The First 90 Days, Updated and Expanded

By: Michael Watkins

Narrated by: Grover Gardner

Length: 6 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's Summary

The world’s most trusted guide for leaders in transition.

Transitions are a critical time for leaders. In fact, most agree that moving into a new role is the biggest challenge a manager will face. While transitions offer a chance to start fresh and make needed changes in an organization, they also place leaders in a position of acute vulnerability. Missteps made during the crucial first three months in a new role can jeopardize or even derail your success.

In this updated and expanded version of the international bestseller The First 90 Days, Michael D. Watkins offers proven strategies for conquering the challenges of transitions - no matter where you are in your career. Watkins, a noted expert on leadership transitions and adviser to senior leaders in all types of organizations, also addresses today’s increasingly demanding professional landscape, where managers face not only more frequent transitions but also steeper expectations once they step into their new jobs.

By walking you through every aspect of the transition scenario, Watkins identifies the most common pitfalls new leaders encounter and provides the tools and strategies you need to avoid them. You’ll learn how to secure critical early wins, an important first step in establishing yourself in your new role. Each chapter also includes checklists, practical tools, and self-assessments to help you assimilate key lessons and apply them to your own situation.

Whether you’re starting a new job, being promoted from within, embarking on an overseas assignment, or being tapped as CEO, how you manage your transition will determine whether you succeed or fail. Use this book as your trusted guide.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2013 Michael Watkins (P)2013 Gildan Media LLC

Very practical book

This is a very practical book, filled with tools that can be put to practice the moment you're done with it. The examples that it presents are very useful in tiying up all the theory it adresses.

I've read reviews that complain the audio book makes reference to graphs and charts not available in the audio format. Though this is true, they can be downloaded as PDF in audible.com

22 of 22 people found this review helpful

Missing access to tables and charts

The audible version does not provide me access to the multitude of charts and tables that the author talks about. Those are the core of any action one can take after listening to this book. Amazon should atleast provide a PDF with those tables and charts.

52 of 55 people found this review helpful

Good book, but may need paper version

Contains a lot of great ideas, but makes many references to worksheets or visual information that is not available in audio format.

25 of 27 people found this review helpful

Excellent Content, But....

Where does The First 90 Days, Updated and Expanded rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Great book if you are looking to move up in your career following a new position. Beware though, that it makes many references to the charts, tables, graphs, lists, and figures contained within the actual book. Unfortunately, the audiobook does not come with these images which I felt were extremely important to the application of the book. It would be great if a pdf was provided which contained these items, but instead, I had to go out and buy the physical book as well. If you can find your way around this issue, it is well worth it. It does a good job of creating a visible plan for you to follow to ensure your success and upward mobility within a company. Don't wait until after you get the job to get this book though. I wish I would have read it before I even got the position to be able to go in with a legitimate plan and purpose. Instead I got it six weeks after I started which still helped tremendously.

37 of 41 people found this review helpful

Great book to accelerate transitions(PDF Included)

Would you consider the audio edition of The First 90 Days, Updated and Expanded to be better than the print version?

The audio edition is excellent. I listened to it in the car though, and wanted to take notes while I listened. Lots of valuable information. I might listen again and jot down notes and look at the graphs more intently.

What other book might you compare The First 90 Days, Updated and Expanded to and why?

The Power of Habit, Good to Create, Built to Last. All similar self-help / increase productivity at work / increase ability to transition books.

Any additional comments?

Great audio book. Now comes with the PDF of charts and worksheets, you might have to visit the audible.com site and look at your book library. For me the PDF is in plain sight. Very useful.

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

No charts or tables in the audio version

They are referenced quite a bit, but aren't available. And, the audiobook costs more than the printed version.

6 of 7 people found this review helpful

Good stuff...

I found this read to be a hard read but the information worth putting up with the dry reading. It was very informative and helped me see where I could have improved in previous employment. I would recommend this book to a friend.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Where's the Manual????

If you could sum up The First 90 Days, Updated and Expanded in three words, what would they be?

Missing the handouts!

i thought this was an excellent book, with lots of good sage advice. In fact, it was so much, and referenced specific diagrams, charts, or templates, that I wanted to write it down. After a few tries, i realized that i needed a companion workbook to go along with the audio, so that I could write down ALL the steps and recommendation, the personal learning plan, etc.

What other book might you compare The First 90 Days, Updated and Expanded to and why?

In terms of its potential impact, the 7 habits of highly effective people.

Have you listened to any of Grover Gardner’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not. I thought he was a great reader however.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No, i thought it was important to take in the recommendations, think about how i could apply them to my situation.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Good Content/ Dull Narrator

The content was good, and the way the tables were read in this audio flowed well with the entire reading of the book. The narrator's voice was a bit dull/boring and didn't seem to fluctuate very much.

5 of 7 people found this review helpful

Perfect for your first big career move

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, no question if they are taking on a new role. It helped me greatly to plan the first 90 days after promotion

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

poor audio book. Must buy the book instead!

This is a reputable book with a storing following. however the audio book is terrible. There are references to diagrams in the book throughout. This leads to a disjointed audio experience.

The narrator is extremely mono tone...

You have two options:
1- buy the original paper book
2 - buy a different book on audible

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

audiobook lacks tables often referred to

fantastic book. however tables and tools referred to are not available in audio. a shame!

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Performance of the audio book was disappointing

Book is great, but there were too many bugs, with the audio skipping parts of the book. Not a major issue (i think that the skipped sections were short), but disappointing.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

The all-time classic for aspiring leaders.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, initially I borrowed the book from a friend who works in the IT industry. Since then, I got hooked and have since introduced it to at least two people both of whom have bought their own copies. The book stands out from the rest. In relation to the audio book, the voice of the reader (Grover Garner) was pleasantly authoritative and felt like an uncle giving you unassailable logic and advice.

Have you listened to any of Grover Gardner’s other performances? How does this one compare?

no

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Good ideas, don't take everything in it for face value

Filter it through yourself from a private and professional perspective.
What factors apply or can be applied for your situation?
So don't try to take it as a dogma, don't 'copy-paste' it.
The author has a lot of experience with businesses, but lot of jobs are NOT sales / marketing related, so do a cherry picking: what applies to you?
You can even treat it as a hand book, and revisit interesting chapters (use bookmarks!) from time to time.
Tipp: I also bought the book, to read along. Maybe also consider doing the same. Worked for me.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

ok but a book for academics

Any additional comments?

the premise for the book and the principals are great. This book as a audiobook is really hard to decipher into one of operational use. I felt once it got started you were sitting in a business school lecture and it was really hard to turn into practice.
When it finished I really felt let down because I only had managed to take a couple of workable actions into my new role, but knew I had probably been told more I just seemed to miss them.
However I then went and bought the 90 day summary book and I didn't fair much better

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

A fantastic book!

What did you like most about The First 90 Days, Updated and Expanded?

This is a great book for those moving into new companies or leadership positions and helps people focus on some of the often obvious, but sadly missed missed approaches to on-boarding.

What did you like best about this story?

A factual and practical approach to joining a new company or position

Have you listened to any of Grover Gardner’s other performances? How does this one compare?

I haven't listened to other books so couldn't comment

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

This book made me want to write a list and get stuck in!

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

A must read for starting a new role

Recommended to me when I started my first sales management role. I got such a lot from this book and would read it over and over when starting my next new role, or even evolving the one I am in!

a little obvious and only for senior lasts

applicable only of you have a certain level of autonomy in your new job and you can make key decisions on teams and strategies. Applicable mainly in traditional big businesses like manufacturing big groups

Mandatory reading

First 90 days pugs forward a tangible realistic framework that would be suitable for anyone working through a leadership transition.