Crafting an onboarding program to ensure new hire success
Affected Users:
Department Heads
New & Existing Employees
There was no established or defined onboarding and training process for new hires. They would simply just jump in and learn as they went, from whoever they were on the schedule with. This was not a cohesive or effective practice, and new employees would have gaps in their training which created sub par performance habits and friction with coworkers. There was a clear need for structure to guide the process by, and to make the sometimes uncomfortable situation of a new person joining an unfamiliar team a good deal more smooth and enjoyable.
Exploration:
My employees and I brainstormed a list of pain points frequently experienced with new hires training in the cake department. We listed out all the different categories of training topics we wanted to cover, and the smaller specifics to touch on within each. I then organized all of this data in order of priority from day 1 and mapped out a training timeline of what milestones should be hit and when.
Implementation:
I designed and implemented a training passport for new hires to complete in a sequential timeline that covered each essential aspect of the position. Everything was broken down into a four week program, each with a specific focus-
Week 1: Standard cake decoration, daily opening and closing tasks
Week 2: Weekly cleaning & organizing tasks, preparation of ingredients & backups
Week 3: Custom cake order decoration
Week 4: Store deliveries, invoicing, and daily production runs
Results:
The training passport helped employees to gradually and comfortably assimilate into the culture, while establishing proactive work habits that enable them to be an asset to their team and coworkers. It created a more mindful management approach to onboarding, so that new employees are well rounded and no aspect of the position is overlooked during the training process.
The design of the training passport reflects the energy and culture of the company, while providing a clear training path and set of expectations for both the newly hired employee being trained, and the established decorators that will be teaching their new peer.
What could be better?
This is a problem that I have observed company wide, and would love to have implemented in all departments for entry level positions. Expanding to management and leadership roles as well is a longer term goal.