5 Effective New Employee Orientation Ideas with WOW Factor.....

 For many new employees, what they experience the first day on the job will be carried with them throughout their employment with the company. For employers, the first day with a new employee provides the opportunity to welcome them the team, make them feel comfortable and let them know that you are glad they chose to work with you.

While these activities are all very important and go a long way towards making new employees feel welcome and informed, many organizations are now striving to incorporate a WOW factor that make employee orientation sessions more interesting and engaging. Here are a few examples of best practices from larger firms that small business owners may want to consider:

1.       Orient all new employees consistently through the use of an orientation checklist, employee handbook and orientation program

2.       Communicate pride in the company by giving each new employee an item with the company logo on it (mug, t-shirt, key chain, pen, etc.)

3.       Encourage communication, and a sense of importance, by inviting new employees to have coffee or lunch with the company owner or a senior manager

4.       Encourage new employees to sample the product and or service that the company sells (ie. Some restaurants offer new employees a complimentary meal)

5.       Reduce the stress of starting a new job by pairing new employees with a buddy (a more senior or experienced team member) that can help coach them through the first few weeks on the job

There is no denying that developing and facilitating an effective new employee orientation program takes time. In situations where small businesses are understaffed, there may be a huge temptation to save time by foregoing a proper orientation and jumping straight to scheduling the new employee. Those businesses would be wiser to save time by considering, and perhaps implementing, the orientation best practices of other successful organizations.

The bottom line is this, by taking the time to properly orient - welcome - new employees to the company and their new job, employers can increase employee retention which means spending less time recruiting and more time building the business. 

Chris Wilkinson.                              

Certified Business Behaviour & Attitudes Analyst.               

Business Coach.

Tel: (905) 275-2907 (Mississauga).

E-mail: buspilot@bell.net