The Sink or Swim Method of Leadership
Just kidding, this isn’t really a method of leadership. But it is unfortunately something that many managers inadvertently do to new team members! They bring in a new employee, point them to their desk, and then just watch and wait for them to swim feverishly to get up to speed and prove themselves; or drown in the deep end, never able to impress.
In my role as a leadership consultant, I often get phone calls when the latter happens – the Manager says, ‘this person isn’t working out, but I don’t know how to get rid of them’. But just by asking a question or two, I can figure out if they were set up for success or for failure, and it all comes down to an organisation’s induction and on-boarding process.
So what are some of the keys to a new employee success system?
New Employee Success System
- A solid recruitment process. Getting the right person and knowing their skills, experience, strengths, & personality attributes is essential
- A New Starter Checklist is used to set up their first days to give a great impression. Being organised, making time for them, giving them everything they need, learning about company culture and how things are done, and where to turn for support
- They are given a detailed Position Description, that includes a list of performance objectives. If you are going to assess someone’s performance (even informally), then they should know from the get go what you’ll be measuring them on. This also helps them to prioritise tasks.
- Their manager should set up a meeting a couple of weeks after they start to discuss how they are progressing, ask what they are struggling with, and to ask how they can support them.
- Openly communicate as things occur. An employee should never find out on their last day that their performance wasn’t up to scratch. Or even conversely, don’t forget to let them know that they are in fact doing a great job!
“Early feedback is better than late criticism”
If this is a process that has been overlooked in your organisation, start by putting together a New Starter Checklist, and follow that up by making sure you have up to date Position Descriptions for every role. Once you have the system in place, it’s just a matter of making sure you and your leaders have the skills to conduct performance conversations. Like any other technical skill in the workplace, this is something that needs to be learned and practiced, even in experienced managers. We aren’t born with these skills!
I get a real kick out of tailoring programs to help organisations of all sizes to set their employees up for performance success. If your onboarding process could be better, find out how Whyser can help.
And if you’re a small business owner thinking, but I don’t have a team to manage this process, it’s just me… I see you too. Effective doesn’t have to be complicated – I’ll give you a process that is simple and can be easily implemented by one manager. Contact Melanie today for a system tailored to you click here
