanding, and mapping these patterns. Notice how decisions are made in meetings or elsewhere, who comes in first and who comes in last, who sits where, who speaks after whom, who speaks the loudest and the most, who gets into side-talks, whose words carry the most weight, what is encouraged or discouraged.
Pay attention to stories and the ‘folk history’ of the organization. If you are not assigned a buddy, cultivate one. Not for sharing your feelings, but asking curiously about what makes someone successful here, and what you should know first. Without being noticed for spending extra time on watercooler or canteen conversations, they will be your important...
