Starting from scratch...

Well, this week marked the start of a new role for me.  I'd always assumed that my next role would be that of a Service Delivery Manager - yet I have moved out of the operational IT environment and taken a leap into the business change environment.  I'm now a project manager on the business side (albeit with an IT background).  These days there is a lot of talk about how IT folk, CIOs especially, need to understand the business units that they support; what better way to do that than to take the plunge into said area?  Inevitably there will be ups and downs to go with the new challenges.  It all makes for the perfect personal development opportunity - and one that will get my career where I want it to go.

So... week one.  My objectives were to get a better understanding of the project(s) that I would be working on, meeting key people (potential project team members and primary stakeholders), and an understanding of the new environment I'd be working in.

Monday - I go through the usual induction stuff and find that everything isn't quite as expected with my new room or IT setup.  On the upside these small issues provided me with opportunities to get well acquainted with facilities and IT sooner than I had planned to.  Everyone proved really helpful and focused on getting what I need to do the job.  A positive day on the whole.  The only negative thing was that, although intellectually I knew that it would be hard moving from IT to the business side, I hadn't reckoned on it being so damned frustrating to find myself a 'user' and all that means, i.e. subject to user IT policies and unable to do all I am used to doing!

Tuesday - Main achievement of the day, meeting and picking the brains of the Contact Centre Manager who will be a key stakeholder in the integration project.  Obtained a wealth of information in a short time which all contributed to my weekly goals.  Once I got home I was missing the people I used to work with and elements of my old job.  Had to remind myself why I made the move and gear myself up for the next working day.

Wednesday - Very busy yet rewarding day.  Introduced myself to the IT managers and met with every member of ICT who was present.  Coming from IT myself, I know that without their support this project will be going nowhere fast.  I also met a potential team member who specialises in process mapping.  A skillset that I have some, yet limited, experience with so it's great to have someone around who is very passionate about the subject.

Thursday - At short notice I managed to meet the project customer (senior user) for a one-to-one prior to our formal meeting next week.  Very informative and useful - yet another person with great energy and enthusiasm.  Either there are a lot of those in this organisation or I've just been very lucky in meeting the few that are thus far - time will tell.

Friday - The first project board meeting with me present.  My one deliverable to show for the week thus far is a draft project organisation chart identifying programme board, project board, project team members, stakeholders and other interested parties.  The fact that I had met a lot of them helped.  I spent the afternoon in the contact centre getting to grips with the various systems in use and how they are used in conjunction with one another.  All very positive thus far - I go home tired and happy.


Conclusion after week one: Initial objectives achieved.  Coming from an outside organisation I have no credibility here; I am starting from scratch.  Spending time meeting people, making an excellent first impression, and gathering information about people and the organisation are all key if I am to be successful in this role.  Being me, I intend to be ;)