Guest Editorial

by John H. Zenger

Revamping New
Employee Orientation


We should redefine the process as new employee
assimilation, retention, quality and productivity.


A much-overlooked opportunity to boost quality and productivity occurs the moment people are hired into the firm. This is a time when people are in transition and new patterns of behavior will be established. Because it is a time of change, people are at their most malleable state and come with high expectations about their new company and position.

So what really happens? In most organizations, new hires get herded into a room. Someone from human resources explains the medical and life insurance plans. Employees complete the forms to sign up for payroll and benefit programs. There also may be a message about the history of the company and some homage to the founders. From there, the new employees head back to their work stations to begin their new careers.

From my perspective, the company has blown a perfect opportunity to help employees feel at home, get a clear understanding of their new jobs, learn about the company's mission, vision and values, and, from day one, understand the company's standards of productivity and quality.

Sure, some forms need to be signed. But do people really need to know all about the pension plan and medical benefits? Most of us forget the details and have to ask or look them up when something happens.

The new employee wants to be accepted and respected, and wants to know what's expected. Think of your own first days on the job. You wanted to meet the people you'd be working with. Then you wanted to know exactly what was expected of you. You wanted to learn whatever you needed to know and not feel inferior or stupid because the people around you assumed you knew something you didn't. Most of us want to become productive, contributing members as quickly as possible.

I propose that we drastically change our thinking about this topic. We should stop calling it new employee "orientation." That sounds passive, like we only want to point people in the right direction to the cafeteria and restrooms. Instead, we should redefine the process as new employee assimilation, retention, quality and productivity. By renaming this process, we'd begin to change our own thinking and, ultimately, the components that make it up.

Fortunately there is a perfect merging of new employees' and the company's interests. The company wants them to feel comfortable and make friends because this significantly increases their likelihood of staying with the company. The company wants new people to learn the job quickly and acquire any technical knowledge because that pushes them up the learning curve at the fastest pace. The company is eager to make new employees productive, not only for their output, but also knowing that productivity will reduce turnover as well.

We need to see this as an extended process (six-month minimum). While we know much training is casual and indirect, we shouldn't leave such an important process to chance. Co-workers train new employees and set the standards of quality and productivity. So how careful are employers about selecting the people who team up with the new workers? What do they do to prepare them for this assignment?

The company must prepare a carefully planned assimilation process for each new employee. Individuals come with widely differing knowledge and skills. A personal plan for training and development rounds out flat sides and increases employees' ability to contribute. As time goes on, newcomers need to meet with old-timers to hear the stories that define the company's culture and philosophy.

The assimilation process requires input from the immediate work group, the department or division, and the total organization. We often forget how vital the immediate work team and department are to a new employee's success.

Here are the principles that should govern new-employee assimilation, retention and productivity programs.
Deal with the strongest and most emotionally compelling needs first.
Provide information "just in time."
Give only the information that people want or need.
Teach people how to get answers to questions, rather than trying to answer all their questions.
View this as a long-term process.
Involve the work team, the department and the company in the process.
Let new employees feel jointly responsible for their process.
Place special emphasis on what new employees can do vs. what they can't do.
Make the entire process fun.

Just as we never get a second chance to make a first impression, we also never get a second chance to assimilate a new employee the right way.

About the author

John H. Zenger is chairman of Times Mirror Training Inc. He is a frequent speaker at business and trade conferences, and has written numerous training articles and several books on leadership and teamwork.