In the Media

Strategies: Leading in a New Job

May 5, 2025

Reaching the leadership ranks after a career transition may present a daunting challenge. In my experience, advancing into leadership within a new organization is possible if you immerse yourself in the company, make authentic connections, and maintain empathetic communications, no matter what the conversation.

Successfully Onboarding and Integrating into a New Position

Meeting as many people as possible and learning all you can about the organization are critical first steps in any new environment. Especially at a law firm, where client service makes or breaks business relationships, knowing the professional capabilities within the organization is vital to onboarding clients and maintaining and growing their business.

When I moved from my long-time employer to my current law firm, I made every effort to meet my new colleagues and learn about their expertise to look for opportunities to work together.

Making internal connections not only equipped me to assemble effective client teams, but also to benchmark what colleagues were doing in other offices and practices, to leverage their success with my own clients. This also positioned me to thoughtfully navigate within my new environment and be positioned to raise my hand when leadership opportunities arose. Being as authentic and inquisitive in each opportunity to engage with my colleagues has laid the building blocks for a successful path to leadership in my new environment.

Leveraging Transferable Skills 

When possible, I find that a “shared ownership” approach to team management is most successful. Across titles and roles, we’re all on the same team and we are each responsible for the end result as well as the individual tasks that lead up to it. This mentality empowers every team member to speak up with ideas and solutions, and to jump in to accomplish whatever task is required to get the job done.

No matter the business or industry, those charged with management responsibilities can be tasked with having difficult conversations, both with our internal team and with our clients. We are often in a position to manage complicated, nuanced situations and propose solutions to resolve unexpected challenges. Approaching difficult conversations with empathy equips leaders to empower their teams to do their best work, and serve as trusted advisors to their clients, which positions each opportunity for the best possible result and strengthens relationships long term.

Building Credibility to Establish Yourself in a New Role

The manner in which the “little things” are handled establishes credibility. In client service and in managing teams, building confidence and maintaining trust in a leader’s professional judgement forms the foundation for a cohesive team that produces quality work. Transparent, open, frequent communication facilitates that trust.

As a colleague or a leader, I’ve found success in striking the balance between encouraging independent thought, and staying responsive as an “open door resource” to those in my office and on my team. Supported team members are more likely to stay on track, coordinate across the group, and deliver quality work product.

In any organization, and particularly when transitioning into a new organization, empowering your team to do their best work and communicating with authenticity and empathy helps to build the credibility needed to put you on the path to leadership and success.

This article was published in The Business Journal’s Biz Women on May 5, 2025, and is reprinted with permission.