The full version of this article was first published at: The Channel Manager's Roadmap to The First 6 Months on The Job
Whether you’re brand new to a company, or are taking a new role at your existing employer, the first six months on the job are critical to building your personal brand. If you crush it, you’ll be able to leverage your success, even when things go wrong. However, if you botch things, it can be hard to recover. The First Thirty Days Out of the gate, it’s important to over-deliver on core responsibilities. Figure out how performance will be measured and get explicit metrics and numbers. Meet with managers or C-level leadership to prioritize what is expected within a specified timeframe. This will help you develop sales goals and account plans for prospect accounts and yearly goals. Along the way, it’s vital to continually increase your knowledge of service offerings. This should be an everyday task—until you master the service and products. How can you motivate your channel if you’re not an expert? This means meeting with product specialists and fellow managers to not only learn your products, but to tap into their experiences and help implement ideas that can make accounts more productive in areas your company has not penetrated. No matter how small or large, be sure to over-deliver on your first three assignments. Communicate with your channel network. Remember, you are the new guy—so keep their anxiety low by keeping all necessary parties in the loop. The Next Sixty Days After your first month of onboarding and learning the product, it’s time to dive even deeper. When…
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