New hires need to feel secure and welcome. They need to feel like they’re being set up for success. Unfortunately, many organizations do not take the time to ensure that this is the case. Instead many companies are simply concerned with bringing the new employee “up to speed” as fast as possible. It’s a matter of speed over quality.
In this blog post, we’ll discuss the importance of creating a positive on-boarding experience for new hires, and provide tips and best practices for providing the three things that every new hire needs: a friend, a responsibility, and training.
New Hires Need a Friend
It is essential for new hires to have a friend in the workplace. This doesn’t necessarily have to be their next “best friend”. Instead, this is someone who should be friendly, trustworthy, and act as a mentor.
This mentor should be responsible specially assigned to provide invaluable insight and guidance to a new hire. They can help new hires understand the company culture, answer questions, provide advice, and pass on the “tribal knowledge” that every IT Department has.
Not only can a mentor help new hires transition into their new job, but they can also act as a resource for the long-term.
A mentor can be especially helpful for new hires who come from different backgrounds or who are unfamiliar with the industry. They can provide a wealth of knowledge about how best to navigate the workplace and how to take advantage of available resources. Ultimately, having a mentor can be a beneficial experience for a new hire and is a vital component in ensuring their success at the company.
New Hires Need a Responsibility
The first few months of a new job can be overwhelming for any new hire. It can be difficult for them to know what to do and how to do it.
It is important for new hires to be given their own responsibilities. These can be low-risk items. They should balance two things:
- It needs to be substantive enough to provide the new hire an opportunity to feel useful (i.e. not “busy work”)
- It needs to be something the new hire can do without having to be walked-through it step-by-step.
Assigning these types of responsibilities will help them to become familiar with their job quickly and will ensure that they are working to the best of their abilities.
Additionally, it is important that their mentor be a part of assigning and following up on these tasks. Your new hire needs to know what is expected of them and know that they can ask questions if needed.
New Hires need Training
When it comes to on-boarding new hires, it is essential to provide them with hands-on training. This is especially important for roles that require technical or specialized skills. Hands-on training allows new employees to gain experience in their role and become familiar with the tools and processes they will be using on a daily basis. This training also helps to ensure that employees are prepared to carry out their job duties and can perform to a high standard.
This is different than just having the new hire watch someone else do the job. They need to be actively engaged, and build up their own wealth of experience and “muscle memory” for the job.
Hands-on training also gives new employees an opportunity to learn from their more-experienced mentor and ask questions about their job. This can help to make them feel more comfortable in their new role and can help to reduce the amount of time it takes for them to reach their full potential.
By providing hands-on training to new hires, organizations can help to ensure that new employees are well-prepared to hit the ground running and make a positive contribution to the team.
In Closing
Having a friend, a responsibility, and adequate training are essential components to helping new hires adjust to their new job. By taking the time and effort to provide these necessary elements for a new hire, you can give them the best chance of succeeding and making a valuable contribution to your organization.
Making sure that all new hires have a friend, a responsibility, and the training they need to do their job well is essential to creating a successful and productive workplace culture.