3 weeks in and not loving my job

[Isitameproblem]

Have been in my new job for three weeks now. They hit d me for designing and implementing a new strategy that will be leveraged for all products, but the focus is on one in particular. Two problems have become very clear:

a) the product I'm supposed to focus on is a failing one

b) my colleagues have no idea of what my role actually entails and they have very specific tasks (I don't for now). They're also unaware that what I do will have some effect on their own workflow (to their benefit).

In the meantime I've been able to keep myself busy, and have even managed to create a completely different path for me (and it has been welcomed by senior management).

So what woul you do? Just keep doing things like I am, or clarify my position with my colleagues. I think ultimately our manager should have a chat with them and explain what is that I actually do.

I feel out of place and starting to feel down.

Speak to your manager and get them to clarify what the communication plan is for explaining your new role to your colleagues, I think that’s a job for management to do initially and then you can follow up individually once it’s been explained.

Is it possible to address the issues with the product? Someone somewhere must have the ability to change or improve it - well depending on what it is I suppose. And I agree whoever is senior enough to have made the decision to hire you and plan what you’re doing, should inform other people about it. You could make getting your colleagues up to speed part of your strategy and propose it to your boss - some kind of ‘onboarding’ system that you sell to senior management as part of the process.

The product will have a relaunch but until then nobody either knows or wants to talk about the actual strategy around it.

So my colleagues are focused on their own specific product lines and have tasks around them (and I don't given what I've explained above).

I have told a couple of times that I'm.here to help them, but only one of them has actually taken it on board.

I think part of the problem is that our roles are very different, so it's almost like an apple Vs orange situation, but our manager hasn't made it clear as he always divides tasks by product, do it becomes a vicious cycle within the team.