• Acceleration of the time required to make new Employees Productive
• Increased Employee Retention
• Enhanced integration
• Availability and standardization of Documentation
• Setting a forum for encouraging Employees to be Pro-Active and Empowered

The strength and stability of businesses are in the products or services offered, their quality and reliability, and the competency of the workforce. We often focus on the products & services we sell without giving proper attention to the importance of our workforce. This is particularly true during the new hire phase.

With the economy beginning to “turn the corner” and businesses looking to capture a share of the increasing marketplace opportunities, it is crucial that new hires quickly become productive and integrated into your business. On average, 33% of all employee turnovers occur in the first ninety days of employment. Your “Onboarding” process needs to combine orientation tasks, assimilation of knowledge & understanding, and social networking activities to significantly reduce the time it takes for the new hire to become productive and a valuable member of your team.

As jobs are becoming more and scarcer, people are accepting any job offered. As the economy continues to improve, these people will quit and go elsewhere if they are not happy at their current job. Every time an employee quits, it cost the company an average of $44,000 in profits.

What can you do to keep good employees? Retention begins on the first day on the job. There is a process available for employee integration which can make all the difference when it comes to assimilating new hires. Now is the time to begin strategies to keep these employees. This process has been proven to improve employee retention by as much as 25%. The key is to integrate new employees socially and emotionally, while streamlining the process.

Here are a few tips to help you make your new hire’s onboarding experience as successful as possible for all concerned.

1. Acclimation Starting with a new company is like going to a new country. Everything is different – the people, the systems, the language and the culture. Acclimation brings a new employee on board by addressing these issues. Help new employees become familiar with the work environment by developing aides to help them to do their work.

Provide them with support tools such as acronym dictionaries, process diagrams, checklists, organizational charts, phone lists. These tools help them feel comfortable in their work, and enable them to begin to be productive.

2. Integration Many people spend more time at work than they do with family & friends, but who wants to spend their workday with total strangers? An emotional connection develops when new employees really get to know their co-workers and create friendships with others in the workplace. This connection positively contributes to employees wanting to stay with the company.

Create opportunities for new employees to meet other employees in the company, beyond those in their immediate work group. New employees come into an organization with a fresh perspective. Encourage them to share any new ideas or approaches to products and processes that would increase productivity or customer satisfaction. Smart organizations take advantage of this source of innovation at their finger tips.

3. Communication Help employees build lasting relationships by having regular one-on-one conversations with management. Go out to lunch together and get to know each other as people. This will keep them in the company longer.

During the first ninety days, initiate scheduled times in which new employees can discuss things with management. Even senior management should plan regular events, such as a monthly breakfast, where they can meet with new employees and share ideas. Use this opportunity to share goals and business strategies. Alignment of goals within the organization can produce a competitive advantage for you your organization.

4. Expectations Both employee and manager are coming into the relationship with expectations. It is important to share these expectations with one another. Find out what the employee expects. Encourage questions.

Set specific performance goals with new employees inside the first 90 days. Set an immediate goal of getting to know the organization and the job. Encourage new hires to create their own network within the organization. Align their performance expectations with the organization through mutual goal setting. Integrating new employees into your organization and reducing turnover are effective ways to increase company profits while reducing headaches, financial loss, and risk.

The Orientation Passport Tool The Orientation Passport is a booklet the size of a real passport that contains 100+ tasks for a new hire to complete within the first ninety days of employment. Topic areas include customer service, performance management, the company, the work group, and their job. New employees acquire information through networking, use of resources like online orientation, mentors, etc.

A key difference with the Orientation Passport is that a designated mentor signs off when the new hire demonstrates an understanding and can perform the task. This is quite different from recording what “We do” and concentrates on “the new hire does.” The process results in proactive employees that have made the emotional connections with others in the organization beyond their immediate work group.

At the end of ninety days, the new hired is aligned with the organizations business objectives, has a horizontal view of the organization, and has demonstrated proficiency in the job. Upon completion of the passport, it serves as a legal defense and auditable documentation for compliance audits.

The Orientation Passport comes in Employee and Manager versions, as well as an English /Spanish version. Also, it is customizable to meet the specific needs of your organization.

Take this opportunity to make changes in your New Employee Orientation process, so you will be ready when the real hiring begins!

For more information, down load and print the Orientation Passport document: How Orientation Passport Can Help