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When your new member of staff turns up for
their first day at work, you both have separate agendas. They want
to get through the shift without making a complete idiot of
themselves and you want to them to become as effective as possible
in the shortest space of time.
A fully thought-out induction procedure is an
extremely helpful, if not essential, way of helping you both
towards those goals. You will know they've been given all the
right information, and they won't feel like they've been thrown in
at the deep end.
It will also help you identify what, if any,
training your new recruit needs and to set out goals and
objectives for you to measure after a few months.
Where should I start?
Simple, start the moment the new guy walks in the door.
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The first day is the worst for them and you should
begin by welcoming them yourself when they arrive. If you
interviewed them then they'll be relieved to see a face they know.
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Give them a tour, even if you did one when they came
for an interview. It'll help them relax and you can get them
chatting.
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Point out all the staff amenities, toilets,
cloakrooms, where they have lunch, smoking room etc.
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Run through the most important health & safety
rules, fire drills and security arrangements.
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Show them exactly where they'll be working,
introduce them to whoever is sitting near them and maybe suggest
they go for lunch together.
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Make sure you have all their important details
recorded correctly. Name, address, contact numbers, bank details,
any health problems you should know about etc.
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Give them a full job description.
OK, that's the first day, what's
next?
Once the terror of the first day is past you can get down to
business. It's a good idea to arrange some sort of "induction
day" for every new employee within the first week or so. This
can cover all the general information to help them fit in and make
them more effective in less time.
An induction day should cover three main
topics:
1. Know the company
It's important for the new recruit's own morale and work ethic for
them to understand the company as a whole and know exactly where
they fit into it.
Many companies produce written literature for
new employees explaining these things. A well-produced company
handbook can be an invaluable reference for a new employee if it
contains phone numbers, organization charts, who's responsible for
what etc. It will also save you time if they don't need to ask you
every time they need to know the name of the head chef or the
number for housekeeping.
It will also be useful for you to provide a
new employee with information on rack rates, menus, anything that
your company "sells". Even if they're the potwasher,
explaining the menu to them will help them understand what you do
and make them feel part of a team.
2. Know your bit of the company
There is a whole list of fiddly bits of information that will be
specific to the department or section that the new employee will
work in. As much as it's important to know what other departments
do, a chef doesn't need to know how the housekeeping schedule is
calculated.
Make sure you have a comprehensive list of
these things, ask other members of staff for their input so you
can cover everything in one go. Here are a few of the most common
examples:
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Hours of work
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Shift patterns and schedules
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Payment dates
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Call-Ins
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Getting supplies
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Personal phone calls
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Uniforms/Dress code
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Holidays
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Absence/Sick leave
3. Don't kill yourself
Health & safety is an important issue in any business but in
hospitality, where there are plenty of opportunities for trips,
falls and burns, it is imperative that a new employee understands
your company's procedures.
Health & safety should be covered in a
company handbook but you it's best to go through things in person.
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How do you report an accident?
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What should they do if there's a fire?
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Who is the fire officer?
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Who's trained in first aid?
There is obviously formal training in health
& safety and it's advisable to put all your staff through this
on a regular basis.
How can I make sure they learn their
job quickly and effectively?
Training is the key here. Just giving someone ten minutes
supervision and then leaving them to get on with it is bound to
end in disaster. If there's a specific piece of equipment that
they will have to use for their job, such as a switchboard or
property management system and they are unfamiliar with it, then
it's worth taking enough time to make sure they can work it
properly.
You should highlight in the first few days if
they need extra formal training in computers.
It may be useful to appoint a mentor for any
new person. Somebody they can ask questions, who can show them
round and introduce them to others. This is a very useful way of
bringing new people into a team and can be done as formally or
informally as required.
How do I know the induction has gone
well?
It's important that you check up on any new people as they
progress through their first few months. Within the induction
process you should explain to them what their goals are for the
first, say, three months and how you are going to measure their
performance. Then set a date where you can both sit down and
review how it's going.
Any final advice?
Much of the induction process involves throwing a lot of
information at the new employee and they can't be expected to
remember it all. There'll always be things they're not sure of and
you need to let them know that you, or someone, is always
available and happy to help them.
Often, a quick "how are you getting
on?" can be the most important thing.
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