This is the latest post in the success tips for in-house counsel series by Dimitri Mastrocola. It’s critical to have a 90-day action plan in place when you first assume a general counsel role.
Here are a few suggestions on how to outline your 90-day action plan as an incoming GC:
Purpose
- a checklist of action items for the first 90 days, NOT a strategic plan
- a work-in-progress, shaped by feedback and information received
Information to gather
- the company, its business and operations
- strategies, goals, challenges & key initiatives of the company and the legal team
- how the GC should interact with key stakeholders
- expectations for acting as (i) head of legal, (ii) advisor to the CEO and board and (iii) partner to the executive team and business heads
Execution steps
- use research gathered during interviews & pre-start conversations to put issues in context and determine priorities
- prepare a list of people to meet
- create a communication strategy
- set key milestones to measure the GC’s 90-day progress
Avoid
- being too aggressive about what the GC can accomplish during the first 90 days
- setting unrealistic expectations about what the GC and legal team can achieve
- trying to establish value by seeming to have all the answers right away
- making major organizational changes to the legal function before thoroughly assessing the situation
These tips aren’t just for in-house counsel – anyone can apply them to what they do.
Read the other posts in the in-house counsel success series by Dimitri. Contact Dimitri with any questions.