A new employee orientation program

A new employee orientation program

Introduction

The human resource development in any company is the process of evaluating the needs of company staff in the present and in the future and developing training programs that will cover the needs as well as help the staff performs efficiently in the company. Human resource managers should always plan an orientation program to help a new employee familiarize themselves with the company. In this program, the employee is introduced to various parts of the department, colleagues, as well as the culture of the organization. This will reduce the feeling of being new and will feel welcomed. Researchers have stated that such a program is directly linked to splendid performance and unwavering commitment. The employees will also feel appreciated by the company and will grow a positive perspective of the company right from the start. This paper focuses on developing a detailed orientation program for a new employee in the New York Hilton hotel midtown.

The framework will entail the assessment, design, implementation, and evaluation phases.

Assessment phase

The new employee usually has many needs that a company has to satisfy to help them settle into the company. They may be quite vulnerable, has many questions, and is quite uncomfortable because of the change of the environments. To meet these needs, the company ought to understand them at length through assessment.

It has to consider the type of employee, i.e., are they interns or permanent/ casual employees, which department they are joining,etc., does the employee have any disabilities; deaf, blind, a midget, etc.  this allows the company to understand the type of program to offer, the materials and method to use. The assessment phase also requires that the company evaluates its ability to fund the program, to decide what it can offer and what it cannot. This way, it can prioritize meeting the needs that are crucial and to its financial capabilities.

 

Design phase

After assessing and prioritizing the needs of the new employees, it is mandatory that the program is designed in detail to ensure its efficiency. The design phase contains four parts, which include defining objectives, developing a lesson plan, gathering materials, selecting trainers, selecting methods and techniques, and scheduling the program. The program will be called the XYZ family. The objectives of the XYZ family is to introduce the new employee to the ways of the company. Several areas will be covered to meet this objective. This includes the mission, vision, and values, the history, other employees, departments, organizational culture and hierarchy,  ethics, policies and procedures/standards, goals and objectives, routines, products, customers, etc. the objective is to equip the employee with all the information needed to work comfortably in the new environment. The other objective is to avoid seclusion or to stereotype other employees. This is because making the employee uncomfortable may even lead to them quitting. The lesson plan will involve educating the new employee on all the sectors, as indicated in the objectives. The employee will be prepared before the commencing of the lesson to ascertain that they are ready. They will also be briefed on what to expect.

The design phase will also constitute the gathering of materials for learning. The HR professionals have to ensure that the learning environment is comfortable enough because concentration is boosted by how settled the mind is. Therefore, comfortable chairs will be needed, preferably cushioned, with a standard height that matches the tables. Either rounded or rectangular tables can work. However, the table shouldn’t be too long as it would look ambiguous. Therefore a medium-sized round/rectangular table and comfortable chairs will do. The new employee will also be issued with a note pad and a pencil in case they feel like taking notes. The lesson will be carried out in a room with wide windows for circulation of air and good lighting. Snacks and/or water/soda/coffee/tea are also essential for refreshing. Finally, a power supplied room, a projector, and a whiteboard to display information as the trainer goes through the information.

For the orientation program, the company will ensure to select the best trainer to conduct it to ensure efficiency. The trainer must be aware of the objectives of orientation training, have detailed information on the company, competent, available, and eloquent. Since an orientation program is mainly to introduce the company to the employee and vice versa, there will be no need to outsource a trainer. The program can be led by HR themselves because they are most knowledgeable about the company’s basic information.

Methods and techniques

The main goal of the program is to make the new employee feel they are in the right place. Therefore, the focus is to create a good first impression, according to Mass (2014) first interactions determine how a company is perceived. Therefore the training methods and techniques should be perfect enough to deliver the right information and make the employee feel welcome. The target is to improve their experience as they get exposed to new environs and information to boost their morale and yield a positive perception of the company. Digital methods will be used. The room will be wifi equipped to stream videos as well as open social media pages.

The company’s website and social media will be displayed just to give the employees a glimpse of what the company does. Youtube will serve as a resourceful source of information. Clips on how to handle customers, how to handle difficult situations, etc., will be displayed. Also previously recorded video of the manager explaining the mission, vision, objectives, etc. of the company will be displayed. The program will be led by a trainer/instructor. Even if technology has become efficient in communication, the importance of physical contact remains disputable. Therefore, an instructor is a vital component of this program.  A practical method of training will also be used. Individuals from departments will join the training program to demonstrate how to go about tasks in the departments. Also, physical material will be available to ensure engagement — for instance, desktops for demonstrating logins and opening individual accounts.

 

The lesson has to be scheduled in the order that the activities come in. Orientation will not take a lot of time. Therefore two days will be sufficient. The lesson will begin early in the morning at 7.30 o’clock, where the employee will be served coffee and a light snack that will end by 8.00. They will then gather in the training room. The first activity will involve the introduction. The trainer and the employees get to know each other in details: name, where they live, previous workplaces, goals, career interests, etc. this should take just an hour. From 9.00-10.00, the trainee will receive a checklist of the goals they should achieve in the first month. The instructor will explain each goal in detail. These goals include completing the orientation and realizing its benefits, gain a familiarity with the products and services, customers, employees, complete an ethics/compliance training, sales, and marketing strategy, which are the basic elements for the company. From 10.30 to 12 p.m., the instructor will go over the company’s system, show how to long into the system. A desktop will be provided for that purpose. Information will also be displayed onto the projector for that purpose. From 12–1 p.m., the instructor will help the trainee in opening their individual accounts that they will be using to access the company’s system. From 1-2, the trainees will break for lunch. The lunch will be held in the staff dining areas to encourage new employees to interact with the other employees.

In the next session, the new employees will be taught the basic knowledge of the company. The company’s history, mission, visions, and values. The accomplishments of the company will also be included. The instructor will use the projector to present this information. Recorded messages from the company’s CEO explaining the mission and vision will be presented. In addition, a handout entailing this information will also be explained. This will take 2 hours; from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. From 2 to 3 p.m., the instructor will take questions, to ensure that the information was clear to the new employees. After the questions period, the instructor will invite one employee to interact with the trainees. This will also take 1hour, 3–4 p.m. Closing remarks will take place, and the lesson will proceed the following day.

The last day will start just like the previous day with a light breakfast from 7.30 to 8 a.m. from 8, the employee will gather in the learning area, and learning will commence.  The instructor will display videos showing the culture of the organization. Firstly, it will be the ideal dress code, how the employees are expected to dress every day of the week, and the type of dressing mode that is deemed unethical. Next will be clipped, entailing how to interact with the customers. These clips are essential for the employees to get a glimpse of what is expected of them. From here, 9-1, the new employees will be introduced to the departments they will be allocated. The employee will be given information about the department and their responsibility in the department.

Training on these roles will be offered. The individual from the department will go over the tasks and how they are undertaken. For instance, in the customer care department, the new employee will be shown on the official way to receive a call from a customer, which information they should have on their fingertips, the most asked questions and how to handle them, and whom they should transfer the call to if unable to solve the issue.  The new employees will break for lunch form 1-2, and enjoy a lunch while interacting with the other employees. After lunch, training on departmental roles will proceed up to 3 p.m. From 3 to 4 p.m., the employees will be taught on the ethical consideration and compliance, the employee contract policies, and the disciplinary actions taken in case these rules are broken. From 4 to 4.30, the instructor will take questions to clarify information.

From 4.30 to 5, employees will be given handouts to answer a few questions concerning how the felt about the training program, if it was beneficial, friendly, were goals attained, what needed to be changed, etc. finally, the company manager will be given the opportunity to give closing remarks and welcome the employees officially to the company.

Implementation phase

The implementation phase will entail putting the designed lesson plan into action. The instructor has to ensure that they stick to the precise schedule to make the program successful.