It was 7:00 p.m., and most of the staff had gone home, leaving many workspaces dark and quiet. In the HR department, Rebecca (WEC's HR manager) and Charlotte (WEC's HR specialist) sat together in Rebecca's office, talking quietly as they reviewed a fewfinal issues.

 

Rebecca had been hired as the company's first HR manager three months before and quickly realized thatthere was a lot to learn about working in the technology industry. She was grateful to have Charlotte's help as she attempted to develop and implement a com- prehensive HR strategy for WECone that would add value to the company as it grew.

If she was being honest, Charlotte would have admitted that, when Rebecca was hired, she had been more than a little annoyed that she had not been pro-moted to the HR manager position herself. However,after working with Rebecca for a few months, she realized that it was for the best. Rebecca was better able to manage all the competing demands that came into the department, and she had a lot of good HR knowledge that she was open to sharing. Even with the long hours, Charlotte's job had become more enjoyable, and she felt she was developing professionally at a faster pace than when she had been on her own, tryingto figure things out as she went along.

How Are We Going to Train Her?

This night, they had finally decided on their preferredcandidate for the open receptionist position, a womannamed Polly Modi. Charlotte made a note to call herthe next day to make the offer. Thinking they weredone, she began to gather up her papers, but Rebeccasaid, "Wait a minute. How are we going to train thenew receptionist? How did you do it the last time?"Charlotte shrugged, and said, "We usually just havesomebody sit with the hire for part of the first day to demonstrate how the phones work and how to do the administrative tasks. Anna and Mario DeJulio are the back-up receptionists. We would usually just see which of them is available that day, and send that person over to do it."

Rebecca frowned as she sat back in her chair, and said, "I wonder if that's sufficient. I really like all of the people who work reception, but I've noticed that there is real variability in the service, depending on who is working. For instance, some people answer the phone after one or two rings, and others wait for up to four or five. The script changes depending on who answersthe phonesome start with their name, others with thecompany name, or something else. Sometimes visitorsget greeted with enthusiasm, sometimes not. Even theprioritization of the admin tasks seems to differ across employees. I know the last receptionist was not considered that strong before he quit. Maybe part of that was because he didn't get a lot of good training. It mightbe a good idea to get a little more structured when itcomes to training new receptionists."

"Hmmmm. It would be great to know that everyone is starting with the same information. The receptionistposition seems to have a fair bit of turnover. It seems the good ones get promoted, and the bad ones find another job somewhere else," Charlotte responded. She added, "What did you have in mind?"

Rebecca tapped her pen on the table as she thought about it. After a few moments, she said, "I think thatthis is an important, front-line position, and we should figure out a way to make sure every person working that front desk has a shared vision of how it should be run. We should develop a standard training process so that everybody gets the same training, no matter who happens to be free to train that day. And we will have to take the time to make sure it is actually working." Charlotte nodded, and began to make some notes.

Helping Employees Hit the Ground Running Rubbing her forehead to relieve the tension she felt there, Rebecca added, "While we're at it, let's talk about the onboarding process. I know what it was like for me when I started at WEC. I signed my offer from Alex, then I didn't hear anything from the company until my start day. When I arrived, I waited in the lobby for maybe half an hour before Alex had timeto come and get me. He showed me around and introduced me to everyone who was at their desk, although I remember losing track of names after the fifth or sixth person. Then he dropped me off with you, and you had me sign a bunch of benefit and payroll forms.Eventually, I was kind of left alone in this office.I remember feeling a little lost. I remember asking you a lot of questions in the weeks that followed. But, still, it probably took me a month before I began to feel comfortable."

QUESTIONS

1. Outline an onboarding plan for the new receptionist. What information would the new hire need to know? Who should be involved? What should the timeline be? How would you store and refine the onboarding information, so it is used in the future? 2. Develop a training plan for the receptionist position. What training techniques would you incorporate, considering aspects such as cost- effectiveness, content, and learning principles?

3. Develop a plan so that Rebecca and Charlotte can evaluate the effectiveness of the training. Consider how you would measure knowledge, reaction, learning, and results.