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Build a Great Working Relationship with Your Boss

One of the worst things you can do when you start your new job is to make your supervisor look bad for hiring you. After all, your boss is key to your current on-the-job satisfaction and to your future success in the organization — and perhaps even beyond.

If there ever were a relationship for you to invest in, this is it. So here are five ways to get off to a great start with your new supervisor. Your efforts now will lay the groundwork for a productive working relationship over the long haul.

Watch Your New Boss and Learn

“The No. 1 thing is to observe the company culture and your supervisor closely during your first few weeks,” says Terese Corey Blanck, principal of College to Career, a career-consulting firm in suburban Minneapolis. “Keep your opinions to yourself until you understand the company culture well and know what people will look upon with favor and what they’ll look upon with disdain.”

Even something as simple as asking intelligent questions will make a difference in how your boss perceives you as an employee. “It’s always better to clarify than to charge off and go completely in the wrong direction,” Corey Blanck says.

Communicate the Way the Boss Wants To

Some bosses are very hands-on, keeping close tabs on you throughout your workday. Others may talk to you once a week or less often and send you on your way to do your job.

Whatever your supervisor’s style, typically it’s up to you to establish and maintain the lines of communication between the two of you. Using either email or the occasional stop-by-the-office visit, make sure you keep your boss informed with the answers to these questions:

• What are you working on?
• What have you finished, and what are the results?
• What can you help your supervisor with?