So, you’ve landed the role, handed in your notice, and are now getting ready to join your new company – congratulations! It’s an exciting time, full of new beginnings, chances to form new relationships with colleagues and discover exciting career opportunities. However, those great feelings can also be mirrored by a degree of anxiety about fitting in and adapting to a new workplace.
While it’s natural for even the most confident of people to feel nervous about starting a new job, there’s no need to let these feelings get in the way. At Leonid, cultural fit is integral to our talent matching process in which we have an additional level of due diligence, above the norm, to ensure the match is right for both candidate and client.
That being said, there are certain steps you can take to prepare yourself for the change of scenery.
Do your research on the new workplace
While there’s no doubt you did your research on the company prior to interviewing with them, now’s the time to do a little more digging. One of the best places to start is the website. Is there a ‘meet the team’ page you could check out to familiarise yourself with new faces? It always helps to learn a few names ahead of time. Another valuable page to look out for is ‘About us’ as it will give you a feel for the companies ‘Why’, ‘How’ and ‘What’ so you’re all clued up for your first day.
You could also reach out to the HR contact to ask if there’s an onboarding document to read ahead of time. The onboarding document may have information on things like dress code, lunch breaks, what to do when you’re sick and other HR matters that may make you feel a little more comfortable ahead of time.
If there’s no onboarding guide available just yet, there’s always the option of requesting the brand guide from the Marketing Department. While this info may not be relevant to your role, the information inside will give you a greater insight into the company brand and how they represent themselves externally.
Network, network, network
Ever heard of the saying ‘It’s not what you know, it’s who you know? Sometimes, joining a new company can be a bit like being the new kid on the block, in which it never hurts to have a few friendly faces to show you around.
By networking with your new colleagues on LinkedIn, you’ll be able to put names to faces a little easier. This is particularly important if you’re working remotely as there’s a good chance you won’t meet all of your colleagues face-to-face for a few months.
Be sure to add a message when sending your connection request so that the colleague knows you’ve recently joined the company. Once connected, don’t be shy – reach out and introduce yourself! You should keep an eye on what type of content your new colleagues are posting and what tone of voice they are using as it will pave the way for how you should conduct your own LinkedIn presence.
Be sure to observe
While it’s important to use initiative and reach out to make connections, you should also be careful not to go in too eager and scare off your new colleagues. It’s best not to disclose too much personal information to colleagues at this stage until you know the lay of the land a little better.
Job shadowing may be a part of your onboarding process, but you should also be doing this at ‘the water cooler’ too in order to get a good understanding of the cultural norms within the new company. Try to align yourself with colleagues who seem to hold influence and who are respected as this will help keep you on track for a positive probation period.
Be Curious
It’s easy to hold on to preconceived perceptions of your new workplace, but remember to stay open-minded, ask lots of questions and be willing to do things a little differently from what you’re used to.
While you may fish like a fish out of water at first, adapting to a new workplace is a chance to grow both personally and professionally. As long as you’re open-minded, willing to adapt to new ways of working, and to take other people’s suggestions on board then you’ll thrive in your new workplace.
Be patient
Remember that adapting to a new workplace takes time and that everyone has been the new person at one point. Be sure to put time aside each day to keep learning about your new company and the people around you.
Before you know it, you’ll be more comfortable working with your new colleagues and will have found your crown at the cafeteria too.
Overall, adapting to a new workplace can be a challenging time. However, those that are open-minded, willing to learn and embrace the experience as a positive one are most likely to do well in a role.
Leonid is also here to provide candidate support even after you’ve started your new role. Be sure to follow us on social media to stay up to date with the latest career advice and upcoming candidate after-care programmes.