Angela Ahrendts shares insight on her transition to Apple’s corporate culture

Apple’s new retail chief Angela Ahrendts has written a blog post on LinkedIn sharing some of the insight she has gathered while making the transition from Burberry to to the Cupertino company. The post opens with advice on how to avoid being overwhelmed with the stresses of a new position:

First: “Stay in your lane.” You’ve been hired because you bring a certain expertise to the team and the company. Try to resist putting additional or undue pressure on yourself trying to learn it all from day one.

Ahrendts also discusses the importance of asking questions in order to “break down barriers” instead of working on assumptions, and building personal relationships with coworkers in order to build trust in order to create a united team.

Talking about weekend interests, family and friends can give you a more complete view of your peers and partners, their passion and compassion. Building a relationship is also the first step in building trust, which quickly leads towards alignment and unity.

She closes the article with by touching on the topics of decision making and first impressions:

So remember, first impressions are truly lasting and if you want to overthink anything, overthink how others are perceiving you and your leadership. Are they quickly lining up to follow you? This could single-handedly determine the speed of your assimilation and the company’s success.

The entire post can be read over on LinkedIn.

Ahrendts officially joined Apple as Senior Vice President of Retail and Online Stores at the begining of May. Since then she has been hard at work on mobile payment plans, retail expansion, morale boosting, and international planning for the future of the company’s retail.