Whatever your views of Andy Burnham, his first 100 days as Prime Minister have shone a light on something every new leader faces: the pressure to make an impact fast. The impression you make early on can shape how colleagues and stakeholders see you for a long time afterwards, whether you’re working in the corridors of Whitehall or the wider commercial world.

So if you’ve just been promoted, or changed direction, here are four steps to help you make your mark.

Step 1: Understand your role

In your first 30 days, get clear on what’s expected of you. What does success look like early on? What are the commitments and deliverables? Make sure everyone is working from the same page.

Then dial up your emotional intelligence and go on a listening tour:

  • Day one: hold a meet and greet with your team. It shows you’re visible and approachable.
  • Week one onwards: schedule 1:1s with every direct report and key stakeholder.
  • Look further afield: invite a few people from outside your immediate circle to give you a 360 view.

Ask them what’s going well, what could be better and how you can help. Standing in their shoes builds rapport, and it leads to results that work for both sides.

Step 2: Prioritise your tasks

A new role can feel daunting. There’s so much to do that it’s hard to know where to begin. Your listening tour will have shown you the burning platforms. Now decide what comes first, using the 4 D’s:

  • Do it: urgent and important
  • Delegate it: urgent, not important
  • Delay it: important, not urgent
  • Drop it: neither

Be discerning. It’s tempting to end up with a long list of Do Its and nothing in the other three. If everything is a priority, nothing is.

Step 3: Develop your plan

With your priorities clear, build your plan around three things: people, investment and processes.

  • People: audit your team. Do individual ambitions match capability? How is each person affecting their area of responsibility? If you need to make tough calls on underperformance, make them quickly and decisively to keep momentum going.
  • Investment: understand the returns. Where the KPIs are unclear, pause spending until they’re not. Then you can compare existing allocation with new asks.
  • Processes: review what’s in your area and look for ways to cut complexity. Quick wins build credibility.

Step 4: Take your stakeholders on a journey

Engaging people and bringing them with you is the heart of a successful start. As Simon Sinek puts it, “When people are financially invested, they want a return. When people are emotionally invested, they want to contribute.”

So work with your peers to define the role your team wants to play in the organisation. Pull together a simple, persuasive presentation and test your thinking with internal stakeholders before sharing it more widely. Take feedback on board, keep refining, and keep communication channels open.

Start as you mean to go on

Follow these four steps and you’ll be well on your way to unlocking your leadership confidence and making a real impact in your first 100 days.

Starting a new role, or supporting someone who is? Get in touch to find out how Diadem’s leadership and EQ programmes can help.