New Employee Development - The Organizational Challenge

Published in: Georgia Printer, March 2006

Are top job candidates falling through the cracks of your organization?

Take hold of your employee development process and watch them skate through with ease.

Ever heard the statement, "Check's in the mail." It's one of those statements you automatically think isn't true. Another is, "I can bring you one (or two, or three) million dollars worth of business," as spoken by a sales rep working on being hired by a graphic communications company that needs additional revenue to help cover fixed costs and reduce what appears to be relentless mounting revenue and margin pressures.

Too many sales reps — both new and experienced — join a new employer with visions of great achievements in their professional future and not too little of the "what could be" syndrome. Similarly, too many employers are understandably anxious to get that newly hired, expensive and highly motivated body on the street or in position — producing and paying his own way.

What often follows the hiring process is what's sometimes referred to as the infamous "speed-zone orientation period," in which the employer and new employee invest 30 to 60 days visiting various departments, learning names, learning parts of procedures and how to fill out various forms, while hearing terrible war stories and nightmares of situations and customers that "went south." Then, eventually, the new rep is pushed out the door to "go sell something." What evolves from this point, depending on where you are standing, too often might be described as:

• a loss of morale,
• frustrations with the new hire's handling of prospective customers' work,
• disappointments — even clinical depression by several deeply invested individuals,
• questions like, "How could we (or I) have made such a terrible mistake?"
• and ultimately — "What are our obligations at this point, and how and when do we cut our losses?"

The reputations of everyone involved are often tarnished. Additionally, good money and precious time from sincere, well-intentioned individuals have been squandered, and good candidates fall through the cracks.

So, how do you go about ensuring that your investment in new sales reps (and other key personnel) are predictably more successful, disappointments are fewer, and dollars wasted in acquiring new hires are significantly reduced? The following offer some key suggestions. And, as more than one of my clients has said: If you'll follow this process in general for all new hires — and not just sales reps — your track record for successfully finding and hiring new people should improve across your entire organization. As success follows success, you'll find that good people tend to find you more often, rather than you having to go out and find them.

If you'll follow these procedures for all new hires — and not just sales reps — your track record for successfully finding and hiring new people should improve across your entire organization.

Develop a Written Position Description

First, thoughtfully develop realistic expectations for this position, then develop a written job description. As Simple as this seems, too many initial interviews occur without a written position description for both the candidate and the interviewee. Too many ads or headhunters are engaged without a position description first being developed and approved. Additionally, without a written position description for current employees to review, you can't properly post a job opening within your own organization. And, applicants for a position should have the opportunity to review the written position description before they apply.

Prepare Questions in Advance

Individuals who are to interview a candidate should meet in advance to outline issues to pursue with the interviewee. Questions should relate directly to the position's duties and performance for the company. For instance, if you're an organization that focuses on serving agencies, you might want to know the candidate's history in working with creative people or directly with agencies. If you want your candidate to serve institutions of higher learning, wouldn't you want someone with a background and understanding of this particular target market? Questions should be designed to require more than a yes or no response, and to assist you in getting to know the candidate. For instance, "What did you learn at your previous employment that you believe will assist you in this position?" Or, "Describe for me the best and worst supervisors you've experienced." Additionally, certain questions are illegal to ask, and these issues should be clearly identified in advance as "off limits."

Require More Than On Interview

Most bright candidates can deliver a successful Interview. However, follow-up interviews can be revealing of a candidate's steadiness, energy level, positive attitude, and general temperament. For instance, interviewing a candidate on a late Friday afternoon can help reveal their ability to produce throughout a long week. What you see then may be what you should expect. Additionally, different personalities evaluate candidates differently. I want more than one person's opinion, and probably from individuals who can be expected to have frequent contact with this person. What did they ask, what did they hear, and what's their interpretation?

Involve the Support Team in Your Interview Process

Key personnel who are responsible for an individual's eventual success should be involved. CSRs and estimators may be key individuals to support the future sales rep's. Their opinions and evaluations count. Their support counts. They should be part of the process.

Most bright candidates can deliver a successful interview. However, follow-up interviews can be revealing of a candidates steadiness, energy level, positive attitude, and general temperment.

Check References and Educational Credentials

Sometimes people fudge. If they fudge on small issues, can you count on them at critical moments? There are few perfect candidates. And most experienced managers can testify that you're better off waiting to find a good candidate, than hiring someone who doesn't fit the profile of who you need for an important position — thus wasting resources in a situation with low probability of success.

Conduct a "Personality Profile/Temperament Test"

There are numerous testing organizations who can administer a personality/temperament-type test that gives you feedback of what you should expect, once you're clear what skills and activities you need from the position you want to fill. I've sometimes heard managers say, "We saw the test results, and didn't want to believe them, but they were about right." Check around. Use a testing resource that has generated good results for credible resources you trust. This is an issue that should be considered — particularly if the results run contrary to what you're trying to accomplish. But, this should not be the only tool by which you make the decision — there are too many other variables. (PIAG members can tap into savings on Caliper testing instruments for new hires. For more info, visit www.gain.net and do a key word search for Caliper.)

Written Offers

Job offers should be in writing. Spell out important position duties, reporting relationships, where and when to report the first day, dress code, pay, times of duty, benefit issues, etc. You invite disaster when you fail to put these issues in writing. Additionally, current employees should be notified in advance who's been hired and what the candidate's initial responsibilities and objectives are expected to include. Such a note to employees regarding a new candidate can create an informal "protocol" for how current employees can and should welcome a new employee.

First Day On the Job

First day: What time should they be there. What is the dress code? Who should they should ask for? Who will take them to lunch that day? Key personnel — particularly in administration — should have paperwork prepared and time set aside to spend with them. Of particular importance is the schedule of what they should expect that week — if not that month — on a day-by-day basis. Handing a new employee an organized notebook for them to take notes throughout their orientation period — starting on their first day — can be particularly helpful, thoughtful and respectful.

At the end of each day, the supervisor should meet with the new employee for 15 to 30 minutes. This dialogue is critical for insuring correct orientation and mutual understanding of what's important.

Prepare a 30-60-90 Day Written Orientation Plan

This step is critical, yet seldomly implemented. Additionally, the candidate you've just hired deserves a copy of the orientation plan — upfront. In starting out, you want your candidate's first 30, 60, and 90 days detailed regarding:

• what you want them to learn,
• what you want them to demonstrate, and
• what you want them to accomplish.

For the first 30 days, you should designate who the new hire is to spend each half-day with and what you want them to learn. Each department supervisor should prepare a checklist of issues to communicate and review with the new hire. You should give this 30-60-90 day written list of what you want the new hire to learn and accomplish to the new hire, upfront, to allow them to take ownership of their progress. This written preparation also demonstrates to your candidate and others that you've thought the issues through and have expectations. (Note: Assigning a different person to go with/invite the candidate to lunch each day for the first two to three weeks can also make a statement that the entire organization is in some respects responsible for this person's success.) Where warranted, you can repeat this process past the first 30-60-90 days.

If you are hiring a sales rep, that rep should have opportunities during this 30-60-90 day period to experience, review and discuss in-depth:

• the written profile of customers and customer markets you want them to pursue,
• the written profile of customers and customer markets you don't want them to pursue,
• errors that sales reps most often make (as offered by estimators, CSRs, prepress personnel, bookkeeping, pressroom personnel, etc.),
• sales calls with experienced, successful sales rep(s),
• researching and making appointments with target prospects with experienced sales rep(s)/supervisor(s),
• customers and jobs that were successful (or not), and
• the business development strategy this company wants to pursue in the marketplace and why.

Conduct an End-Of-the-Day Review Each of the First 30 Days

For the first 30 days, the supervisor should meet with the new employee for 15 to 30 minutes at the end of each day. This period is important and should focus on: what was learned today, what seemed most important, who was helpful, confusing situations encountered, what was unclear or frustrating, whether there was anything to review again, and what is planned for tomorrow. This dialogue is critical for ensuring correct orientation and mutual understanding of what's important. This is the spark plug to eliminate surprises and one of the three most critical elements of the process. If you don't do this, you reduce your chances of success by half .

Review Performance an the End of Each 30-60-90 Day Period

Sometimes we observe practices or habits that we wish weren't in a new employee. Left alone, they seldom get better and can contribute insidiously toward unnecessary lack of success. Addressed early, in writing, the new employee has an opportunity to correct what he/she may be unaware is inappropriate, not happening as expected or out of position. This is a great opportunity to give the employee positive reinforcement on the skills and contributions they are beginning to make to the organization. Set the date — in writing — in advance and use these meetings for constructive guidance as well as correction.

Summary

Through this 90 day process, whether we are hiring a sales rep, a CSR, a management person, or a pressman, the organization and the supervisor knows early on whether they have a winning situation. Importantly, because of these steps taken to find and hire the right person for the job upfront and because errors or inappropriate habits are addressed early, success has been elevated. Organizations that take these types of steps to ensure "the right person for the right position" are demonstrating to current as well as prospective employees that "this next hire may be the most important decision we make this year; we are dealing with people's lives and livelihood, and we intend to demonstrate this in what we do, as well as what we say." If you're a candidate working to be hired by a special company or for a special position, the above outline should assist your interviewing process with any potential employer. To assist your decision of who to work for, ask, "May I see your Orientation Plan for the first 30-60-90 Days?" (Note: Be prepared to answer why you asked.) And, if you're looking to hire a special person who can make a significant contribution to your organization, a detailed 30-60-90 Day Orientation Plan can help your candidate understand and decide that your organization is best prepared to help him/her be successful. And that's the way it should be.