Avoiding Buyer's Remorse
Most organizations make considerable investments in the selection of new employees. Whether it is the cost of advertising open positions, retaining a third-party recruiting agency or the hours spent internally on the part of multiple parties interviewing potential candidates, we’re talking lots of time and money. Why is it then that once these new employees arrive, they are often neglected?
While the experience of new employees varies from organization to organization and from manager to manager, there are too many new employees that spend far too much of their own time trying to find their way around their new environment. This floundering in those critical first hours and days can lead to buyer’s remorse, where the new employee begins to wonder whether this was such a great decision afterall.
I don’t know of a better time than the initial hours and days of a new employee’s tenure with an organization to properly introduce them to what’s most important to know about their new job. Some of the best new employee orientation programs begin on the employee’s first day of work. A one- to two- day program is an excellent way to start someone off on their new journey.
On the first day of the program, new employees can be exposed to the organization’s history, mission and strategy; its organizational structure, products and clients; a comprehensive review of employee benefits; and a hands-on demonstration of office tools (voice mail, email, etc.) designed to enhance employee productivity. On day two, new employees can be provided with overviews of the organization’s policies and procedures; its performance management process; and its professional development and training programs.
New employees are overwhelmingly appreciative of the time investment made by their new organizations in providing them with the necessary understanding and tools to begin their successful assimilation into the organization. Having access to the bigger picture and being able to understand what the total organization is all about is very helpful as employees struggle to connect what they will be doing to the larger picture.
If organizations are serious about providing new employees with this level of introduction to their business, it is not practical to deliver this program more than a couple of times each month. While some organizations batch up new hires and invite them to participate in the next program which is never more than two weeks away, other organizations coordinate start dates so that the first day of employment is always set to coincide with the start of the next new employee orientation program. I favor the latter approach as no new employee needs to wait even a day to receive this proper and formal introduction to the organization.
Managers will sometimes balk at having to wait up to two weeks to bring someone new on board. I respond that most managers already have waited weeks, if not months, to successfully recruit the new employee. Another week or two to ensure a proper grounding in the organization is not excessive.
In addition to the one- or two-day formal orientation program sponsored by the organization’s HR team, it is critical that managers take the time to set up appointments for their new employee with key staff and/or customers and be sure to schedule meetings and/or lunches with other members of the team. All of this will speed-up the learning curve and again impress the new employee that the organization has planned for their arrival.
I believe that organizations can actually differentiate themselves in the eyes of potential new employees by offering timely orientation programs that reinforce the new employee’s decision to come aboard. In so doing, we can help inoculate the new employee against the risk of buyer’s remorse, or the sense that new employees often experience that perhaps their decision to switch organizations was a mistake. The best employee retention strategies begin in the initial hours and days of the new employee’s arrival.
How are you planning for the arrival of your new employees? How will your orientation plan demonstrate your readiness to engage your new staff? How will you avoid buyer’s remorse?