Make no mistake, the first few weeks in a role for a new employee are vitally important. I want to help you think about what a new employee induction is, what it is for and how you can get the most from it to make sure your new employee settles in well and feels like they have joined the right business for them.
Let’s start with what we mean by an employee induction.
What is an induction?
An induction is something that all employees should go through when they join a new business to help them settle in. It is all about them getting to know you, their colleagues, and others they will interact with as well as getting comfortable with their work environment and tasks they will carry out to integrate them into the team.
It’s important that that period is welcoming and supportive to make their first impression a positive one.
An induction plan to cater for all new starters is an absolute must….appreciating that the amount involved and the time it will take may vary depending on the type of business you have and the role that each new starter will carry out.
What are the benefits of carrying out an induction?
There are benefits both for the business and the employee to going through this process. Good quality inductions lead to buy-in and commitment from new employees which in turn leads to increased commitment and job satisfaction - no downsides here.
On day one it’s important to remember that your new starter might be feeling a little nervous and anxious so it is good to keep things light so not to overwhelm them. During the induction it is important that the new employee gets a good understanding of how your business works, the culture of the place and that they get to know colleagues and where appropriate, clients and suppliers they will be working with. This leads nicely into them getting to know the requirements of their role and what is expected in it.
How does induction benefit you as the employer?
Well designed and delivered inductions normally mean that new employees settle in quicker than they would without going through this process. This means they quickly settle into their work team and are productive and delivering against their job role in the shortest amount of time. I am sure you will agree, this is the ideal scenario.
Potential impacts of not getting this right
By not carrying out an induction, or delivering something below standard, there is a high risk that your new employee may leave after a very short period. It has been proven time and time again that employees decide very early on about whether they made the right choice to join your business so that first impression really does count.
Should the employee not integrate into your business through a well-structured induction, you could end up spending additional time and money on recruiting someone else and start seeing negative impacts on the morale of others in the business if increased employee turnover starts to become a pattern. We shouldn’t forget too that high turnover of employees due to a bad experience could lead to damage to your reputation as an employer making it more difficult to recruit high quality employees in the future.
My top 3 tips when it comes to planning an induction
- Plan an induction in advance, making it relevant to the new employee based on job role and location
- Don’t be tempted to give too much information on day one and overwhelm them
- Where possible, look to be on site yourself on the first day, even if you will delegate the induction to another member of your team beyond day one.
I hope the information in this article has given you useful information to demonstrate why a solid induction is so important and given you helpful information when thinking about creating induction plans going forward in your business.
At Black Kat HR we specialise in helping businesses to put in place everything needed to be a great employer. If you need support to put together a new starter induction for your business we are happy to help. You can book a free, short exploratory session to help you decide on the best way ahead HERE
