The first 90 days is a critical period for new managers, during which they must work hard to establish themselves as a leader. While these first several months can feel challenging, a well-crafted plan will help make this transition smooth and impactful. In this article, we’ll explore what a 30-60-90-day plan for managers entails and how to create one. Whenever your organization hires or promotes a new manager, help them establish a solid plan to ensure their success.
Table of Contents
- What Is a 30-60-90-Day Plan, and Why Do Managers Need It?
- What Makes a Good 30-60-90-Day Plan?
- Creating a Successful 30-60-90-Day Plan for Managers
- Next Steps to Excel in Your Leadership Transition
What Is a 30-60-90-Day Plan, and Why Do Managers Need It?
When accepting a new leadership role, managers face multiple challenges. Often they struggle to feel like a leader, experiencing imposter syndrome. They may be leading former peers, which can feel awkward. They may also lack formal leadership training or hands-on experience in such roles, and they’re still learning about their strengths as a leader.
However, a 30-60-90-day plan will help new managers successfully transition into their new role. This plan serves as a structured way to set and achieve strong goals as a new leader. It will help new managers adopt an organized approach—and have a greater positive impact—from day one. Moreover, being equipped with this plan will help new managers make a great impression on the people they’re leading. Direct reports and peers will feel more confident in their managers’ abilities when they see them methodically taking action to contribute at a high level.
What Makes a Good 30-60-90-Day Plan?
A successful 30-60-90-day plan for managers helps them align their goals with the organization’s mission and strategic objectives. By helping new leaders focus on the most crucial priorities, it promotes their long-term effectiveness. Essentially, this plan outlines a vision for success that will shape a manager’s efforts far beyond the first 90 days.
A 30-60-90-day plan also helps managers avoid making assumptions before getting all the facts. A clear and detailed plan will help them to pace themselves, doing their due diligence to gather information before taking action. Equipped with a well-crafted plan, managers will act with wisdom and foresight, promoting their longer-term success and making a great impression on the people they lead.
Organizations can incorporate a 360-degree review into each manager’s 30-60-90-day plan, too. This feedback will provide invaluable insights on new leaders’ progress, supporting their continued development. We recommend holding the 360 review in the third month, or just after the 90-day period has culminated. That way, respondents will be able to offer detailed insights grounded in experience.
Creating a Successful 30-60-90-Day Plan for Managers
Provide managers with plenty of guidance in designing this plan. The manager’s supervisor or an HR director should work with them to create a plan tailored to their needs. Together, they can set goals that will further their success and enhance organizational outcomes.
Share the following guidance with each manager to help them make the most of their first 90 days.
30-Day Phase: Learning and Observing
In the first 30 days, focus on getting your bearings so you can lead your new team effectively. Set key objectives, action steps, and desired outcomes that support this end goal.
Key Objectives
The first 30 days should centre on building rapport and relationships, learning about your team and organization, and identifying next steps to take as a leader.
Suggested Actions
The first 30 days is primarily about listening. During this phase, strive to learn about processes, team dynamics, and company culture, listening to a variety of perspectives. Evaluate barriers that may prevent teams and individuals from contributing their best effort. Likewise, ask peers, leaders, and other stakeholders for their thoughts on how your team could more effectively contribute to the organization’s mission.
Here are some specifics steps to take during this phase:
- During your first days on the job, share your story as a leader, conveying who you are and what inspires you.
- Read organizational policies and procedures, discussing any questions with HR.
- Schedule and hold one-on-one meetings with all direct reports, getting to know them as individuals.
- Meet with other key stakeholders, like cross-departmental peers and clients, learning about the company’s practices and culture.
- Set a regular cadence of team meetings where everyone shares updates on their work.
- Conduct team assessments, studying the quality of work output and collaboration.
- Observe processes, team dynamics, and culture—what is working; what is not?
- Identify immediate challenges to address.
- Look for mentors who can provide advice and guidance.
Further, assess your team members’ level of work-life balance, stress, and well-being. Do they feel supported by their company—or are they at risk of burning out? Begin helping them to re-prioritize tasks, or redistribute responsibilities if needed.
Outcomes
As a result of these actions, you’ll establish trust with your new team, gain a solid understanding of current workflows, and identify areas for improvement.
60-Day Phase: Planning and Implementing
Now that you’ve built strong relationships and developed an informed perspective, you can begin implementing changes and guiding your team through early wins.
Key Objectives
Stick to 3–5 main objectives that you aim to achieve, to avoid overwhelm. Identify a metric of success for each one.
Suggested Actions
During your second 30 days, you’ll start putting what you’ve learned into practice. Here are some key step to take:
- Refine team roles, calibrating them to current needs.
- Conduct a SWOT analysis, examining strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that affect your team’s success.
- Design solutions to problems identified in the first 30 days.
- Initiate smaller projects, based on the solutions and opportunities you’ve spotted.
- Help team members set performance goals that support your team’s efforts.
- Use tools such as goal-tracking software to assess individual and team progress.
- Guide direct reports in creating personal development plans, connecting them with learning resources.
- Start implementing feedback received about your leadership approach.
- Seize opportunities for quick wins, which will bring a morale boost that can jump-start bigger achievements.
During this phase, look for opportunities the company isn’t pursuing yet, identifying potential barriers and ways to overcome them. As a new leader, you have a fresh perspective on strategies for growth.
Outcomes
By successfully executing some early initiatives, you’ll build momentum with your team and demonstrate your value to leadership. Reaching these smaller milestones will position you for greater achievements.
90-Day Phase: Optimizing and Leading
During the last phase of your first 90 days, you’ll begin stepping into your full potential as a leader.
Key Objectives
In your next 30 days as a leader, you’ll begin driving greater efficiency, achieving fuller alignment of team and organizational goals, and developing long-term strategies. Again, stick to no more than 5 main objectives, to keep your efforts focused.
Suggested Actions
Take the following steps to maximize your success as a leader in the 90-day phase:
- Adjust strategies as needed, assessing what is working and what is not.
- Implement more ambitious team projects, building from your earlier wins.
- Define key performance indicators (KPIs) for each project or initiative.
- Focus on team development, working to fill skill gaps and fine-tune processes.
- Communicate your efforts to leaders and peers, seeking their input on them.
- Evaluate direct reports’ progress and guide them in refining their skill sets.
- Talk with mentors about your own development as a leader, pursuing additional learning opportunities.
During this phase, you’ll strategically build from previous actions and wins. With your expanded understanding of organizational goals, processes, and dynamics—and a strong set of relationships—you’ll contribute greater value as a leader.
Outcomes
During this phase, you’ll create a solid foundation for ongoing success, pursuing projects that fully align with organizational goals.
Next Steps to Excel in Your Leadership Transition
After the first 90 days, take additional steps to continue thriving in your leadership journey.
- Demonstrate accountability. Along your path to success, you’ll make mistakes or try ideas that don’t work. When this happens, graciously invite feedback and work to correct course.
- Show evidence of success. Highlight small and large team wins, conveying what you did and why it worked. Make this information easily digestible for senior leaders, sharing concrete data.
- Thank people for their efforts, acknowledging their strengths. Your relationships with direct reports will continue to grow as you recognize their unique contributions.
- Ask your organization to conduct a 360 leadership assessment of your work. This will supply you with a wealth of developmental feedback.
While a 30-60-90-day plan holds special importance for leaders, all new hires benefit from such a plan. No matter what level an employee is at, help them create a customized plan for their first 90 days on the job.
As you guide new managers in designing personalized 30-60-90-day plans, you’ll set them up to thrive in leadership positions. They’ll immediately begin building strong relationships with direct reports, which will empower greater team success. By helping them craft a clear roadmap to guide their efforts, you’ll achieve a stronger competitive edge as an organization.
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