You were inclusive and built a strong psychological contract and you’ve progressed your job offer through acceptance and now to a start date. That’s great, but it’s the financial return from your new employee you really want, so how do you speed that journey? Well employee induction plays a huge factor in making this a success.
Induction is absolutely vital for new starters. Good induction training ensures new starters are engaged, retained within the organisation, and then settled in quickly and happily to a productive role, adding the value you hoped to your organisation.
Induction is more than skills training. It's about the basics that seasoned employees all take for granted: what the shifts are; where the notice-board is; what's the routine for holidays, sickness; where's the canteen; what's the dress code; where the toilets are.
New employees also need to really understand and engage with the organisational mission, goals, values and philosophy; personnel practices and health and safety rules. Of course they also need to understand and get to grips with job they're required to do, understanding clearly the methods that will bring success as well as timescales, deadlines and expectations.
if you’ve been following our blogs to date, you’ll already have ensured that candidates get as much of this information, prior to applying.. However, now that your new employee is actually fully engaged within your team, this is a great time to reinforce all of these key messages again.
What’s more, proper induction training is increasingly a legal requirement. Employers have a formal duty to provide new employees with all relevant information and training relating to health and safety in your particular place of work.
Now that’s quite some list!! But take a look up and down it again. Is there really anything you can omit? Given the volume of information you’ll share, as much as possible should actually be written down and given to the new starter in the form of a new starters handbook.
What’s more as part of the psychological contract mentioned discussed in our last blog, you should actually strive to organise the induction plan and give it to the new starter before they join. This means thins need to be planned well in advance because the plan will typically involve other people's time and availability.
Develop a suitable template, into which you can slot the arranged activities. Depending on the needs of the situation, the induction training plan may extend over a number of weeks, progressively reducing the pre-arranged induction content, as the person settles into their job.
As with any type of training, it is vital to review and seek feedback after induction training in order to hone the programme.
Get it right and you’ll get your new starter to a positively performing employee as quickly as possible. After all you want results and you want these over the longer period. Getting your new starter to go from ‘company novice’ to performing employee is your responsibility, good induction will speed that process for you.
