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Successful Induction

Getting new team members off to a great start!

Hiring a new member of your team can be time-consuming and costly - so you want them to settle in and start working productively as soon as possible. After all, if you had spent time sourcing and choosing an expensive new piece of machinery, you wouldn't just leave it in its box when it was delivered, and hope it would just start being productive! The solution is a well-thought out induction process that helps ensure that new hires feel comfortable in their new job and start working effectively as soon as possible.

Traditionally, employee induction was looked at as the time needed to fill out personnel records, show new employees the washrooms, introduce them to a few coworkers, and wish them well. If they met with anyone other than an HR representative, they were doing well.

That doesn't work anymore. New team members expect, and deserve, more!

Common Complaints...

The most frequent complaints new people have about their induction experiences are that they are overwhelmed, are bored, or are left to sink or swim on their own. The result is often a confused new employee who takes a long time to become productive, or becomes frustrated and quickly leaves the organization.

An effective, carefully-planned orientation or on-boarding program will not only teach technical skills, but it will educate new team members about corporate values, the company's history, and provide valuable information about "who is who" in the organization. Organizations that have good induction programs get new people up to speed faster, have better alignment between what new people do and what the organization needs them to do, have happier employees, and have lower staff turnover rates.

When you know the "why" of employee induction, it is much easier to design an effective program that will welcome new employees with sincerity. When you take the time and make the effort to deliver an effective induction you also convey the message that you are committed to employee development and to providing the training and resources needed to do a great job from the Day 1. Here are some "hows" for doing just that...(Sign in to read more.)

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