During our research, we asked leaders which actions they rated are the most important for getting off to the right start. Topping the list were five items:

1. Absorb information.

2. Define the company’s challenges.

3. Establish credibility and win employees’ trust.

4. Access the senior management team.

5. Prepare yourself emotionally.

Similarly, one of the keys to success in any new job is establishing a productive working relationship with your boss. Whether you are moving into a position of expanded responsibility as a new manager or as a new CEO, how you establish and sustain that relationship will help shape your first hundred days and will be a crucial element in your ongoing success.

If you are not a CEO, meet with your new boss and discuss how he or she really likes to work, establish priorities, and communicate. For example, is he more comfortable with formal written updates or more fluid progress reports. Does she prefer email or voicemail?

Establishing your credibility by having a sound strategic agenda, being on top of the details of the business, listening and learning from your boss or board members, building a strong and committed management team, establishing a sound management process, and maintaining humility.

Communication is a central aspect of leadership and indeed all human activity. It has a magnified effect during your first hundred days. Take care to do it well and do it often, which requires active listening, tailoring communication approaches both to your natural strengths and to the situation, and giving and getting direct feedback. It will help support your strategic and cultural agenda; it will also help you avoid many of the most common pitfalls that threaten new leaders as they try to get off to the right start.