ORIENTATION

MONDAY (21ST OCTOBER 2013)

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Figure 1.0The Relationship Among Human Resource Functions

Source : Byars, Rue (2008)

Problems face by the new employees(Cascio, 2006)

Problems in entering a

group• Asks herself whether she will• Be

acceptable• Be liked• Be safe

(physical and psychological)

Naive expectations• Much easier to communicate factual info about the pay and benefits, vacations and company policies than info about employee norms.

First-job environment

• Does the environment help the new employee trying to climb aboard?

• Can peers be counted on?

• How and why was the first job assignment chosen?

It was a shock. To be honest, it was pretty traumatic. You got hired in this group of 30 people you’ve never met, and you sign a form, and the foreman comes in, and you walk out into this factory. And it’s just first time, you know? Things are moving, and you just look around, and you go, “What’s going on here?” Quite frankly, the first day I got lost.

Dave SavchetzPlant Manager of Ford Motor Company’s Kansas City, Missouri, factory

ORIENTATION!!!

Definitions

• An attempt to send clear messages and provide accurate information about the company culture, the job, and expectations.

Ivancevich & Konopaske,

(2013)

• A procedure for providing new employees with the basic information about the firm.

Dessler, 2008

• The introduction of new employees to the organization, work unit and job.

Byars & Rue, 2008

Cont...

• The process of introducing new employees to the organization so that they can become effective contributors more quickly.

Denisi & Griffin, (2005)

• A form of employee training designed to introduce new employees to their roles and responsibilities, co-workers, and organizations

Klein & Weaver,

2000

• Familiarizing new employees with the rules, policies, and procedures of the organizations.

Anthony, Perrewe &

Kacmar, 1999

Ways of Orientation(Anthony, Perrewe & Kacmar, 1999)

Formal Informal

Depending on the size of the organization

Types of orientation programs( Barr, 2011)

General orientation

Job-specific orientati

on

Department

orientation

1st Stage

3rd Stag

e

2nd Stag

e

Cont...

General• focuses on

organization itself

• organizational goals, mission, values, history, and culture (Chen, 2010).

Department• Information

related to the employee’s hiring department

• Vision, priorities, structure and culture, in relation to the organization.

Job-specific• Information

related to the employee’s role and responsibilities, their immediate work environment and their terms and conditions of employment (job description).

Who orients new employees?( Ivancevich & Konopaske, 2013)

Small organization

Operating manager

Who orients new employees?(Barr, 2011)

• General Orientation• Company overview• Payroll• Benefit

HR Department

• Department and job-specific orientation• They are the one who is

making the first impression to the new employee.• Job description, safety

issues, working hours

Supervisor

Cont...

•Co-worker of the new employee conducts the orientation (Byars & Rue, 2008).•An experienced person and do not have any reporting relationship with the employee.

“Buddy” system

Goals of Orientation(Ivancevich & Konopaske, 2013)

To reduce anxiety

To reduce turnover

To save time

Fear of failure on the job and can be made worse if current employees ignore the new employees.

If employees perceive themselves as ineffective or unwanted, they might react to these feeling by quitting.

The better the initial orientation, the less likely supervisors and co-workers have to spend time teaching the new employee.

Goals of Orientation(Brown, 2003)

To reduce start-up costs

Proper orientation can help the employees get up to speed much more quickly, thereby reducing the costs associated with learning the job.

To develop realistic job expectations, positive

attitudes and job satisfactionNew employees have to learn as soon as possible what is expected of them, and what to expect from others, in addition to learning about the values and attitudes of the organization.

Benefits of Effective Orientation(Barr, 2011)

Increases employee retention• New employee feels more

comfortable more quickly and that results in the employee being more satisfied, and that in turn results in improved employee retention.• Reduces training and

recruiting cost.

“One reason why people change jobs is because they never feel welcome or part of the organization they join.”

Dr. Judith BrownSr. Compliance Specialist, Human

Resources,National Security Program, AECOM

Cont...

Accelerates employee productivity

• Employees become productive more quickly because they understand what is expected of them and have been given a foundation for success (Wilson, 2007).

• They tend to perform better when they know what is expected of them (Barr, 2011).

Cont...(Wallace, 2009)

Increase employee confidence and relieve anxiety

• Employees know they have the information and contacts they need and made them feel a part of the operation.

• Fewer mistakes are made when employees are more relaxed.

Cont...(Wallace, 2009)

Positive relationship and good communication between the new employee and co-workers• helping him/her to feel comfortable and to bond with others.

• Made the new employees feel part of the team.

Orientation Length and Timing(Denisi & Griffin, 2005) (White, 2004)

Depends on the amount of information the organizations intends to convey during the orientation.

Best determined by the size of the organization and how often the new employees are employed.

Long session

• it is virtually impossible for a new employee to absorb all the information in the orientation program in one long session.

• the new employee is bombarded with policies and procedures and tons of dry, boring and tedious information and at the end of the first day they are left feeling overwhelmed (Barr, 2011).

Brief session

• not to exceed 2 hours, and spread over several days will increase the likelihood that the new employee will understand and retain the information presented.

Orientation Length and Timing(Byars & Rue, 2008)

Example of flexible schedule for the new employees

Source: http://www.amcto.com/imis15/Documents/Sandra%20Barr%20-%20Thesis%20Paper.pdf

Orientation Checklist

Act as an outline of the minimum information that should be discussed when orienting new employees.

To ensure all necessaryinformation is communicated.(Wallace, 2009)

Figure 2.0New Employee Departmental

Orientation Checklist

Source: UCSD Healthcare.

Source :http://www.nd.gov/hrms/docs/forms/sfn19452.pdf

Employee Handbook

An employee handbook is a compilation of the policies, procedures, working conditions, and behavioral expectations that guide employee actions in a particular workplace. Employee handbooks generally also include information about the company, employee compensation and benefits, and additional terms and conditions of employment (Heathfield, 2013).

Orientation Mistakes(Cascio, 2006)

An unclear overview of the basics

• A quick, superficial orientation, and then the new employee is immediately put to work.

• Employees loss of interest in their new job.

Mickey Mouse assignments

• New employee’s first tasks are insignificant duties, intended to teach the job “from the ground up”.

Cont...

An emphasis on paperwork• New employee is given a brief

welcome after completing forms required by HR department. Then, the employee is directed to his immediate supervisor.

Suffocation

• Giving too much information too fast causing the employee to feel overwhelmed and suffocated.

Orientation Follow-up & Evaluation(Byars & Rue, 2008)

Formal and systematic follow-up to initial orientation is essential Manager should regularly check on how well new

employee is doing and answer any questions that may have arisen after training

Should be conducted at intervals of one month, three months, six months, and one year with the new employees and the orientation providers (White, 2004).

Human resource department should also conduct an annual evaluation of total orientation program.

Cont..

Purpose of this evaluation is to: Determine whether current orientation

program is meeting company’s and new employees’ needs.

Ascertain ways to improve present program.

Even in organizations with superb orientation programs, the time certainly arrives when training and development is needed (Ivancevich & Konopaske, 2013).

Example of Orientation Follow-up Checklist

Source: http://hrweb.berkeley.edu/files/attachments/NEO-checklist.pdf

Cont..

Feedback – A method of evaluating effectiveness of orientation program

Can be obtained using: Unsigned questionnaires completed by both new

employees and orientation providers (White, 2004). In-depth interviews of randomly selected new

employees Round table discussion sessions with new employees

settled comfortably into their jobs (Cascio, 2006) . Enables an organization to adapt its orientation

program to specific suggestions of actual participants.