The First 90 Days

You've just been promoted to a new leadership position. You're not yet sure of the challenges ahead or how you will meet them. All you know is that you have three months to get on top of the job and move forward — or fail.

This book is your road map for taking charge quickly and effectively during critical career transition periods, whether you're a first-time manager or a new CEO. Written by noted leadership transition expert Michael Watkins, The First 90 Days outlines proven strategies that will dramatically shorten the time it takes to reach what Watkins calls the "breakeven point": the point at which your organization needs you as much as you need the job.

Whether you are charged with launching a start-up, leading a turnaround, orchestrating a realignment, or sustaining a high-performing unit, The First 90 Days will help you to develop a transition acceleration plan that is tailored to your situation, your level of seniority and expertise, and the condition of your organization.

Based on three years of research into leadership transitions at all levels and hands-on work designing transition programs for top companies, Watkins provides illustrative examples and actionable tools that will show you how to:

• Assess your strengths and weaknesses and identify personal vulnerabilities
• Diagnose your situation and understand its challenges and opportunities
• Negotiate a productive working relationship with your boss
• Secure early wins that establish credibility and create momentum
• Build your team and connect with influential support coalitions
• Align strategy, structure, systems, and skills to enable success
• Balance personal and professional demands during the transition

Refuting the pervasive belief that new leaders should be left to "sink or swim," The First 90 Days details a proactive planning approach that can make an individual's career — and ensure an organization's future.

• Introduciton:The First 90 Days

1. Promote Yourself
2. Accelerate Your Learning
3. Match Strategy to Stituation
4. Secure Early Wins
5. Negotiate Success
6. Achieve Alignment
7. Build Your Team
8. Create Coalitions
9. Keep Your Balance
10. Expedite Everyone

• Conclusion: Beyond Sink or Swim

An interesting book, that fails to live up to its promises, but still leaves you with something worthwhile.

It is too long-winded, with sometimes strange English and self-promoting of the author. Add to this that most of it comes off as common sense, if you have ever been a manager before. And yes, it is definitely geared towards senior managers; to first-liners it is of extremely limited use.

But it manages to discuss interesting concepts and have some compelling short stories, that make you think, so it leaves a pretty good impression anyway.

Shouldn't be the first book on the subject, but may be read by a middle-manager that finds him-/herself recently promoted. Just don't take everything in the book as gospel.