Action 4.3C Develop and communicate an induction plan to successful candidates, supported by clear accessible resources.

Guidance

To ensure a smooth and inclusive onboarding process, develop and communicate a comprehensive induction plan for successful candidates. This plan should be supported by clear and accessible resources to facilitate understanding and engagement. Giving new hires a clear plan, they can refer back to covering what they will be doing and who they will be meeting in the early weeks of employment, increases clarity and reduces anxiety and overwhelm.

It’s useful for managers to reach out to the new hire by phone or email in advance to introduce themselves, reassure the employee and give them a sense of what they will be doing in the first couple of days. A more detailed plan for the first few weeks can then be shared with them once they start.

“After an interview, I accepted a job offer. Before I started employment, they gave me a direct phone call to ask me questions. They asked me whether I was anxious, and this helped alleviate that. I found this really helpful”.

WIDE Consultation Participant – Disabled Person

Key Components of an inclusive and comprehensive induction plan include:

1. Plan a warm welcome and orientation: Set a warm and welcoming tone by informing colleagues about their new arrival and scheduling a low-pressure meet and greet with the team – perhaps over coffee or lunch. Setting a friendly team tone supports new hires to open up and reduces anxiety, and means they are likelier to reach out to colleagues with questions and to seek advice. It’s useful to give them a tour of the workplace so they know where to find areas important to their role and to the social aspects of the workplace.
2. Schedule time for individual/small group introductions to colleagues: It’s useful to schedule in some time with individual colleagues or small groups of them to provide opportunities to get acquainted with colleagues they will work closely with. This can be as simple as pre-scheduling teams calls or 1 to 1 coffee daily with key people spread out over the first 2-3 weeks, with the goal of getting to know the individual and what role they play in the organisation.
3. Assign a mentor or buddy: Establishing a mentoring or buddy-system is a great way to support new hires to adapt to the workplace. Mentors typically meet new hires periodically to informally chat, check in on how they are settling down, and offer opportunity to ask questions about the workplace and how various processes operate etc.
4. Ease new employees into their roles: Include clear details of the day-to-day role in the induction plan, outlining responsibilities and expectations, but don’t expect too much too soon. Allow the employee to build their capacity without too much pressure in the early weeks.
5. Set clear and achievable goals for the early period: Once the employee has gotten through the first week, it’s useful to set out clear and achievable goals for them to work towards in stages. The goals set should be realistic for new hires and can get gradually more ambitious as probation progresses. Discussing the challenges an employee anticipates in meeting goals can open up a discussion about where they may need additional training or guidance to perform.
6. Provide step by step training and guidance on core tasks: It’s useful to provide specific training in the induction period covering core tasks of the role, and to compliment that with step-by-step guidance documents for these tasks. For many, a ‘show me don’t tell me’ approach to tasks may be beneficial. Taking this multi-pronged approach ensures employees experience key tasks in a hands-on way and have something to refer back to, meaning key information doesn’t get lost amongst the information overload experienced in the early weeks.
7. Plan time for them to review key policies and resources: Providing readings/ resources list they must review in the early weeks is important but be sure to schedule time in the induction plan to complete this. Make sure to spread this time out so employees are not expected to review materials for big blocks of time consecutively. Where possible, provide a variety of resources rather than solely relying on text-based materials. It’s useful to check in on their progress getting through these materials and provide opportunities to ask questions about them.
8. Introduce them to company benefits and supports: Schedule time in their induction plan to introduce the new hire to the range of available company supports (see Domain 5) and how to access them. It’s also useful to cover key processes such as how to request leave, and who to notify if they are sick. Proving a ‘who to ask for what’ document with key contacts in the team, and company services such as HR or finance means employees have something to refer back to.
9. Provide 1 to 1 space for feedback and questions: New hires are typically asked to internalise a huge amount of knowledge and learn many new tasks in a short space of time. It can be a very challenging period and so it’s useful to provide weekly 1 to 1 space for them to receive feedback from managers on their progress, and to create an open dialogue where they can ask questions or raise issues.

“When disabled people are successful in attaining a job, the introduction period is often ‘book-led’, so we try to encourage employers to use experiential learning, a ‘show me, don’t tell me approach’ and we offer support to employers who are doing this. It is about saying to the employer that you may need to change that initial training period.”

WIDE Consultation Participant – Disability Organisation

Ensuring both the induction plan itself and documentation and resources you use to guide employees through induction are accessible means that all employees will have equal opportunity to make a positive start.