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How To Integrate A New Squad Together Like A Product Manager
Learn how to help new squad members deepen relationships, increase understanding and unite together behind a single unified mission & vision
Every once in a while — whether it’s by getting a new role at a new company or due to an internal reorganisation within your existing company — you’ll be faced with having to integrate yourself with a brand new team that would’ve never worked with you previously or are not familiar with what you’ve accomplished in your previous places of work.
As a product manager, it is important that you are able to not only quickly establish a friendly and professional relationship with your new team members but also understand where you need to either introduce, withdraw or change your existing ways of working in order to fit the context, culture and history of your new team.
The following article explores the kinds of activities and conversations you should be having in the first few weeks of meeting your new team so that you are able to easily gain their respect & confidence, providing you a solid base to help achieve everything that you would like to set out to achieve for the quarter or the year ahead.
Discuss and negotiate ways of working with your new product trio
When you’re faced with a new team, the first port of call is arranging time to have a chat with your fellow team leaders. If the team follows a typical squad structure, most of them would have what is called a ‘product trio’. The product trio would consist of the engineering manager, the product designer and the product manager (you!) of the team.
Together, the product trio is responsible for not only setting direction for the type and cadence of the work to be done by the team but also oversees overall team culture, happiness and togetherness. Taking the time to check in with your new engineering manager and product designer to introduce yourself will help you to already ingratiate yourself with…
