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STAFF INDUCTION

If you did not give your interview candidates a guided tour, you might like to invite your new recruit into your business prior to starting for a familiarisation visit to meet other staff, chat through basic requirements (dress codes if there is no uniform, measuring for a uniform if there is) and a very simple workplace orientation.

If they are unable to do this, or it’s not practical for you, it can all be covered on the first day, but it does help to take some of the terror out of the experience! You might also like to send a copy of the staff handbook (see the section on staff handbook) in advance if you think it would be helpful.

The first day
The single most important aspect of the first day is making time for the new recruit. There is nothing more disappointing and disheartening than sitting for hours waiting for someone to come and show you what to do, or give you information you need. Getting off on the wrong foot can colour that an employee’s impression of the business forever. Indeed, you may lose the person you have spent so much time and money getting – so it’s worth getting it right!

What makes a huge difference is having a planned induction programme. This might cover a period of two days, two weeks, or two months, depending on the nature of the job and the size of the business, but at the end of a good induction process, your new employee should be thoroughly conversant with the operating procedures of the company, and have all the basic knowledge required to do their job. They may not yet be competent to work completely unsupervised, but they should feel comfortable with what they are required to do and know where to get help if they need it. They should also understand your business objectives, and what you are trying to achieve.

If you have the opportunity, use a “buddy” system where another employee is “assigned” to look after the new person – it can help both employees to develop confidence!

It is important to consider the length of the induction process. Again, if you think back to your first day in a new job, you’ll probably remember feeling overwhelmed by the amount of information to take in and getting home exhausted and confused! It’s better to break information into bite-sized pieces, and mix it with activity and meeting co-workers, rather than try to get everything over quickly. There will be a fair amount to cover, whatever the size of your business - a good first day should include all of the following:

A good reception for the new employee! It’s important that their line manager or personnel manager has time to spend with them on the first day, preferably straight away, and that there is time to find out more about them and them about you.
Going through the necessary paperwork and documentation. Remember to ask in advance for anything you may need them to bring in, including qualification certificates, birth certificate, passport or whatever. You will need to create (or add to) a personnel file for them, with details of next of kin, any health issues etc (see Personnel Records).
An indication of how their next few days/weeks will be structured, depending on the length of your induction process. If you introduce people on the first day, but the new employee will need to spend more time with them at a later date, organize a meeting so that both know when this is scheduled.
Basic health and safety information for your business. You can go into more detail at a later stage, but you need the new employee to be aware from day one of any particular health and safety issues (for further information on health and safety).
Where everything is – the toilets, staff room, water machine – particularly if they have not been in since their interview.
A copy of your staff handbook, if they’ve not already had one, or an introduction to your operating procedures – dress codes, break times, etc.
An opportunity to do something practical – most people are keen to get on with the job, even if they’re nervous about getting it right!
Over the next few days or weeks, you will have the opportunity to discuss with the employee their job role and objectives and ensure that they, too, feel as much an important contributor to the company’s success as every other employee.

At the risk of getting repetitive, induction is a very important part of the employment process, and one that can easily get overlooked in a small, busy organization where everyone is working at full capacity. It is worth getting your induction procedures organized – preferably in discussion with the rest of your staff – so that when you get a new member of staff, you do not have to rush around on their first day thinking about what to do with them.

The following links show two examples of staff induction documentation - they are in Microsoft Word Format so that you can print them off and edit them for your organisation if you want to:

The first is from Aberglasney and shows a tick box approach

The second is an example produced by ACAS (not all of which may applicable to your business, but it gives you an idea!)

If you would like to download this entire document which includes the examples mentioned above please click on one of the links below:

staff induction (Word Document 149Kb)
staff induction (PDF Document 165Kb)



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At the end of a good induction programme your new employee should be fully conversant with the operating procedures of your business and have all the basic knowledge to do his/her job. Consider developing a detailed checklist covering all the parts of your induction programme. Consider using a buddy system – both employees will develop confidence!