Reference no: EM132748932

The Importance of Employee Orientation Many managers speak of the importance of a good orientation or onboarding program in easing the transition of employees to their new employer. Starting a new job can be a very emotional experience for many people. An effective orientation program may help reduce turnover as employees adjust to their new workplace. Many organizations invest significant resources in developing comprehensive orientation programs. Advances in technology have been helpful as companies are able to include certain elements of the orientation program on company websites using a combination of print, audio, and video to assist with a smooth transition for the new employee. Assume you have been hired as a summer student with a local financial institution. The manager that hired you said you were chosen because of your knowledge of human resources. The business has experienced a high rate of turnover. The cost of training new people and the loss of knowledge and experience when people leave is a major concern for the company. The results of exit interviews with many of the departing staff surprised the manager. Over 70% of the people interviewed indicated that their main reason for leaving related to having expectations about the job they were hired to do that were not met and not feeling comfortable with their role in the organization. When asked if there was anything the employer could have done to increase the chances of them staying, almost everyone said that they felt that the company had to find a way to better "socialize" employees to their new work environment. Most generally liked the people they worked with, but were not able to get the comfort level they desired and left within the first three months. The manager has asked you to review the company's current orientation program and preparea report for her which outlines the strengths and weaknesses of the program and supplies recommendations for how to improve orientation of new employees. You conducted a series of interviews with employees hired during the past year with the Human Resource Manager. The following is a summary of what you learned about the current orientation program.

• All new employees must complete the orientation program. · The orientation takes place over two sessions. The first half-day session is a meeting with an Administrative Assistant in the Human Resources department to set up a payroll account, provide banking information for direct deposit of their pay, explain the company pension plan, and review hours of work, holidays, employee benefits, and work regulations. The second session is with their direct supervisor to review the job description, discuss the probationary period, and answer questions the employee may have. This meeting usually takes about an hour. The company feels it does more that many other businesses in terms of its orientation of new employees, but, given the concerns expressed by former employees, it realizes that perhaps there are other things it should be doing.

Problem 1: With the information you have been given on the company's existing orientation program, what are the recommendations you would make to your supervisor

Problem 2: Outline the key components of an effective Executive Integration process