Induction is an area of recruitment that is often neglected. All too frequently, once the contract is signed and the new employee's first day arrives, they are just dropped in at the deep end and expected to find out everything they need to know for themselves.

This might seem like a good idea – getting the new employee to develop contacts within the business and be resourceful – but in actual fact is grossly inefficient for the business and a demoralizing experience for the new employee. Poor or non-existent induction contributes to high turnover and is likely to reduce the productivity of your new employee for the first two-four weeks of their employment, as they gradually find out what their job entails and how to do it.

An effective induction needn't be particularly complex or time-consuming, and even a half-hour conversation can yield worthwhile benefits. At the other end of the scale, in some organizations and for some types of work, a week or more of continuous induction and introductory training might be needed.

How to Design Your Induction Process

The guiding principle for inductions should be to work out what the new employee will need to know to start being productive, and then to work out the best way of providing that information.

The specifics of what is required will vary between different types of company, but the list below makes a good starting point:

·        Provide an introduction to the company itself – number of employees, office locations, an overview of its business operations and some information about its history

·        Describe the inductee's job description and explain how this role fits into both his or her team and the business as a whole.

·        Inform the employee of important business policies and procedures – these might relate to:

o       Health & Safety

o       Dress codes, rest break policies

o       Onsite facilities (e.g. toilets, canteen, rest areas and parking arrangements)

o       Security arrangements

·        Ensure the employee is provided with all the tools they will need to do their job

·        Tell the new employee about any regular social side to the business – a social club, organized evenings out, etc. This will make them feel welcome and make it easier for them to integrate quickly with the other employees.

Who Is Responsible For Inductions?

This is another area that can vary depending on the type and size of the company, but as a general rule, an employee's direct supervisor should have overall responsibility for their induction. They may or may not deliver all the induction material – sometimes it will be more appropriate for HR, Safety Officers or senior management to provide some of the information.

Whatever the size of your organization, there should be one person who has overall responsibility for inductions. Their role should be to ensure that a consistent and comprehensive approach is taken to inductions across the company, and to provide help and guidance to the staff who deliver the inductions if needed.

Conclusions

With a little effort, it is possible to create a very useful induction that will help employees become productive in their new roles as quickly as possible, and that will make them more likely to be happy and want to stay – there are many cases where employees who have just been left to their own devices have walked out at the end of the first week, all for lack of proper induction!