Voices in Leadership • 6 MIN READ
How I Approach the First 90 Days in a New People Leadership Role
MAR 4, 2026
The first 90 days as a people leader determine whether you will be trusted with the most important conversations in the organisation. Here is the framework one CHRO uses every time.
Days 1-30: listen more than you speak
The most valuable thing you can do in the first month is understand the organisation through the eyes of the people in it. Schedule a listening tour: individual conversations with each member of the executive team, with your own HR team, and with a sample of employees at different levels. Ask the same questions in each conversation: what is working well in HR? What is not working? What would you most like to see changed? What should I make sure not to change? You will hear themes emerge that no briefing document could have told you. Take detailed notes and share your summary observations widely at the end of the month.
Days 31-90: establish credibility through delivery
By day 30, you should have a clear view of the two or three most important things to address in the first year. Pick the most visible and the most achievable and start executing in month two. Do not announce a comprehensive HR strategy yet: instead, deliver something tangible that demonstrates you understand the business and can get things done. A revised job architecture, a simplified performance process, a manager development programme that leaders have been asking for. Early delivery builds the credibility that makes the harder, longer-term work possible.
