Whenever a manager asks me for help revamping an orientation program, I tell them to \u201cthink spring.\u201d See the leaves sprout, the flowers bloom, and the grass start to turn green: It\u2019s a time of rebirth and new growth. That\u2019s how you should think of orientation.<\/p>\n
A successful orientation is very much like springtime. It\u2019s an opportunity for the organization to refine what it presents to new employees, and for new employees to reinvent themselves in a fresh environment. It should be an occasion of excitement and promise.<\/p>\n
If that\u2019s not the case for your orientation program, I want you to picture three more images: an empty five-pound bag, a dartboard, and a skyscraper under construction. Each represents a potential orientation failure.<\/p>\n
Too many orientations try to cram 10 pounds of material into a five-pound bag. Orientations should provide only what\u2019s important to know \u201cright now.\u201d Benefits, bathroom locations, appearance standards: They\u2019re all good to know, but they\u2019re not critical to an employee\u2019s long-term success. Think about filling that five-pound bag with three pounds of information\u2014and leave the employee wanting more. <\/p>\n
Dead center is a dartboard\u2019s sweet spot. Other locations are off-target and earn fewer points. It\u2019s the same principle in orientation. \u201cWho we serve,\u201d \u201chow we serve,\u201d \u201cwhen we serve,\u201d \u201cwhere we serve,\u201d and “why we serve\u201d are all critical topics worthy of their own meetings. But they\u2019re off-target for an orientation session. Orientation needs to focus specifically on \u201cwhat we are.\u201d <\/p>\n
Construction crews lay the foundation for skyscrapers and then work their way up. The top floors are where the excitement is; the height is impressive, the floor layouts are unique, and the views are spectacular. It\u2019s all the construction firm and the building landlord want to talk about. But nobody enters a skyscraper on the top floor. You have to come in at ground level, on the floor that supports everything above it. <\/p>\n
If you\u2019re unfamiliar with the building under construction, your first thought on walking in the front door is likely to be, \u201cWhat is this place?\u201d The answer to that is the three pounds in the bag, the sweet spot, the very foundation of a successful orientation. It\u2019s the reason your business exists, boiled down to its essence: what makes us different than all the others that do exactly the same thing. That\u2019s the message to deliver at orientation. That\u2019s how you\u2019ll connect with new employees.<\/p>\n
Orientations should boil down to this:<\/p>\n
“The purpose of our organization is to ___________. We accomplish that by ___________. So that _________!\u201d<\/p>\n
People want to be part of something larger than themselves, something necessary and important. For new employees, filling in the above blanks helps them understand and appreciate their role in your organization. <\/p>\n
Automate orientation paperwork with TraitSet OnBoard, an online service that enables new hires to complete and electronically sign all forms in as little as 10 minutes. Ask your Customer Development Specialist for details.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Orientations should provide only what\u2019s important to know \u201cright now.\u201d<\/p>","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":4325,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[69],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4324","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-running-your-business"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n