How many times have you hired a new employee at your setting, only to find the following happens?
- They’re making too many mistakes
- They don’t understand what they’re supposed to do
- They’re underperforming
If you find this is happening quite often when you take on new staff, it could be worth going back and checking your recruitment and training processes in the first instance.
Here’s a 5 step guide to getting the best from your new employee:
1. Provide a job description
New employees aren’t telepathic and need to be provided with a clear job description so they know what’s expected of them. When they start (or before their first day!), provide them with a copy of their job description so they know exactly what their responsibilities are. This can clear up any confusion from the beginning.
2. Delve deeper during the interview stage
Although you may be short on time and have a million things to do, don’t ‘wing it’ when interviewing candidates. Jot down a list of specific questions which will help you determine if someone would be really right for the role. Ask questions which require them to provide real–life examples, for example e.g “Tell me about a time when you…” – instead of asking questions which only require a yes/no answer.
3. Set objectives early on
Set objectives from the very beginning of the probation and make sure that, during your review meetings, you discuss your employee’s progress towards them. This will help them understand what’s required of them. There’s no point in complaining about underperformance if your employee has no idea how well they’re doing until the very end of their probation.
4. Give credit where credit’s due
When you recognise that the employee has performed well or exceeded expectations, be sure to take the time to praise them for it. This kind of recognition can go a long way, and is an easy way to boost morale.
5. Establish a structured probation process
Make sure you have a clear probation process. Part of this could involve holding review meetings with your employee staggered across different intervals, such as at 30, 60 and 90 days. This will give you a chance to identify and discuss any weaknesses in performance in the early stages.
Follow these 5 steps to ensure that when you take on a new employee, you get the best performance from them from the beginning.
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