A Strong Orientation Program Lets Home Care Agencies Know Where They Stand
Invariably, new clients ask why I include an extensive orientation program into the systems I design for them. Often they are confused as to why I put so much time into it and don’t understand why they should pay for something that seems so obvious. Orientation is much more than just familiarizing a new employee with the tasks you expect him or her to perform. It is a tremendous opportunity to build staff loyalty, promote your public image, and help your business grow.
As the saying goes, you never have a second chance to make a first impression. Your orientation should start with who you are, the philosophy that drives your organization, and the belief that the people you have just hired are like gold to you. In years past when I was running my own agencies, orientation was always a special day. We created employee-specific handbooks for all new hires and made sure their name was on it. For added flair, we placed a red rose on each book.
Before diving into details, I took a few minutes to give my new hires a special welcome and let them know how much I appreciated the fact they would now be part of our team. I also made mention of the difficult screening process they had just gone through and reaffirmed that they must be very special if they were able to pass muster with our company.
Since orientation was an all day event, we supplied lunch so we could spend personal time with them as well. This social time jump-started our bonding process. Aside from welcoming them, I made a commitment to their personal growth and continuing education. Some of that education began during orientation. Much of the population we served had some degree of dementia. To give our new staff a leg up, we always included a 3-hour class on dementia as part of our orientation program. Feedback from staff later on indicated that this class made them eager to attend the other continuing education courses we offered over the year.
Finally, when orientation was completed, we had shifts available for the new employees. Nothing is worse than starting a new job and not knowing your schedule. Letting them know exactly when they would start work was just another way of telling them we valued their time and the work they would contribute.
Orientation is a special period of time that, once missed, cannot be redone. Do it right the first time and do it with every new employee. Remember, this is your time to send a message that your agency values your employees and takes care of them. If you do this, it will have a long lasting and profound effect on your employee retention and your bottom line.
Category: Education & Training, Ginny's Blog
[...] Get your new employees off to a strong start with a thorough orientation program. Your orientation program is the first in an on-going series of continuing education to introduce your new employees to your [...]