Lesson Learned #4 Professional, Be Professional not just say it, On-boarding matters, Perception is reality, Proofread, Details but no details
Michael Coker
Highly accomplished US Army Special Forces Sergeant Major with 15+ years of exemplary leadership experience and operational expertise. Seeking an Operations Supervisor/Facility Manager role.
I once accepted a position in sales at a prominent gun store.? I liked the number of items they had and the place receives a lot of foot traffic.? I enjoyed the thought of showing customers items and giving them my advice and expertise, when needed.? I thought it would be a great place for me to invest my energy and time.?
The company’s job description was weak, in fact it was horrible.?? It didn’t even say what the position’s salary would be (I assumed part commission).? It was an hourly rate (no sales commission) and the company had a “policy†to start everyone at the same rate, regardless of experience. It, in no way described the everyday duties (which I found out during on-boarding) were way more than selling.? These were logged into my mind but in my zeal to begin I didn’t address my worries.? I chalked it up to a lack of interest from a person within the company just posting the job.?
Within 3 days after accepting I was sent a link for on-boarding, prior to in person “trainingâ€.? There were a lot of slide deck type of presentations with a question-and-answer module after each session.? Right away I was mystified as to why I would spend 6 hours on-boarding with no pay. ?Into my first slide deck I noticed many grammatical errors (I will come back to this), the owner/visionary (his title not mine) had multiple videos describing his professional way the company operates, then the very detailed job description and duties was in a slide deck, and then very detailed instructions on how to take an item from the case, present, and return item to the case were in the slide deck.? The grammatical errors kept getting worse with the use of “our†instead of “areâ€, run on sentences, incomplete sentences, and the final nail for me was the use of “report†instead of “rapport†in a slide deck.? I couldn’t do it…I agonized over it until the next day.? I made a decision: I can’t do it.? I felt like I had been betrayed by the very lack luster job description in the beginning to the very detailed description in the “on-boarding†slide deck.? Not only that but the job scope widened, to a degree that was not explained during the interview.? All around, a bunch of errors/mistakes, misleading job description, etc.? I entertained the thought of being able to help and improve the whole on-boarding process but there was no guarantee of that for one and I took value/stock of my personal value/worth for two.? I did take the liberty to notify the floor manager that I would not be coming in.?
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Lessons Learned
- All leaders in an organization should know what the on-boarding material/process is
- All leaders should evaluate their on-boarding process
- Importance of Preparation, attention to detail, including grammar, reflects professionalism and enhances comprehension
- I kept hearing how “professional†the organization was directly from the owner via videos
- Be professional don’t just say it
- Professional Development, recognize the need for ongoing Professional Development in communication skills, including grammar and language proficiency, is essential for effective training delivery
- The on-boarding process matters
- Proof read your material
- Attention to detail ensures accuracy and professionalism
- Why is there an expectation to complete “company training†for free
- Perception does matter especially to a professional
- My perception was that nobody cared enough to fix grammatical errors
- Credibility and Trust, grammatical errors can erode the trainer's credibility and trustworthiness. Participants may question the accuracy of the content or expertise of the presenter
- My perception was that nobody cared enough to post an accurate job description with all duties
- No details in the job description for hire
- Clarity and Understanding, participants may struggle to understand concepts or instructions due to grammatical errors. Highlighting the importance of clear communication for effective learning
- There were pain staking details (job description, duties, how-to) in all of the slide decks
- The slide decks portrayed a very rigid process (perception)
- It just didn’t come off as a fun/enjoyable atmosphere (perception)
Senior Level Sales Leader | Expert in Leading Sales Organizations & Teams to Success | Driving Revenue & Growth Across Multiple Sites | Problem Solver | Veteran
1 å¹´In reading this, I felt pain and humor, as I have seen similar scenarios in my experience. Few things tell me more about how something was done lazily than seeing grammar and syntax errors in "professional" or training materials. So many times, I want to reach out and offer to proofread and fix things, but in the few times I have actually done that, I have only received one positive response that thanked me for the suggestions. That person also made the changes I recommended, and the materials looked much better afterward. I am currently working on a project to help with onboarding methodologies and processes for a company that badly needs refining and efficiency to help bring on new hires. It's overlooked too often and is a massive part of a company's first impression on new employees.