Part of the Pack
As we brought our first puppy into the house, I realized that there were a couple of key things that I had forgotten to get. I actally forgot food and a bed. I had plently of time for our new arrical, but I still hadn’t prepared enough. The new member of the family did not have everything it needed to be successful. I was in charge, yet unprepared for success.
Silly me…How could I expect the puppy to learn about how to be a part of the family without the basics?
As I raced around to the local pet stores, I began to think about how similar this was to new people starting at companies. I worked with many organizations that acted like my family with our new puppy. Excited at the thought of a new member of the family, but unprepared when they finally arrived. How often had I seen new employees without the basic tool like a desk, computer, phone, etc?
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That night, as the puppy whined, I began to ponder how little my wife and I had done to ease it into its new role. The puppy didn’t know what it was getting into as we carried it into its new home. Even worse, we had no plan to ensure that the puppy learned what it needed to do or know to be successful.
The Way It’s Done Now?
Silly as it sounds I remember thinking that night how many times had I seen new people at clients being left to:
- Fend for themselves
- Figure out the ropes
- Sink or swim in order to survive
Often times this approach leads to disaster:
- 22% of staff turnover occurs in the first forty-five days of employment.” – The Wynhurst Group
- “46% of rookies wash out in their first 18 months” found a study of 20,000 new hired employees.” – Leadership IQ
- “The cost of losing an employee in the first year is estimated to be at least three times their salary.” – The Wynhurst Group
It happens just like it did to the poor pup. Isn’t it a leader’s duty to make sure their employees are taken care of?
Doesn’t a leader have an obligation to give a new employee every opportunity to succeed?
There has to be a better way
A new employee is not a puppy. But, each new employee is like a new member of the family. New employees are the lifeblood of new ideas, leadership, and vibrancy in any organization. It is absolutely critical that new employees are made to feel:
- Like they belong
- glad they joined the company
- Ready to make an impact
This has also been proven to add to the bottom line. In his book Deciding Who Leads, author Joseph Daniel McCool cites the example of Bristol-Myers Squibb, which increased retention of new executives from 40% to 90% by revamping the hiring process, including instituting a formal process for new executive integration.
New employee success is built upon 10 key fundamentals:
- There must be a plan from the moment they are hired through the first 180 to 365 days of their job.
- A new employee has to feel like they made the right choice as soon as they accept an offer. This can easily be accomplished with a simple welcome package. Nothing fancy, just some items that help to prepare the new employee for their first day and are a little special.
- The new employee’s workspace should be 100% ready for them when they start. There is nothing more demoralizing to come to an unprepared desk. That prep makes people feel special.
- Set up the new employee with a mentor. Each new employee should have a mentor. Depending on the size of the company, it could be internal or external. But the mentor relationship needs to somewhat structured.
- In the beginning, introduce the new employee meet critical people every day. It will allow them to be more comfortable from the start.
- Have a training plan ready for them when they start that will take them through the end of their first year.
- Make sure the new employee meets with other new hires
- Put them to work right away. No one wants to sit idly.
- Conduct , at minimum, one assessment of the new hire’s progress and knowledge every quarter. Review that with them to ensure they are clear about what they did well and where there is room for improvement.
- Celebrate them joining the company. People like to know they are appreciated.
Does it really make a difference?
The second dog my family got was a much more pleasant experience. I made sure to map out his first 180 days with us. It sounds a little like overkill, but it worked remarkably well. The extra time I spent with him the first couple of months was worth it. “Cadoo” turned out to be exceptionally well behaved, friendly and very reliable. After the initial investment in time, tools, training and attention, he became a productive member of the family (he earned his keep by chasing rabbits out of the garden).
I think about Cadoo when working with clients on how to make new employees more effective, knowledgeable, and productive. Just make sure to set them up for success and there is no limit the positive effect they can have on the organization.
How do new employees feel when they start? Are you making sure that new employees are set up for success? What are you doing to give new employees knowledge? How are you going to make them feel like part of the pack?
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Anil Saxena is President of cube214 Consulting.
He can be reached at [email protected]
Image Source: temunot.files.wordpress.com
Something else to consider is the recruitment process itself. How many job interviews allow interviewees to actually meet and talk with the team that they will hopefully be joining? This not only lets them meet their team but also lets their team meet them.