Orientation – Dutch Uncles

Navigating the Induction Process with Ease

DU Desk — Sun, 27 Dec 2020 20:48:31 +0000

No one likes being the new kid at school, but everyone has gone through it at one point or another. Having to face that adjustment period can be quite a daunting task. Regardless of how good the school may be, it takes a while to find your footing and get into the rhythm of the classes, making new friends, understanding the temperament of the teachers and so on.

When a new employee joins a company that is pretty much what they have to deal with as well. Getting integrated into a new work environment takes time, patience and effort. Let us have a look at how this can be done best.

What Is The Induction Process All About?

Induction is a process of integrating employees into – and familiarising them with the organisation once they join. It is the introduction to their new job. This includes several different steps which can range from meeting the staff, getting familiar with the job and learning the new policies. The end goal is to get them comfortable and ready to work as soon as possible.

The only hiccup here is that the induction process often gets confused with the onboarding process. Yes, both have to do with getting the employee familiar with the company but they could not be more different. The induction process focuses on the introduction of the employees to their specific job role and their immediate work environment. Additionally, this also includes some background of the company’s mission, vision and overarching structure.

On-boarding, on the other hand, focuses more on the organisation as a whole and can last up to a year in duration, because realistically it will take a while to get to know the whole of the company. Think of it like this:

If induction is the student being familiarised with the new class schedule and faculty of one department, then onboarding is the process of them getting to know the college as a whole and familiarise with every other aspect like the security, janitorial staff, cafeteria timings, college culture and so on.

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If onboarding is the process of integrating the employee into the company, induction is the process of integrating them into their new job.

The Importance Of Induction

The induction process not only shows employees the ropes of their new responsibilities, but it also introduces a sense of belonging, which is crucial in the long run. It is mutually beneficial to both the employees as well as the company: the process creates a sense of unity and shows them that working at the company is a pleasant experience. On the other hand, it benefits the company because an employee who likes the work culture is more likely to stay on for a longer period.

Beyond retaining the employees, it is also a good opportunity to strengthen your brand image and make a good first impression. Ask yourself – “What image do I want my business to convey the minute people walk into the workplace?”

From a purely economic standpoint, a well-structured induction process will boost morale and increase productivity and efficiency in the workplace. This will save the business time and money down the road.

Structuring A Well-Planned Strategy

Generally, any decently thought-out induction strategy will consist of three broad stages with multiple parts to them which gives employees a well-rounded introduction to the work environment. The three stages are the general, specific and follow-up induction phases. Here is the breakdown.

General Induction Phase

This is the first phase of the induction process and has to do with familiarising the employee with the overall environment, the mission, the vision and taking care of their documentation. The exact steps are as follows:

Meet the HR

The employee will first meet the HR department as it is usually responsible for conducting the induction. HR’s primary responsibility is to handle the people in an organisation and is connected at all levels, so any issues that arise can quickly be squashed.

Documentation check

At this point employees will have to sign the employment contracts that they should have received by now. Usually, this happens within two months before the official start date. Whatever other documents need to be processed like bank details, personal contact information, administrative registration, access cards, contracts and so on will be handled here.

Basic information

After all that is done, the employee will start getting familiar with the general background of the company such as company policies, rules and regulations, the mission and vision of the company, workplace etiquette that is expected and so on. A good way to do this on a large scale is to keep an online version of an employee handbook ready for quick and wide-spread sharing.

Specific induction phase

The specific induction is handled by the employee’s supervisor. This focuses on the overarching role of the employee’s new job. It is more specific and narrower.

Meeting the team

First you introduce the newcomers to their colleagues as well as the managers of other departments that they might be working closely with. It is important to make an introduction so they feel at ease and get a feel for the energy of the people they will be working every day with.

Time for a tour

Pretty much what it sounds like. You show the employees around the building, get them familiar with their new workspace. For example, if you have a fingerprint scanner or a time-card marker, show them how to use it, even if it is just how to operate the coffee machine in the break-room. Make them feel at home.

Time for training

Before asking employees to get to work always cover your bases. Give them the necessary safety and technical training they will need to operate efficiently on a day-to-day basis without any risk of harm. Remember, you as the business owner are liable for any injuries or lack of necessary skills that they should have been given.

This is especially true if it is in a dangerous work environment where they might be operating heavy machinery, industrial fryers like in fast-food restaurants or construction. This step will also help highlight which areas an employee may be lacking in and you can accordingly schedule in a training session to bridge that knowledge gap.

Follow-Up

This is the final stage of the induction process and is just to see if the employee is settling in well or not. It is usually carried out by their immediate supervisor or a qualified specialist who is hired by the company to assess the situation objectively.

Feedback

The feedback of the employee should be duly noted on how well the induction process went, what could have been better and so on. This will help improve your induction strategy for future employees.

Appraisal meeting

It is also equally important to give the employee feedback on how they can improve their efforts of getting integrated into the company dynamic. Keep them on the right track. Think of this as a mutual performance review and it has to be a dialogue. It is not a one-way street.

Different Types Of Inductions

There are a few different kinds of induction strategies, and you need to choose the one that best suits your organisation. Let us have a look at which one works for you:

Formal

This method is very rigid and well-structured. It is usually carried out by a large-scale organisation and is a very intricately designed program. It covers everything from the mission, vision and rules to the salary, benefits and holidays.

Informal

An informal induction is exactly that, it does not last very long and is usually handled on a much smaller scale than the formal one. It is very casual and completely depends on the managerial style of the company.

Individual

It is a very time-consuming process that is not ideal for a large-scale business. Usually adopted by the smaller-firms that have a smaller employee base, it focuses on the individual needs of the employee and works to get them oriented.

Collective

It is a group orientation and lumps in people under a homogenous method. It lacks the personal touch of the individual style but makes up for inefficiency. Since it is focused on groups it saves time and money and can be used by large organisations.

Serial or Disjunctive

Serial induction basically refers to a mentorship where a senior employee guides the newcomers through the process to preserve the style of work and the work culture. The disjunctive style on the other hand gives the employees no guide or mentor and pushes them to get creative and adapt fast by thinking on their feet.

Investiture and Divestiture

Investiture induction essentially seeks to ‘invest’ in the skills and talents of an employee and focuses on cultivating them. Usually, this is for high-level positions for people with decades of experience or who display extreme talent in a particular field. On the opposite end of the spectrum is divestiture which seeks to change certain characteristics and skills of a person to better suit the job role. This is regardless of the fact that they were selected based on existing skills or traits.

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You do not have to follow any one of these above methods to the letter. Rather, form your own signature induction process based on the requirements of your business.

A Few Tips To Improve The Process

Get creative and stay positive

The first impression is the best impression definitely applies here. Use a lot of positive and constructive language when walking employees through the induction process. While you are doing that make sure to highlight the best aspects of the company and if you are doing something like a presentation to get things started, use a lot of visuals parallelly to really engage with them.

Encourage social interactions

Plan some fun activities like maybe a fun company dinner so everyone can talk and get to know each other. Socialising outside of work hours is the best way to get someone acquainted and comfortable with the team quickly.

Give them something to remember

It is always appreciated if you take the time and effort to put together a welcome-gift-basket for them. Show them you care and that you want them to feel as though it is their company as much as yours.

Whatever the process you choose to undertake, at the end of the day, it is your call as the business owner what should be. Keep in mind that it is an expensive and time-consuming process, but crucial for a well-structured team building nonetheless. Check out our article on team building to learn more about that!

The post Navigating the Induction Process with Ease appeared first on Dutch Uncles.

Onboarding Today for a More Efficient Tomorrow

DU Desk — Sat, 26 Dec 2020 09:59:54 +0000

A change in a work environment is like getting acquainted with a new home. It takes a while and it is not always easy. Onboarding is the process that helps you smooth over the majority of those bumps and make for a more pleasant integration process.

What Is Onboarding?

It is pretty much what it sounds like – bringing an employee on board and getting them oriented around the work process. Onboarding aims to acclimatise the employee to all the aspects of their role within the company, including but not limited to, the company culture, the job function, workflow and so on. Getting them used to all these factors as quickly as possible should be the ultimate goal of any onboarding process.

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Though onboarding and orientation sound like they are the same thing, they are not. Orientation is but a small part of the onboarding process.

Why Does It Matter?

As stated before, the aim is to acclimatise the employee to the work climate quickly but this goal is centred more on reducing the overall time, not speeding up the process necessarily. A rushed integration process can lead to many mistakes and make employees feel an unnecessary amount of pressure before they are even ready for it.

More and more, companies have begun to realise that rushing the integration process can be hazardous. Instead, what you need is a well-structured and well-organised onboarding program that takes its time to help new employees get used to every aspect of the job. This includes helping them perform efficiently, feel valued, get to know the work environment and have a high level of job satisfaction.

Onboarding And Orientation: The Difference

Onboarding as a process typically has a timeframe of up to a year, depending on the type of job that the person is signing up for, whereas orientation is just a small part of the onboarding process. Most likely you have experienced orientation in your lifetime as well, be it at a new school, a training program or college.

It usually only lasts a few hours and, in some cases, can be spread out over a few days. You can think of orientations as the front end of the onboarding process – a quick and cost-effective way to give new employees a brief overview of the company, the expectations, the mission and vision, benefits and so on.

Another key difference is that, onboarding is tailored to the needs of the individual and helps them get used to their new and very specific role within the company. Orientation on the other hand is for a more generic and widespread dissemination of information. Some companies stop at the orientation process, but investing in a well-structured onboarding strategy can work wonders for the business in the long-term.

The Objectives Of Onboarding

Aside from bringing new candidates up to speed with the work environment, onboarding also focuses on integrating the employees’ core values with that of the company’s culture. The reason that this is one of the main focuses is that the culture within the company shows everyone what the business and the brand stands for. It is therefore crucial that the employees be on the same page with the company values when it comes to their work and the output they give.

A good organisational culture maintains a meaningful and respectful workplace where there is an air of diversity, knowledge-sharing, community and respect. This brings us to the next objective of onboarding – making employees feel valued.

Beyond just getting the numbers up, an onboarding process should focus on making people feel like they matter within the organisation. The company should act as a platform for employees to voice and better themselves. This is only possible if the organisational culture is up to the task.

How To Approach An Onboarding Program:

Creating the program

A lot of the work in the onboarding process happens before the employees even arrive at the company. The majority of the process starts internally, so with that said, here is what you need to get things rolling:

1. 1. Have the paperwork ready to go –
    Before bringing in fresh blood, the company needs to have all the proper documentation squared away. This includes non-disclosure forms, employment contracts, liability forms, banking forms, new residential addresses and so on. In today’s world, you can easily send all these through email, fax, or if you prefer, courier service. Point being, there are a myriad of options to get the paperwork done well in advance.

1. 1. Set up the admin privileges –
    Once new employees arrive you would need to get their training started immediately and give them a rundown of their workstation, the system login info, the WIFI password, internal communication tools and their very own company email ID. It helps to have all these things prepped and ready to go from the beginning.

1. 1. Let everyone know –
    It is not just the new employees who need to be brought up-to-speed with a new work environment. You need to inform the concerned supervisor who that new employee would be reporting to as well. They also need to make preparations and adjust for the new team dynamic. Workload has to be managed without losing much momentum. It also helps to send out a company-wide email that lets all the employees know of the new arrival as well.

The first few days

It is true what they say about the first impressions being the best and this goes both ways. On the first day, the employee will form their impression of the company and work-style. Their first impression should not be, “Oh no, what did I get myself into?” In this time, old employees will also form their own opinions about the new arrivals as well as the change in workflow. The danger here is that if you do not set out a universally acceptable and clear outline of the new work dynamic, then everyone will end up resenting the management and the work. This does no one any good. So here is what you can do to make it a pleasant experience for everyone by minimising the growing pains.

1. 1. Give them an office tour –
    The best way to get someone used to a new work environment is to show it to them. Take new candidates on a thorough and detailed walk-through of the company and introduce them to all the management, and employees. It helps get them comfortable and makes the following days of work and communication that much easier.

1. 1. Assign an orientation buddy to them –
    No matter where you go, school, college or work, there are always going to be groups and cliques. Assigning an orientation buddy to the new-comer will help break that barrier and get them acquainted with everyone on the team.

1. 1. Introduce the company to the employee –
    Coming back to the point about company culture, the new employees must get a sense of where the company started, what it means to work there, the mission and vision of the company and so on.

1. 1. Getting them situated within the department –
    Regardless if they are a complete newbie or an expert in their field, it takes everyone some amount of time to learn the ropes and get used to the way a specific company operates. For example, you could have worked with the likes of Netflix as a producer or a writer, but this still does not mean you know how another production company operates internally. Everyone has their own system in place and you need to get the employee used to yours.

1. 1. Define the goals and expectations –
    Before the work process gets started, you need to give the new arrival some direction. That is to say, what you expect of them, how you expect them to achieve it and what the end goal is. Give them something to work towards rather than just shooting in the dark.

The first few months

Usually, within the first three to six months, you will come to know whether the employee is getting on well in the organisation or if they are struggling, whether they are going to stay or leave. This is why the first six months are crucial. At the end of every month, hold a review meeting to assess how they are getting on in their job role. Are they satisfied with the work and the management style?

This is also a good time to see if you as a business owner or manager find the employee’s work to be up to the mark. These follow-ups not only help measure the performance of the work; they also help identify any shortcomings in the onboarding process. Most companies follow the 90-day rule where they follow up 90 days after the employee was brought into the fold.

The first year

Though the first few months of follow-ups will give you a good idea of the employee’s performance, only at the end of the first year you will get the whole picture. Once you have all the data you can plan for further development. That is to say, you can start thinking about hiking up the payroll or promotions if things go well. If not, then maybe it is time to consider downsizing.

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The first few days of the onboarding process will set the pace for the rest of the process depending on how much you cover straight out of the gate.

Some Best Practices To Keep In Mind

Do not expect employees to take on the whole workload from day one. It just will not go well if you try to force it. Yes, time is of the essence but so is quality.

It is a good idea to break up the first few days of the onboarding process into short segments. This will give everyone time to absorb and reflect upon the information they have been given before moving to the next phase.

Have the new employees work with multiple team members and observe roles outside of their own job description as well. This will give them an idea of the team dynamic, the different processes involved in the workplace and all the factors that go into the final output.

Do not let new employees feel isolated. Go out of your way to make them feel welcome in the workplace and even outside if possible. Invite them out for drinks or a meal every now and then – socialise.

The monthly follow-ups aside, give new employees the occasional ring. Call them, e-mail or something. The point here is to do regular check-ins with them to see how they are handling the change. This is very important, especially in the beginning.

At the end of the day, onboarding simply ties into a part of the training and integration process. To learn more on that go read our article on training so that you have all the tools you need to give your employees the best start possible.

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Upskilling: Embracing Evolution for Industrial Revolution

Kiran Kennedy — Sat, 26 Dec 2020 05:53:49 +0000

The first time you do an internship at a company you see it as an opportunity to learn and grow in the industry. Towards the end of those long months, you might think: “Well at least I know the basics, now, onto the actual work-life!” Unfortunately, or fortunately, that is not how things work.

The reality is that every day is a learning experience in any industry, regardless of the number of years you have under your belt. There are hundreds of new concepts, work methodologies and economical changes which have to be integrated as time goes on. Take the COVID19 pandemic, we all had to learn how to adapt to the change in work style with the work-from-home approach. So, you can never really say for certain that training and upskilling will not be needed in the future. With that said let us get down to it.

What Is Workplace Training And Upskilling?

Training or Upskilling is the process of quite literally upgrading the employees’ skill set to suit a job. This can take various forms such as seminars, short YouTube video tutorials or workshops. The aim of it is to help the employee use these new found skills to do their jobs more efficiently. It is your responsibility as a business owner to ensure that they are well-trained to get the job done.

For new employees, it serves as an opportunity to gain some exposure to the industry and the inner workings of the business while training. Older employees would approach it from the point of view of someone trying to keep up and adapt.

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Quality work and results require a team of people who are well-versed in various aspects of the business. The type of training they receive will determine the outcome.

What Makes Upskilling So Important?

Apart from putting your company ahead of the competition in terms of efficient workflows, training also serves to improve other aspects of the business. This could include the rate of sales, the team dynamic and final output quality. Here are a few ways in which training and upskilling can be crucial:

Promotions and retention

Employees need to feel that an organisation is willing to go the extra mile and invest in their careers. There should be room and opportunity to grow within the walls of the company and self-improve. The more opportunities the company presents for them to participate in training the more lateral growth there is. New skills and added knowledge make for a higher chance of getting promoted which makes for a satisfying work experience. This satisfaction motivates employees to invest back into the company for longer amounts of time and the retention levels go up.

Saving time and money

Trying to find and hire the right candidate for the position is a time-intensive process, add to that the extra cost the company has to pay for their salaries and it becomes a capital-intensive process. On the other hand, if you were to upskill your existing employees to do the job, you save both time and money and improve the quality of your employee pool.

Help identify lagging areas

During the process of upskilling, you will easily be able to identify where all your employees are lagging. Once identified you can help widen those horizons and improve the overall performance of employees. If done regularly, it becomes a practice in periodical self-development.

Different Types Of Training and Upskilling

On-boarding

Onboarding as a whole goes one step further and aims at training new employees in their specific roles in whatever area or department they may have been selected for. It could span over a number of days in the form of workshops or mentorships. This type of training is very narrow and targeted to a specific role so employees can get to work as soon as possible, in the most efficient way.

Orientation

Orientation actually falls under onboarding as one part of the process. Every company and even most institutions for that matter, have an orientation process. You may have heard of it on your first day at college where they told you all about the new curriculum and what classes to go to. That is quite similar to what you might expect in the industry. Usually conducted by the HR department during the intake process, the company seeks to educate employees on a wide range of topics.

The topics covered could include the organisational culture, the mission and vision of the company, the organisational structure, policies, office timings, admin detail distribution (logins and passwords), benefits and so on.

Technical skills

These are the skills employees will need for their jobs. They might already have them and find this training to be an opportunity to sharpen those skills. Think of them as the primary skills used on a day-to-day basis. For example, a coder might need to learn Python or Java computer languages in order to perform the task – that is a technical skill.

Soft skills

Remember those classes in high school and college about the importance of interpersonal communication? That is basically what soft skills boil down to. This type of training helps refine workplace-etiquette to enable employees to effectively communicate and work cohesively. The better the soft skills between employees, the better the corporate culture exists within that company.

Product/service training

Whenever you walk into a store to buy a new phone there is always someone who comes available to explain what that particular phone does. They explain the features, the price tag, the benefits of the device over others, warranty policies and so on. That person might even give you a demonstration of how certain features work.

This is what we call product and service training. It gives employees the skills to provide certain services to the customers including how to talk to them and it helps the employees gain a thorough knowledge of a product. This training is usually implemented in sales and during the launch of new campaigns.

Quality control

This training usually takes place in production-heavy businesses. It gives employees the skill to maintain a certain level of quality that is expected by the company or the industry. In some cases, employees will receive a quality control certification once they complete training.

Safety training

Similar to quality training, employees receive a certification once done, usually in hazardous work industries like construction sites, oil rigs, the foodservice industry and so on. The training aims to minimise work-related injuries and ensure a safe work environment for everyone.

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It is not just about equipping your team with the right skills, it is also about regularly updating those skills to match an ever-changing work environment.

How To Upskill Employees

Formulate the plan

As you might have noticed above, there are a multitude of training areas that a company could pursue, therefore, you need to identify which of those areas are of the highest priority based on the nature of your business. Once the key skill areas have been identified you can start planning. It also helps to keep in mind that people are still human and that they can usually internalise a handful of skills at a time.

Quality over quantity is the way to go, so set an achievable number of goals. In small business, the type of training that is most often required is soft skills for those in leadership positions. This helps drive up employee retention.

Host regular sessions or seminars

Training and upskilling are not a once-in-a-blue-moon activity. It needs to happen on a regular basis so the skills are retained over a longer period of time. Companies that prioritise frequent upskilling activities like seminars and conferences hold the edge over the competition.

Use employees as trainers

Why struggle to find a trainer when you already have highly-skilled persons in the company? Peer-to-peer is often more effective than a top-down method like in school. You remember better when your classmate showed you because both of you are in the same position and understand each other’s point of view.

Mentoring or shadowing are some such examples of how this can be achieved. The new employees follow and observe the more experienced employees as they work and learn on the job. It is highly effective and saves a lot of time while easing the new candidates into the role.

Cross-train for different roles

Some organisations train their employees to do multiple job roles, for example, fast food restaurants need to have employees who excel in taking orders, interacting with customers, operating the cookware and maybe even managing the shift schedules. The point of this training is to ensure a diversification of skill and lateral growth.

It also comes in handy if, on any given day, you are short-handed. For example, when an employee calls in sick, there is always someone who can help cover that shift and keep the business running.

Use all the tools!

Training does not have to be restricted to long-winded speeches and endless workshops. In this day and age, you have access to so many platforms and multimedia tools. Use them all. You could make use of training videos, suggest interesting and immersive podcasts that employees could listen to or even share a step-by-step pamphlet that ensures flawless execution of the task. The options are endless.

The advantage of sharing virtual instructions or things like a training video is that employees can revisit them at any point in time to re-absorb the information.

Having said that, and despite the various forms of training and techniques, upskilling is often a much-underestimated aspect for most businesses. So, no matter what tool, technique or training you choose to implement, just remember this – training is an essential element in the development of a business.

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