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HR MATTERS E-TIPS
THIS WEEK’S E-TIP: New Hire Orientation: Eight Tips for Effective Integration
 January 9, 2008, Volume 10, No. 2
Published by Personnel Policy Service, Inc.
"Your Policy and Compliance Experts Since 1972"
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THIS WEEK’S E-TIP: New Hire Orientation: Eight Tips for Effective Integration

First impressions last a lifetime, and the perceptions formed by your new
employees are no exception. Find out the eight steps you can take to
ensure your new hires make the transition smoothly and happily into your
workplace.
 
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THIS WEEK’S E-TIP: New Hire Orientation: Eight Tips for Effective Integration

Most employers focus a lot of time and attention on the recruiting and
hiring process: finding qualified applicants, interviewing, checking
references, and ultimately, crafting an acceptable offer. But, your job
does not end once the new employee has been hired. The smooth
assimilation of new hires is an essential ingredient for reducing
performance problems and turnover. And, further complicating the
process, you must make sure that all necessary paperwork is completed
to ensure compliance with the growing maze of employment laws.

Unfortunately, too many organizations become overwhelmed by the
paperwork demands and neglect the fundamentals of the orientation
process. A better approach is to focus more on welcoming and
integrating new hires into the workforce and to pay special attention to
laying the groundwork for improved performance and retention. Below,
we provide eight tips on how to coordinate both orientation and new hire
legal compliance into an organized process.

* Engaging a New Team Member *

An effective orientation program makes the new hire feel comfortable
and introduces the employee to the organization’s culture, supervisors,
coworkers, and work expectations. Employees who get a positive first
impression and “buy into” your culture are more likely to develop loyalty,
cooperate with coworkers and supervisors, offer ideas, and take a
personal interest in your organization’s success. While every employer
must adjust its approach based on size and management philosophy, the
following eight steps provide a guideline to help you cover the right
bases.
  1. Make the new employee feel welcome and part of the group
    before work begins. Often, there is some lag time between the date the
    employee accepts your offer and the first day of work. You can make
    your new employee feel more a part of the group during this period by
    having his supervisor touch base with him, for example, to brief him on
    the people he will be working with and any special projects that are in the
    pipeline.
  2. Be ready for the new hire’s arrival on the first day. Little things
    can go a long way to help overcome first-day jitters. For example, start
    by alerting receptionists and security guards to the new employee’s
    arrival. Make sure the new employee’s workspace is ready and that
    keys and any necessary entry codes are provided. Assign an e-mail
    address and computer password, if applicable, and add the employee to
    your internal contact lists. In addition, have top officials take the time to
    meet each new hire, or at least send a personal welcome note.
  3. Provide an overview of all operations. This step should include a
    review of the corporate history and organization chart, a discussion of
    important products and services, and a tour of the immediate physical
    facilities.
  4. Communicate information about the organization’s goals and
    culture. The orientation process (free policy download) is an ideal time
    to educate new hires about your organization’s mission, market
    presence, culture, competition, and plans for growth.
  5. Provide detailed information about the new hire’s position and
    performance expectations. New employees should be given a clear
    outline of their job description, classification or title, and duties. In
    addition, the supervisor should provide written training and performance
    goals with appropriate benchmarks and expected completion dates.
  6. Assign new employees meaningful work. Many employers make
    the mistake of giving new employees “busy work” when they first arrive,
    such as reviewing training manuals or shadowing other employees. This
    approach is intended to “ease” the employee into the job, but often
    backfires by making the new hire feel unchallenged, or even unneeded.
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  1. Inform the employee about the organization’s policies,
    procedures, and benefits as soon as possible. For most organizations,
    the employee handbook is the source of much of the information needed
    to be informed about benefits, hours of work, pay policies, and work
    rules. Most employers also require new employees to sign a receipt
    acknowledging they received and read the handbook and that they
    understand they are “at-will” employees, if in fact that is the case.

    Some policies, such as sexual harassment (free policy download), equal
    employment opportunity, drug and alcohol use and testing (free policy
    download)    , and safety, are so important that you may want to conduct
    special training for them. (A few states, such as California and
    Connecticut, require sexual harassment training, so check state law.) In
    particular, new employees should understand how to make complaints
    under these policies.

    You also should review information in the handbook regarding benefits
    and provide appropriate summary plan descriptions. In addition, if the
    employee will be participating in your health insurance plan and COBRA
    covers you, you must provide an initial COBRA notice to the employee
    and any covered spouse and dependents.

    If you have a policy requiring new employees to take a physical exam or
    undergo any medical tests, these typically should be conducted prior to
    the employee’s first day. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act
    (ADA), you may conduct any type of medical exam at the post-offer
    stage if all entering employees in the same job category must undergo
    the examination. However, once the employee has actually started
    work, the ADA requires that any medical exam be job-related and
    consistent with business necessity.
  2. Complete necessary paperwork. The first day often is also the
    most convenient time to have a new employee fill out required forms.
    Some forms, such as the employment eligibility verification (Form I-9)
    and withholding allowance (Form W-4), are required by law. The Form I-
    9 should be completed within three business days of the employee’s first
    day. The Form W-4, designating the employee’s number of withholding
    exemptions for tax purposes, should be completed on or before the first
    day of employment. If the new hire is under 18, you also may need a
    certificate of age and a work permit issued by your state to verify the
    employee may work in the particular job. Other forms may be needed to
    administer your policies, such as those for benefits enrollment and
    beneficiary designations, direct pay deposit authorization, and employee
    emergency contact information.

    You also must complete state-required new hire reports for all new
    employees. Under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity
    Reconciliation Act, which establishes a “parent locator service” to help
    enforce child support obligations and child custody and visitation orders,
    you must provide information on your new employees to your state “new
    hire directory.” Most states provide new hire reporting forms, and many
    employers give the forms to their new employees to fill out and then
    submit them to the state. (You can find helpful information on each
    state’s reporting requirements from the U.S. Department of Health and
    Human Service’s Administration for Children and Families on the Internet
    at http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cse/newhire/employer/contacts/nh_matrix.htm)

* Nurture Your Newbies *

There is no question about it – finding, training, and replacing employees
is expensive. HR experts estimate that turnover costs from 30% to 50%
of an employee’s first year salary. Some suggest that this cost is closer
to 100%. Clearly, most actions you take to retain new employees are
worth the effort, and an effective welcome and new hire integration
process can help ensure a better retention rate.

Remember, these actions do not have to be elaborate or difficult to be
effective. None of the eight tips suggested above are expensive,
although they do require careful advance planning for successful
coordination and implementation. Your goal should be to provide a
professional setting and make the new hire feel as comfortable as
possible.
 
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Subscribers to the Personnel Policy Manual (print/online) and HR Policy Answers on
CD can find more information on hiring policies and
procedures (including Form I-9 and new hire reporting requirements) in
Hiring, Chapter 202. For more information on orientation and training
policies and procedures, see Orientation and Training, Chapter 202B

Not a subscriber? If you would like to order one of our policy chapters,
go to: http://www.hrpolicyanswers.com.

If you have any questions, please call us at 1-800-437-3735. We'll be happy to help you.
 
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