Ask Sue - Bringing in New People

Sue Hays, CBC

First of all, what some might refer to as a “transition” can be considered on-boarding. In this kind of an exercise, your desired outcome is to familiarize the newcomer with the information and practices needed to be a productive team member as quickly as possible. Research shows that newcomers who are on-boarded become productive in a significantly shorter amount of time than newcomers who are left to discover everything on their own.
 
Start here
Ideally, your internal conversations about the on-boarding of your newcomers should begin before the newcomers assemble for on-boarding. Note that you can do on-boarding individually, like when you have a change of officers, or as a group, like when you have several new members. Go back to your mission statement and your value proposition, and assign some realistic outcomes your newcomers can expect in relation to these points. You may find it highly beneficial to include other staff or leadership in these conversations in order to build familiarity between the existing people and the newcomers.
 
Give the newcomers a roadmap to success
Once you understand your responses and any anticipated responses to the outcomes you establish, give some careful thought to what you actually expect from your newcomer in the first month, quarter, half-year, year, etc. What’s realistic? What’s essential to your organization? What’s a priority? What shows great accomplishment?
 
Put your expectations into measurable terms:

• Number of networking opportunities available to the newcomer.
• Number of meetings a board or committee member can expect to attend – or is required to attend.
• How often your office should be updated with a report on activities, like member recruitment.

 
Involve and engage your newcomer in this conversation so everything is clear from the start and the newcomer knows exactly what’s expected of them or available to them to help them build their business.
 
Your internal network of support for the newcomers
Newcomers have many questions about things you understand very well and may not think to explain. As you have built your network of support, so your newcomer needs to know how to build his or her own network of support to get questions answered fast in order to be productive. Develop a list of questions your newcomer might have and then tie the question to someone in your organization who can answer that question for your newcomer. This helps everyone become acquainted and increases the newcomer’s chances for success and feelings of confidence.
 
Going forward
Expect the on-boarding process to take 3 months at a minimum. In some organizations, it could be ongoing all year. During this time, check in with your newcomers to make sure they are getting the support they need, their questions are answered, and they are hitting the targets that are the reason they joined your organization. Following this procedure will help you understand what’s important to your newcomers and it will give your newcomers confidence in you and your organization.