How to Answer: What are the first three things you do when joining a new team?
Advice and answer examples written specifically for an ADP job interview.
13. What are the first three things you do when joining a new team?
Why the Interviewer Asks This Question
Some enter a new work environment with a go-getter attitude, excited to prove themselves and deliver on their claims. However, coming in ready to reinvent the wheel before building relationships and understanding what those who came before you have built and why will only result in self-defeat. This question is geared to see how you would approach this situation.
Written by Kevin Downey on May 16th, 2022
How to Answer
Familiarize yourself with the 30/60/90 rule: The first month of a new hire's 90-day probation period should focus on familiarizing themselves with the team, company, products/services, clients, etc. Month two should be spent studying current processes and procedures, and identifying strengths and weaknesses. In the last month, that hire should be well-grounded in the role and capable of identifying growth opportunities. Past the 90-day mark is considered an acceptable time to implement innovation.
Written by Kevin Downey on May 16th, 2022
1st Entry Level Example
"When joining a new team, whether it's a project in class or when I volunteer in the community, I always introduce myself with a smile and positive attitude. I take time to get to know everyone and understand the culture of the group. I also focus on understanding my role and responsibilities among the team."
Written by Jaymie Payne on November 13th, 2022
1st Answer Example
"It would take as long as it would take me to build working relationships and build trust with the other members of the team. I'd learn how everything works, learn all the systems and processes, and learn all the rules before innovating. That takes working hard, side by side with the rest of the team, tapping into every resource, and building from there. So that would fall somewhere in the first 90 days."
Written by Kevin Downey on May 16th, 2022
2nd Answer Example
"I hope to make a difference in any way I can. Whether the positive impact I make is incremental or grand in scale depends on the opportunities that are presented to me. But all in all, with gratitude for the opportunity, the first thing I'd do is build relationships and trust with my coworkers and those I'd be working with. I'd learn the ropes from as many perspectives as possible because everyone has a unique perspective and tricks of the trade to share. Once I'd get past that point, I'd develop systems to deliver both quality and quantity, and then evaluate if those could be of use to others in the department. Primarily, it is my aim to continue to do the good work, and make myself, and my superiors, proud."
Written by Jaymie Payne on November 13th, 2022
About the Author
When I started my career in business management, branding, and marketing, I mistakenly assumed hard work and integrity alone would get me noticed. Back then, I assumed the harder I worked, the faster I’d rise through the ranks. Yet, even in a meritocracy, this is rarely the case.
The goals of my peers competed with mine, and too often, they were better at getting noticed for their accomplishments. And, some of them were all too happy to watch me working harder, as they worked smarter, rising through the ranks faster than me. At one point, a boss of mine labeled me a stealth worker. They said they had no idea I was the one performing all that great work. If only I’d drawn more attention to what I was doing, maybe I would have gotten rewarded for it. So I learned most of my leadership skills the hard way, and the journey was long.
As a leader, my favorite part of the job came to be coaching others. I took pride in sharing the secrets to my eventual success, and offering my outside-of-the-box view of the role. Where other leaders were only in it for themselves, I was genuinely in it for the company and the team. So I taught those I mentored not only what they needed to do, and how to do the job right, but why each step was important. I spelled out how everything fit into the big picture and shared every trick of the trade that no one shared with me. Every single individual I mentored advanced far ahead of their peers, surpassing those who were only in it for themselves.
Another favorite part of the job was recruiting and building the perfect teams. For me, conducting an interview was an art form. I later volunteered my services at career fairs and trade schools, offering advice, from crafting the perfect CV and resume, to delivering a perfect interview, to negotiating a decent raise. Now I am a full-time writer, and left my management career behind me. Yet, I still love coaching others to succeed, and I love writing for mockquestions.com for this very reason.
Here’s what I said to a friend of mine whom I mentored a long time ago: “Every single thing you do, at every stage, can alter the perception others have of your professional worth. My goal is to make you look like an asset worth fighting for.”
Learn more about Kevin Downey