Once you have chosen a successful candidate to hire, the next step is “onboarding” that new staff member.
Many employers confuse “onboarding” with “orientation,” says Heather Peters, certified coach and senior consultant with Knightsbridge Robertson Surrette in St. John’s.
Orienting a new employee is the simple process of helping to set up his or her desk and phone and teaching the processes and policies of the organization. Onboarding, on the other hand, means working with your new team member over a longer period to help him or her become productive and valuable to the organization as quickly as possible.
Here are four steps for onboarding new hires:
1. Hold an introductory meeting
A simple but often overlooked first step is to hold an introductory meeting with your new hire to discuss the requirements of the new job and to acknowledge any upcoming challenges, Peters says.
For example, if the new employee has been brought on to develop your online presence, it’s important to acknowledge the obstacles he or she might face, whether that’s developing the company’s image or reviving neglected social-media accounts.
If you’re unable to lead this discussion yourself, Peters says, assign a trusted employee to act as a mentor and answer any questions from the new hire.
2. Examine skills and strengths
If your new employee has completed technical or personality assessments, work together to determine how you can incorporate those strengths or natural talents into your organization. He or she may also mention skills that weren’t previously discussed that might be added to the new role.
If there are any areas in which the new employee will need assistance, Peters says, you should quickly set up a development plan that could include training or mentoring.
3. Set objectives
As soon as the new employee enters the organization, he or she will need to set up at least one objective for his or her first 90 days, Peters says, which is typically the length of a probation period for new employees. These objectives are designed to get the new employee up to speed and quickly contributing to the business during that initial period.
Your new employee’s goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-sensitive, or “SMART Goals,” Peters says. For example, a goal may be for the new hire to increase the “shares” and “likes” on the company’s social-media sites by 10%.
4. Provide consistent feedback
During the 90-day onboarding process, there should be at least two meetings to ensure his or her progress is on track. “There should be no surprises at the end of those 90 days,” Peters says.
When someone starts a new job, they know they’re going to make mistakes and are very keen to correct them, Peters says. Start providing feedback early on so your new team member will be more open to constructive criticism throughout his or her tenure with the business.
This is the third part in a three-part series on hiring support staff.