First impressions are always important, and for CIOs they can set the stage for long-term leadership results. Jonathan Reichental, CIO for O'Reilly Media, has five pieces of advice for new CIOs, based on his own first three months on the job.

Reichental's first two tips are pretty obvious: Listen carefully, and get to know the business you're working in. The third tip, though, is more nuanced: Always be thoughtful and deliberate in how you communicate because the people listening are going to take you seriously.

"When you're in middle management your input can be considered, but not necessarily acted upon. The same doesn't hold true for the CIO," he writes. "Flippant comments and mere suggestions should be avoided. Mean what you say and say what you mean."

Reichental's fourth piece of advice is to find problems that you can solve quickly to demonstrate progress. "In a highly competitive business environment patience is low and expectations are high," he writes. "[L]ook for ways to demonstrate your ability to make decisions, such as enabling a useful process or approving a purchase."

Finally, he advises, "work hard not to break anything."

For more:
- see Jonathan Reichental's post at O'Reilly Radar

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