A note to managers on their new starters...
Hi,
With new starters joining the company, I thought it appropriate for us to think again about making a success of the process - and remind ourselves what success looks like.
As you know, no one has a greater impact on the success of new employees’ than the managers who hire them. Why? Because more than anyone else you understand what your team need to accomplish and what it takes — skills, resources, connections — for them to become fully effective. Consequently, you have the biggest stake in on-boarding them effectively.
A systematic approach to on-boarding brings new employees up to speed faster, meaning they’re more quickly and efficiently able to contribute to achieving our business goals. Effective on-boarding also reduces failure rates and increases employee engagement (which will always influence long-term retention). I appreciate that this is easy for me to say but harder for you to achieve when you have deadlines to meet etc.
The earlier you start supporting your new team members the better. Apparently, the time between when someone accepting an offer and starting in the new role is a precious resource that can be used to 'jump-start' the process. We should look in to how we might improve what we currently do in this space. Are there any resources we can share with candidates that could better prepare them? Even once new team members have started, I am sure there are ways we can help them get them up to speed faster.
Of course, we should ensure that we continue to take care of the 'on-boarding basics' — such as providing the right documentation, compliance training, space, support and technology to do the job and feel valued. For example, I have often thought we should always provide people with NEW equipment when they start, underlining how ‘valuable’ the are to us' – should we be performing a more ‘formal’ welcome package? Many companies are competing for our employees and do a good job with those elements.
Obviously the devil is in the detailed when integrating new hires and I thought it appropriate to share some ‘reminders’:
1. Demonstrate an understanding of their challenges
On-boarding is tough. Why? Because new hires are unfamiliar with the business, don’t understand how things really work here, lack established relationships and have to adapt to a new culture (knowing the air conditioning politics for example). This pressure is the same for both new recruits and seasoned professionals alike – so don’t be complacent when taking on salty dogs.
It may be some time since you were yourselves a newbie, but I am sure you will remember how much there was to learn and how vulnerable that can make you feel. Keep your eyes open for signs of discomfort, even when new starters seem outwardly confident. Confidence issues are even more likely when people are facing significant change, like moving from academia or facing a significant change in their commute. We know, for example, that medical writers often suffer culture shock when they transition from the lab. Some might respond by playing it safe and sticking too much to what they already know, others overcompensate, behaving like they know the answer to everything, rather than asking questions.
It’s important for us to reassure new recruits that 'learning' is more important than 'doing' during those early days. Guide me in how you want me to support your candidates. How can I best encourage our new team members to grow into their roles?
2. Learning
The faster a new team member learns about the organization and their role, the sooner they will be able to contribute to our business goals. Focus on these key areas to accelerate the learning process:
- Technical: insight into the fundamentals of the business, such as products, customers, technologies and systems.
- Cultural: the attitudes, behavioural norms, and values that contribute to the unique character of our organization.
- Process: Company SOPs, document templates and the use of previous examples to inform delivery.
- Political: understanding how decisions are made, how people-politics and influence work, and figuring out whose support they will need most.
We should be thinking continually about how we can help our new employees grow. This means not only providing personally, the best available information (as early as possible) but also thinking about who else in the team is best placed to share important lessons. Mentors help but how can we better employ available resources? While newbies are in this learning mode (i.e. not at the coalface) what additional training might we provide before they are overtaken by deliverables?
3. Locking them into the team
While our new hires will eventually work independently, it’s more likely they will be part of a team (or teams) for some time. The sooner they build effective working relationships with their peers, the better, and there’s much a manager can do to make this happen. The starting point is to make sure the team understands why the person has been hired and the role they will play (I know it sounds obvious and that everyone will be aware of why we hire new people but there is no harm in spelling it out). It’s also important that we formally introduce new employees — to everyone — as soon as possible, making it clear that teams are expected to help their new colleagues adjust to their role. A small initial investment of time and effort in connecting the new person with the team will pay long-term productivity and performance dividends. It might also create opportunities for our existing crew to grow a little – the best way to learn is to teach. It might even help you identify your next team leader if you find people who excel in this role.
4. Connect them with key stakeholders
There are other Nichers not in the new person’s immediate team who will be critical to not only their learning but also their success on the job. And even though we are a small company, it may not be obvious who those people are, why they’re important or how best to connect with them. If we get this process of making such introductions correct now we will have an established process for when we grow.
One simple way we can facilitate these connections is to make a list of names, including brief notes on each, and then make introductions, explaining why it’s important that they connect. Schedule a date shortly after the introduction, to check in with the stakeholders to make sure that their network is taking shape.
5. Give direction
Employees should NOT be expected or permitted to work on a project before you can set clear expectations. Timely guidance helps them answer these key questions:
- What do I need to do? Defining goals and the time frames for accomplishing them, as well as the measures that will be used to evaluate progress.
- How should I go about doing it? Specific about what strategies they should use to accomplish their set goals, including what activities they should and should not prioritize.
- Why should I feel motivated to accomplish it? A vision for what the organization is striving to accomplish so that new starters can see the part they play in achieving it.
I think this relates to our whole 'briefing' process, something else we should regularly re-visit.
Even when expectations are discussed during the recruiting process, you clearly need to have a more in-depth conversation as soon as new team members start. This way you can ensure that they’re not coming in with any misconceptions about their role and what they need to do to become an effective team member. From bitter experience we know that perceptions can become very ‘cloudy’ when we have employed recruitment agencies
6. Help them achieve early wins
Early wins are a powerful way for incoming employees to build confidence and credibility. New starters often want to prove they can do it all and can fall into the trap of trying to take on too much, too soon, thereby spreading themselves too thin (please keep an eye on this).
As a manager, your job is to keep your team focused on which work to prioritize and by pointing to ways they’ll make rapid progress in achieving their goals. Part of this involves teaching them how to 'score' wins (these might include things that are going to make your life easier) in ways that are consistent with the organization’s culture. You need to make sure your team achieves their early wins in the right way. We also have established reward structures that recognise the contribution of team members – let's use them more frequently and more imaginatively.
7. Coach for success
When you are serious about on-boarding you don’t just provide intensive early support then leave new hires to 'sink or swim'. It takes time for new employees to become fully integrated, able to operate autonomously and productively. It is therefore, important for us to continue to coach, teach and direct (knowing exactly when to take the stabilizers off). This can be as simple as scheduling regular 'how are things going?' and check-in sessions, I know you both do this already (just continue to keep it in mind).
8. Find the happy
It is implicit on any manager to continue the buzz of taking on a new job/role. We have all done their job in earlier lives. We should help them find the good bits - not just what was good for you but also what might be good for them (it will most likely be different). I ask you to think long and hard about how best we do that?
Intervene if you see anyone struggling - a good manager will be looking for the signs – and I know you are good managers. Get feedback from the other team members. Consider how you might deploy me and other members of the administration team in reconnaissance mode. Don’t imagine that giving people time to adjust early issues that may arise with, say, peer relationships or cultural fit, will mean that issues resolve themselves. They can easily create vicious cycles where employees unwittingly dig themselves into holes from which they can’t climb out. The longer a negative dynamic persists, the more difficult it can be to reverse.
Finally, remember that it’s a common mistake to treat new people a too gently, we hire highly intelligent people and they need to be stretched and challenged to maintain their interest. We have seen repeatedly how Nichers rise to challenges and create top flight solutions. Don’t let your gentle hearts stop them from reaching their full potential.
So, this is my two-penny's worth. As we grow (and it feels like we are) the more we can apply these principles the better it will serve us all. We should keep in mind that effective 'on boarding' is also about retention - something else we need to continue to consider and discuss. Let’s make joining Niche an experience long remembered.
Tim Hardman is Managing Director of Niche Science & Technology Ltd., a bespoke services CRO based in the UK. He is also Chairman of the Association of Human Pharmacology in the Pharmaceutical Industry and an occasional commentator on science, business and the process of drug development.
Pfizer UK || Global Patient Solutions || Medical Affairs || STEM Ambassador
5 年Great article!?