8 things to do when you join a new team
Being in a software consulting and services company for the past many years I’ve had the privilege of working in many projects with diverse teams. As I moved from team to team I observed and learned which led to me accumulating experience around 8 best practises to follow while joining a new team. Although most of these thoughts seem to be from a consultant’s perspective moving into different teams in the same organisation, many of these are applicable to folks joining a new team in a new job as well.
1. Get to know the team
The very first step to get accepted in a new team is to get to know everyone. Introductions can be done in the first daily update or stand-up meeting. After that it is your responsibility to interact informally with each person and try to get a good rapport with everyone. It is imperative to have a comfortable working environment and a supportive team from day 1.
2. Observe and take notes
I listened more than I studied, therefore little by little my knowledge and ability were developed.— Joseph Haydn
I’ve always felt that listening is a necessary soft skill at the workplace. Being new to the project, you need to listen and observe in each meeting and discussion. At this time it is important to understand the jargon and abbreviations used in the project. People are the most helpful, but nobody likes being asked the same question repeatedly. So make notes if necessary. Use the initial days to understand the project, processes and the technical details needed for your role.
4. Ramp up fast
In my experience, one of the qualities to impress your new team is a fast ramp up 😄. As a new joiner to the team you must take responsibility and attend all the training sessions by the team members and/or by the organisation (relevant if you are new to the company). This will help you to contribute to the project soon. A quick ramp up also includes proactively obtaining all the necessary credentials, accesses for systems so that you are not blocked while learning or performing any tasks. Also, documenting the knowledge gained and sharing it within the team via an existing common resource repository is a valuable contribution to the team. Make sure the information added is not redundant though.
4. Don’t hesitate : Ask questions, make mistakes
Who questions much, shall learn much, and retain much.— Francic Bacon
Ask questions during training, discussions and while pairing with other team members. Of course, this should not be done at the cost of delaying completion of a piece of work or blocking a discussion. Asking relevant questions also helps in a fast ramp up. As a side note : if you are new to company then its better to observe the culture before asking too many questions. For example, when I was working at a client location I observed that asking questions during a discussion was not encouraged a lot. In such a case, you must note down the questions and find ways to get answers later. Also, don’t hesitate to make mistakes. You will learn valuable lessons from these.
5. Self Study
Whatever be the role, there will be an information explosion when you join a new project. So there definitely would be a lot of things you will need to work on, to be effective on the team. For example, there is a new technology, or a new practise, or a new domain you need to learn more about. So, you must spend some time on your own to learn some or all the above. I understand some of us may have personal constraints and may not get the kind of time needed. In that case, seek a team member’s help to prioritise and pick up things one at a time.
6. Don’t impose yourself
When you join a new team and project you may have suggestions for many improvements looking at the code base, documentation, processes, practises etc. This is especially possible if you have considerable experience of working in several projects before this one. This is really great because your suggestions and experience can definitely benefit the project and team. But, one needs to be careful while making these suggestions. Get complete background and context of the topic before suggesting something. Use the right tone and words and do not impose yourself. Also, bring it up at a proper time with the appropriate person! Once I witnessed a really tense encounter because a new and experienced team member was giving suggestions in an authoritarian manner without understanding the context which made everyone very uncomfortable.
7. Show ownership
It’s important to show ownership and be responsible from Day 1. Try to learn and understand everything as if you need to run the team single-handedly tomorrow. Once you’ve got a hang of things, ask for tasks which you can accomplish alone. This will help you be responsible and gain self-confidence.
8. Prove yourself : Gain trust
And finally, a thumb rule for success, that applies while joining any new establishment: school, college or work. Prove yourself ! Take it slow if there are constraints, but play to your strengths and prove yourself in tasks which you are best at. This will help you gain the team’s trust and confidence.
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Update:
Another important thing which I think I missed mentioning before is Understanding expectations.
Depending on the type, scale and team structure of the project, the role of an individual may vary. It is important to understand what is the expectation that the team and the leadership has from you while you are part of the project. For example, its possible that you were one of the senior members of a team and are expected to support the team lead, but in your new project you are the senior-most member on the project team and are expected to lead the team. Hence, understanding expectations from day one will greatly influence the approach you have towards your day-to-day work, interaction with colleagues/stakeholders, the information you need to gather on priority as well as the ramp up process.
All the best!!
