How to get my new boss to let me come in at 9:30.

• NewBossFilter: How to do go about asking my new boss if its ok for me to keep coming in around 9:30am? I've recently discovered that my current boss will likely not be in that position by the end of the next month or so. I will be getting a new boss and that freaks me out since it is not the person I signed up under-but these things happen, so not much I can do. Anyway, my current boss is fairly hands off. I manage my time well and since things have been fairly slow and I am most definitely NOT a morning person, he has been fine with me arriving to work at around 9:30am. I typically stay till about 5:30 or 6:00 and if things need to be done, I have no problem staying later until they are done, but I see no point in being at the office for the sake of being at the office. So far it hasn't been an issue at all. But with a new boss, who's to say? I know I should try to "make a good impression" and start coming in earlier but I honestly don't want to change my work schedule because frankly, it works. -What is the best way to approach my new boss on this matter when they start? -How soon should I raise the question? -If they say they an early riser and like to get in early (a clear hint that they expect me to do the same) or even flat out ask me to come in earlier, what are my options aside from quitting? Take it to HR? I know this may seem like a fairly trivial thing to some in light of all the other things I should be worried about, but I am an utter zombie in the morning and one of the best parts of my job currently is that I can wake up at 8:30, and get in to work by 9:30 so it is really important to me. Plus, I'm just not productive in the morning so it seems like it would be a big waste of my time and the company's to do otherwise.

• Answer:

  If your relationship with your current boss is pretty good, you could ask him to leave some sort of note delineating your work schedule as part of whatever introductory documentation he hands over when he leaves. There could be any number of reasons for you to need to get in when you do (dropping kids at school, performing caretaking duties for somebody, taking public transit to work,) and your reasons for preferring a particular start time aren't really anyone's business but your own. If it's clearly set up as "the way things work around here" and really doesn't impact your ability to do your job, the new boss may be less likely to just arbitrarily wreak havoc with your established schedule. Hearing it from the old boss would be far better than hearing it from you, though. Asking for what might be seen as a huge concession right out of the gate will not make a good first impression. Depending on the size of your department and what goes on there, a chart of who's around doing what at what time of day would likely be a valuable asset for a new manager. If the nature of your duties or the workplace wouldn't make it inappropriate, consider volunteering such a document for inclusion in whatever materials the new boss will receive upon arrival.