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A new employee orientation program helps to familiarize a new employee with his new organization, their responsibilities in the workplace, and what resources exist to help them meet both the company's and their own objectives.

Both large and small companies should consider implementing a new employee orientation program. In small companies, the relationships between employees and the company can be vital for the profitability and viability of the business. Likewise, with larger companies, employee turnover can have a significant impact on a business.

A program can consist of defining a plan for the first few months of working at the company for the new employee, acquainting the employee with corporate culture, time and attendance issues, and finding their way around the facilities

The advantages include getting an employee up to speed and better retention of employees. When you establish a program for your business, you need to assign specific goals for the program. This could be reducing the turnover of employees by 10 percent over a specified period of time. The cost of implementing and running an orientation program is not negligible, so you need to see the benefits of a program. Otherwise you could be wasting your money.

To find out more how new employee orientation can help your business, check out the links on this page, which were researched and compiled by Business.com.

New Employee Orientation

Get your hires up to speed faster with "onboarding".

With all the demands of running a small business, new employee orientation often falls by the wayside, and new hires are left to sink or swim. But neglecting onboarding – the latest term for getting a new employee acclimated – prevents new hires from reaching productivity quickly and can make them feel unwelcome. That adds up to a frustrating experience for new hires and results in higher turnover. Employee orientation may be easier than you think – with a little creative planning, you can create an onboarding program that can:
  1. Make new hires reach productivity sooner.
  2. Reduce their stress.
  3. Improve employee retention.
  4. Save money by reducing turnover.
  5. Create a positive attitude and increase job satisfaction.

Create your program

Spend some time thinking about what your onboarding program should accomplish. Think about the kind of impression you want to make on your new hires, what they need to help them reach productivity as quickly as possible and what will help them feel like they're part of the team.

Reduce first-day jitters

Make the first day less stressful on new employees by making sure they have the basics, including directions to your location, parking information and the name of the person they should ask for when they arrive.

Celebrate their arrival

Make new hires feel welcome. This can be as simple as taking a new employee to lunch, hanging a "Welcome" banner on their desk or giving them a company T-shirt.

Get them up and running fast

To get employees up to speed quickly, make sure they have the tools they need before they arrive for their first day. Have an office or cubicle set up with a computer (including necessary software programs) in place, a phone number and an email account ready to go.

Choose an onboarding buddy

There's no doubt new hires are going to need a little hand-holding in the beginning. Assign one of your other employees to be the new person's mentor or buddy to help guide them through the onboarding phase.

Get involved

Take part in the onboarding process by touching base with new employees on a regular basis. Don't wait for new hires to seek you out with questions or problems. Be pro-active and ask them how they're doing and if there's anything they need to help them do their job better.
  • Anticipate questions your new hires may have. Give them a list of company FAQs that cover the nuts and bolts as a quick reference tool.
  • If you have an employee handbook, don't expect a new hire to read it from cover to cover on day one. Go over key points and policies with them initially.
  • Introduce new hires to co-workers and give them a tour of your facility.
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