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I have a very specific (and pretty easy) strategy for this when I join a new org. Technically you could do this at any time, but you generally have a "grace win

I have a very specific (and pretty easy) strategy for this when I join a new org. Technically you could do this at any time, but you generally have a "grace window" when you're new where people are happy to go out of their way to meet you and teach you. First, meet 1 on 1 with every member of your immediate team. This of course serves as a "get to know you" meet, but your real goal is to get them to explain their work to you. Have them go into as much detail as time allows on whatever they're currently working on. Ask followup questions that start with "why" on everything. Have them show you their part(s) of the product, have them share as many docs as they're willing to (for you to read async later), etc. Put aside whatever ego you may have, and just get into a beginner's/learning mindset. Ask all the stupid questions. Then, at the end, ask them who else they're working with from other teams. Put those names on a list, and rinse and repeat with them. This way you'll start local to your role and work your way outward in the company. Eventually you'll find people that are doing nothing particularly relevant to you and you can decide to stop. If it's a larger company, this is also where you establish your understanding of the org chart and who does what in it, and also makes you known to a ton of folks who may want or need to work with you in the future - which is invaluable in and of itself.

epolanski 3y ago
> Put aside whatever ego you may have, and just get into a beginner's/learning mindset. Ask all the stupid questions. This so much. Play fool to catch wise sung Bob Marley and it works wonders.
b-karl 3y ago
I have not done the 1 on 1 method before, it sounds interesting and will try it in the future, but I agree with utilizing the grace period to explore, ask and learn as much as possible about the organization and industry. My additional recommendation would be to try to identify limited-scope projects that contribute to your role and where you can start delivering some value. For me this helps set a clear goal and it is usually easier to identify the specific skills/knowledge/information/contacts I need to complete the task. It also usually feels motivating to check off those early projects.
- gamepsys 3y ago
  > My additional recommendation would be to try to identify limited-scope projects that contribute to your role and where you can start delivering some value. If you are in a leadership role over a team then having a pre-chewed problem ready for new members of your team is a very useful thing you can do. I'm talking well defined problem with a clear path towards success. This helps the new member become use to the team and processes, and gives them an easy win to put some wind in their sails. Also, this can serve as a litmus test to their on the job performance.
- PaulHoule 3y ago
  It can work really well but you can sometimes find individuals who won't play along.
  - maroonblazer 3y ago
    In which case that's good feedback to give to management. Unless they have very good reasons and offer an alternative ("I'm on deadline so can't talk now, but after this sprint I'll have time.") those individuals are actively sabotaging the team and should be dealt with accordingly.
    - PaulHoule 3y ago
      Often management knows all about it and does nothing for one reason or another. I had two cases of having a toxic coworker and only being able to get them fired after leaving myself. (Step 1 is “oh shit, we lost an important team member”, Step 2 is “aha! we haven’t been able to replace that team member in six months because of the behavior of the toxic employee”). Next thing I see the person is on LinkedIn looking for a new job.
efxhoy 3y ago
Completely agree. It’s also a fantastic way to get to know how the org is doing, many people will be happy to share what parts of the product they’re happy with and where the dumpster fires are. I also think it’s useful for the people you’re talking to as they get an opportunity to reflect on what they’re doing and if it makes any sense. It’s like an external auditor or reviewer coming in. Just pronouncing what you’re doing in a way that’s understandable to an outsider can be very helpful in building your in understanding imo.
- rco8786 3y ago
  > Just pronouncing what you’re doing in a way that’s understandable to an outsider can be very helpful in building your in understanding imo. Totally. It's the same idea around rubber ducking!
mannycalavera42 3y ago
subscribing to everything, rco8786 let me know if you are hiring anytime soon :rotfl:
jimberlage 3y ago
This is fantastic advice! One additional thing I do is Identify people they don’t work with, that you would naturally assume they would. Typically this means: Your understanding of how processes flow in this industry has some gaps, or some thing you thought was crucial is a solved problem that people don’t think about; or There is tension and some history here, tread lightly while you figure out the office politics; or You’ve identified a legitimate opportunity! Be careful here though, you need to understand if some higher ups have misaligned incentives to keep the status quo before you suggest changes.
DavidPeiffer 3y ago
This process was mandatory at my last company, and it was really helpful. People are way more likely to respond to your email or do something for you as a newer employee if they've met you, particularly so if you can meet in person. Taking notes during or immediately after the meeting, then synthesizing them to form a narrative is also helpful when you're meeting so many people. The other thing I do is start a file literally titled "Everything I know about <company>" and just write everything down. I make diagrams, write sentences with highlighted blank spaces for gaps in knowledge, etc. As you get to the 10th meeting, you have a decent mental model of how things are intended to work, and have probably heard about some of the systems the 11th person works with. When you communicate some of your understanding of the system to them, they can fill in gaps or correct misunderstandings. The other thing I always ask about is what a cadence or work looks like? Is there seasonality in their availability? Finance/accounting are best left alone the first week of the month as they're dealing with month end. Some people are slammed Monday and Tuesday, catching up from things that happened over the weekend. If an entire business is seasonal, it makes sense to prioritize heavy lift projects to the off-season.
- KineticLensman 3y ago
  > If an entire business is seasonal, it makes sense to prioritize heavy lift projects to the off-season One form of seasonality is associated with financial years, in some industries. I found this working on contracts for UK govt agencies, where the FY runs from April to March. The customers usually procrastinated about letting contracts, which sometimes wouldn't appear until after the summer or even just before Christmas. Then there was a mad panic from Jan to March to actually spend the money and submit those deliverables. It followed that the time to do training, internal projects, housekeeping etc, was in April and May.
robviren 3y ago
100% support this approach. My knowledge of product has always been less important than my knowledge of the people, resources, and structure of my organization. I don't need to know things, I need to know who knows things. At least at the start.
j45 3y ago
This is a nice summary. Being an innocent beginner helps convey your ability to lead yourself and work with a team at the same time. One tweak I do is assume your grace window is half the length you're told or believe. Building up a bit of momentum in case it's needed if something comes up is helpful.
samstave 3y ago
I've always done this as well! Another strategem is to ask the people you meet with 1:1 how they feel you may help them be more successful. What can you do in their current workflow that will spread load, help you learn, help them succeed. Most times you get "just happy to have you on board" but you can get valuable feedback as well as an understanding of stress levels of others on and off team.
abcdjdjd 3y ago
I feel like this is easier to do as a junior developer than a mid to senior level developer. Also, I have tried this on a team and one or two would do it but everyone acted like they are too busy. Basically, it was hard to get one on one time to talk to people on the team outside the manager. Depending on how toxic the job is too, this could be used against you. I don't think it should, but if they expect a mid/senior developer then they could see this as not being senior enough. How do you handle the above concerns? Both to make people make time for this and also how do you defend against it being used against you? Yes, there is a grace period. But then it feels like even with a grace period, some still find a reason to use it against you.
- gdhkgdhkvff 3y ago
  I almost always hate it when people give the following advice because it’s almost always given too freely, but: Do you really want to work for a team that looks down upon you for trying to learn/appearing like you don’t know something? That’s like a Petri dish for growing imposter syndrome.

epolanski 3y ago

> Put aside whatever ego you may have, and just get into a beginner's/learning mindset. Ask all the stupid questions. This so much. Play fool to catch wise sung Bob Marley and it works wonders.

b-karl 3y ago

I have not done the 1 on 1 method before, it sounds interesting and will try it in the future, but I agree with utilizing the grace period to explore, ask and learn as much as possible about the organization and industry. My additional recommendation would be to try to identify limited-scope projects that contribute to your role and where you can start delivering some value. For me this helps set a clear goal and it is usually easier to identify the specific skills/knowledge/information/contacts I need to complete the task. It also usually feels motivating to check off those early projects.

gamepsys 3y ago
> My additional recommendation would be to try to identify limited-scope projects that contribute to your role and where you can start delivering some value. If you are in a leadership role over a team then having a pre-chewed problem ready for new members of your team is a very useful thing you can do. I'm talking well defined problem with a clear path towards success. This helps the new member become use to the team and processes, and gives them an easy win to put some wind in their sails. Also, this can serve as a litmus test to their on the job performance.
PaulHoule 3y ago
It can work really well but you can sometimes find individuals who won't play along.
- maroonblazer 3y ago
  In which case that's good feedback to give to management. Unless they have very good reasons and offer an alternative ("I'm on deadline so can't talk now, but after this sprint I'll have time.") those individuals are actively sabotaging the team and should be dealt with accordingly.
  - PaulHoule 3y ago
    Often management knows all about it and does nothing for one reason or another. I had two cases of having a toxic coworker and only being able to get them fired after leaving myself. (Step 1 is “oh shit, we lost an important team member”, Step 2 is “aha! we haven’t been able to replace that team member in six months because of the behavior of the toxic employee”). Next thing I see the person is on LinkedIn looking for a new job.

efxhoy 3y ago

Completely agree. It’s also a fantastic way to get to know how the org is doing, many people will be happy to share what parts of the product they’re happy with and where the dumpster fires are. I also think it’s useful for the people you’re talking to as they get an opportunity to reflect on what they’re doing and if it makes any sense. It’s like an external auditor or reviewer coming in. Just pronouncing what you’re doing in a way that’s understandable to an outsider can be very helpful in building your in understanding imo.

rco8786 3y ago
> Just pronouncing what you’re doing in a way that’s understandable to an outsider can be very helpful in building your in understanding imo. Totally. It's the same idea around rubber ducking!

mannycalavera42 3y ago

subscribing to everything, rco8786 let me know if you are hiring anytime soon :rotfl:

jimberlage 3y ago

This is fantastic advice! One additional thing I do is Identify people they don’t work with, that you would naturally assume they would. Typically this means: Your understanding of how processes flow in this industry has some gaps, or some thing you thought was crucial is a solved problem that people don’t think about; or There is tension and some history here, tread lightly while you figure out the office politics; or You’ve identified a legitimate opportunity! Be careful here though, you need to understand if some higher ups have misaligned incentives to keep the status quo before you suggest changes.

DavidPeiffer 3y ago

This process was mandatory at my last company, and it was really helpful. People are way more likely to respond to your email or do something for you as a newer employee if they've met you, particularly so if you can meet in person. Taking notes during or immediately after the meeting, then synthesizing them to form a narrative is also helpful when you're meeting so many people. The other thing I do is start a file literally titled "Everything I know about <company>" and just write everything down. I make diagrams, write sentences with highlighted blank spaces for gaps in knowledge, etc. As you get to the 10th meeting, you have a decent mental model of how things are intended to work, and have probably heard about some of the systems the 11th person works with. When you communicate some of your understanding of the system to them, they can fill in gaps or correct misunderstandings. The other thing I always ask about is what a cadence or work looks like? Is there seasonality in their availability? Finance/accounting are best left alone the first week of the month as they're dealing with month end. Some people are slammed Monday and Tuesday, catching up from things that happened over the weekend. If an entire business is seasonal, it makes sense to prioritize heavy lift projects to the off-season.

KineticLensman 3y ago
> If an entire business is seasonal, it makes sense to prioritize heavy lift projects to the off-season One form of seasonality is associated with financial years, in some industries. I found this working on contracts for UK govt agencies, where the FY runs from April to March. The customers usually procrastinated about letting contracts, which sometimes wouldn't appear until after the summer or even just before Christmas. Then there was a mad panic from Jan to March to actually spend the money and submit those deliverables. It followed that the time to do training, internal projects, housekeeping etc, was in April and May.

robviren 3y ago

100% support this approach. My knowledge of product has always been less important than my knowledge of the people, resources, and structure of my organization. I don't need to know things, I need to know who knows things. At least at the start.

j45 3y ago

This is a nice summary. Being an innocent beginner helps convey your ability to lead yourself and work with a team at the same time. One tweak I do is assume your grace window is half the length you're told or believe. Building up a bit of momentum in case it's needed if something comes up is helpful.

samstave 3y ago

I've always done this as well! Another strategem is to ask the people you meet with 1:1 how they feel you may help them be more successful. What can you do in their current workflow that will spread load, help you learn, help them succeed. Most times you get "just happy to have you on board" but you can get valuable feedback as well as an understanding of stress levels of others on and off team.

abcdjdjd 3y ago

I feel like this is easier to do as a junior developer than a mid to senior level developer. Also, I have tried this on a team and one or two would do it but everyone acted like they are too busy. Basically, it was hard to get one on one time to talk to people on the team outside the manager. Depending on how toxic the job is too, this could be used against you. I don't think it should, but if they expect a mid/senior developer then they could see this as not being senior enough. How do you handle the above concerns? Both to make people make time for this and also how do you defend against it being used against you? Yes, there is a grace period. But then it feels like even with a grace period, some still find a reason to use it against you.

gdhkgdhkvff 3y ago
I almost always hate it when people give the following advice because it’s almost always given too freely, but: Do you really want to work for a team that looks down upon you for trying to learn/appearing like you don’t know something? That’s like a Petri dish for growing imposter syndrome.