The New Leader's 100-Day Action Plan: How to Take Charge, Build Your Team, and Get Immediate Results, 3rd Edition

CHAPTER 4

Do Your Due Diligence before You Accept the Job Offer

I wish I'd read this chapter before I accepted that job!”

We hear that a lot.

In Chapter 3 we mapped out the seven deadly land mines with a view to sensitizing you to areas of potential danger and then presenting you with deactivation methods you can use to mitigate the risk. In this chapter we focus more particularly on Phase 1, because this ultimately brings up the question: Should I really take this job? To know the answer to the question, you need to make an informed assessment of the degree of risk.

So, for Phase 1, we exhort you to take a systematic approach to mitigating the three major potential land mines or risks that could derail your onboarding. Those are, as we discussed earlier, organizational risk, role risk, and personal risk. We suggest a process that will uncover and help you assess those risks. Finally, we suggest a framework for mitigating those risks once you've understood them better. You may want to follow our suggestions. Or, later you can send us an e-mail saying, “I wish I'd read this chapter before I accepted that job!” You won't be alone.

It is important to understand that a comprehensive risk assessment is a vital step in opening crucial communication channels that are likely to be mutually valuable down the road.

See relationship and learning land mines from Chapter 3. We have more structured ...