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Leadership

The First 100 Days as a CEO

The approach a new CEO takes during their first 100 days can determine whether they succeed or fail

FIRST impressions count!  The approach that a new CEO takes during their first 100 days can largely determine whether they succeed or fail.  But how to get it right?  In an article in the second issue of the SVA Consulting Quarterly, six non-profit CEO’s – including Goodstart’s Julia Davison, Jonathan Crowston from The Centre for Eye Research, and Jan Owen from the Foundation for Young Australians – open up about how leaders can make the biggest impact and best impression during their first 100 days.

Here are five lessons from the article:

  1. Engage with the organisation before your first day: There are a range of ways to do this, for example, asking for papers from recent board meetings, polling staff about key issues, or shadowing the existing CEO before they step down;
  2. Gain visibility by meeting as many people as possible: CEOs will typically set out to meet board members, direct reports, other staff, external stakeholders, and people in other organisations working in the same industry;
  3. Clarify management and governance arrangements: For example, make sure that it is clear who has decision-making responsibility and what is the approved line of communication between the board and senior management;
  4. Understand the organisation’s finances: This includes understanding the organisation’s financial statements, how finances are administered, and what systems are in place for disclosure and control; and
  5. Assess the organisation’s strategic direction: Is the organisation performing well, or does it need a completely new strategy? Unless there’s a crisis, or you have prior knowledge or direction from the board, it is best to spend time assessing the organisation for more than the first 100 days before making any major strategic decisions.

For the full article: click here.

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