What Are the Benefits of New Employee Orientation Programs? The greatest benefit to effective orientation. Objectives of a Core Orientation Program for New Employees.This article discusses major concepts in developing a good orientation program for new medical office employees. Hiring and Training Key Staff of Community Organizations . Developing Staff Orientation Programs . You accept the position, show up for work on the agreed- upon day, and the director shows you your space, welcomes you to the organization.. That's it - your introduction to your new position. The New Manager Orientation Program. Recruiting and Training Volunteers » Section 3. Developing Volunteer Orientation Programs » Main Section. Developing Volunteer Orientation Programs. What is an orientation program? Orientation and Training of Board Members. Here's how such a board orientation program might work. An effective 'just-in-time' board orientation program will also focus on the strategic plan of the organization. You're on your own to learn all the ins and outs of the job and the organization - who your co- workers are, who does what, what the pitfalls of your position are, where to eat lunch.. Do you think you'd be likely to be able to do your best work - or any work, really - in the first few weeks or months? More important, how would you feel about working for this organization? Would you have confidence that these folks had things under control, that they'd thought out what they were doing? Fortunately, most organizations don't operate this way. New staff members are generally given at least some idea of what they're supposed to do, introduced to other staff, shown around, and made to feel welcome. Most organizations find it useful to conduct a short informal orientation, or - if they have the resources - a longer, more formal one, for all new staff, so that they'll learn much of what they need to know to do their jobs before they actually start working. Yours can do the same. What is a staff orientation program? The word . Orientation to a new job should give a staff member the basic information about the organization, her position, the target population, and the community, so she, too, can understand how to get where she wants to go. All or most of an orientation, therefore, should best take place before the job starts. In reality, however, many organizations find it hard to schedule orientations right away, and new staff members may flounder for several days or weeks before they get any official introduction to the organization. It's worth it to make time for an orientation when it's needed - before and while the new staff member actually begins working. Conducting an orientation at the right time makes more sense not only for the staff member, but for the organization as well. You'll save much more time in the long run, through the staff person knowing what he's supposed to do and how to navigate in the organization, than you'll save by putting it off. Staff orientation programs may look either formal or informal, may be as short as a day or may continue through a month or more, may or may not include some training. The organization should think out beforehand what a staff orientation for that organization should look like. What's important for staff to know? Does the organization have unique features that are especially necessary for staff members to understand? What's different about the target population? Who are the important people, within and outside the organization, for this staff person to meet? What impression of the organization do you want new staff members to walk away with? None of the answers to these questions should be left to chance; they have to be included in the orientation. The point here is that a staff orientation program is more than simply telling people a few things about the organization. It's a coherent, planned introduction that combines information, experiences, and a transmission of the values and culture of the organization (more on this later), all of which are aimed at giving new staff members the foundation they need to do their jobs and to integrate themselves into the organization and the community as easily as possible. Why conduct a staff orientation program? An orientation for new staff can be a boon to both those staff members and the organization. Some specific advantages to such a program include: It allows new staff members to hit the ground running. If they have a clear understanding of the organization, their positions, and the community, they can jump into their jobs immediately and start to make a difference. It instills new staff with confidence in both their own ability to be effective - because they know they have the information and contacts they need - and the organization which has had the foresight to provide them with that background, and made them feel a part of the operation. It improves the possibility - through facilitating a good start and providing appropriate background - that people will do a good job over the long term.. It makes life easier for others in the organization, by eliminating the need for new staff members to ask them constantly for information and advice. It enfolds the new staff member into an existing social structure, thereby helping him to feel comfortable and to bond with others, and at the same time helping to improve the organizational climate (the way the organization . An orientation may encompass a look at the organizational manual, a few introductions, or even less. What follows is a picture of the ideal: what you actually do will depend on your resources and the demands of your situation. The main point here is that the more information and comfort you can provide to a new staff member at the beginning, the better. If your organization's current orientation consists of . You don't have to run a full- day orientation to do that. So you're convinced - a staff orientation program is a great thing, and can really benefit your organization. Now you're faced with the question of what such a program should consist of. Orientation to just about any position needs to include introductions to the organization, the target population, the community, and the position itself. The following are some elements that might be included in each of these introductions. Much of the material suggested below can be conveyed in numerous ways - in person through conversation or discussion, in a workshop, through an activity, in printed form (either as a hard copy or on a website), etc. Since the effectiveness of various methods of presentation varies from person to person, the ideal is probably to try to communicate information in different ways - some face- to- face, some independent reading, some observation, for instance. Introduction to the organization. History. Even if the organization is brand new, it has a history: the conditions that made it necessary, how it was started and by whom, how it garnered support, and how it got to the point of hiring staff. If the organization has been around for a while, its history includes, in addition, those who have worked in it, its accomplishments, its past challenges and how it overcame them (or didn't), changes in direction, etc. You may want to do some thoughtful editing here, both for length and for content. A new staff member doesn't need to know every minute of the organization's history to get the picture, and she doesn't necessarily have to know every negative or stupid thing the organization or its employees have ever done. At the same time, the history shouldn't be sanitized: if you've gone through tough times, that's part of the character of the organization, and employees should know about it. All of this is important to understanding the organization as it currently exists. Equally important, it gives new staff members access to the references to people and events that are part of the common language of the organization, and that allow one to be an . They should also understand clearly what the real mission of the organization is if it's not stated directly in the mission statement. The mission statement may explain what the organization does, but not necessarily what it stands for (or vice- versa, but that usually comes under the heading of organizational problems). What it does may be community health promotion or adult literacy, for example, but its real goals may be social change or economic development. If your mission includes an unstated agenda, it's crucial that new staff members understand that from the beginning. Organizational philosophy. Often tied in with its mission, an organization's philosophy guides its structure; the roles of various people within it; the way it treats its employees, volunteers, participants, and colleagues; the methods it uses in whatever programs or services it provides; and its ethics. In an ideal world, an organization's philosophy is a conscious choice, arrived at through careful thought by its founders, or through discussion and compromise by a larger group. In reality, many, perhaps most, organizations express philosophical foundations that are simply assumed or that have developed unexamined over time. If you haven't thought out or examined your organizational philosophy, this might be a good time to do so. If your work is to succeed, your philosophy should be consistent with the goals of your organization. An organization that strives to help a community become more democratic, or to empower a disenfranchised target population, is likely to find itself running in circles if it treats its own staff members in ways it wouldn't treat members of the target population, for instance, or places a high value on job status. Philosophical consistency is a necessary foundation for an organization comfortable with itself and equipped to do its work effectively. Methods or strategies. While some organizations leave it up to staff members to decide how they'll do their jobs, others have set ways of accomplishing their goals. A particular drug treatment program may advocate an individual approach for all participants, while another may rely only on therapeutic groups. One adult literacy program may use phonics exclusively, a second only as one of a broad range of techniques. An organization's choice of methods may be based on research, past successful (or even unsuccessful) experience, experimentation, intuition, conventional wisdom, philosophy, inertia, or some combination. If your organization employs a particular method or technique, it's important that new staff members understand both what the method itself is, and that they are expected to use it. Orientation in Two- Year Colleges. Resources dealing with this topic. New. Student Orientation. Community. College Orientation Basics: How to structure a new student orientation. Authored by: Becky Boyd, Liz Largent, and Susan Rondeau. Community. college environments are often diverse and dynamic places. The American. Association of Community Colleges estimates that there are over. The average age of these community college students. Seventeen percent are single parents, over half are employed. Thus, outreach initiatives, such. As. the student population in community colleges continues to change. Therefore, planning and implementation of an orientation. This. outline is provided as a starting point for those charged with developing. Answering these questions will. I. Ask the following questions: Where. How will an orientation. Has a mission. statement already been written for the orientation program? What is the recent. Has a new directive. What. is the main purpose or goal for the new (or revised) orientation. Does the program. Is a goal to. provide a foundation for retention? Is a goal to. register as many students as possible in an efficient group setting? Are students. to be offered an understandable introduction to the academic community? What. resources is the institution willing to allocate for orientation? What funds are. available to achieve the purpose of the orientation? Is there an available. Who are the human. What types of. services and facilities will be given to orientation? Are there certain. II. Using what was learned from the institutional assessment and consultations. Students may choose from 4. Over. the years new student orientation has taken on a number of formats. Prior to the most recent enhancements, new student orientation. Saturday prior to both the fall and spring. Students could formally “enroll” or sign up for the event. The format of new student orientation varied slightly. A committee of student services staff and. New students were asked to complete a survey. Saturday before. classes began. Calls were also made to students who began one semester. It is important to note that demographic data was. The. New Program’s Structure. New Student Orientation at OCCC is now a one- time 2 . Each session hosts approximately 2. Approximately 5. 5% of all in- coming. A full- time professional. The new staff is housed in the Student Life Office. Topics reviewed. during the session are built directly from the results of the student. In. addition, the Saturday event prior to the first day of classes has. The event, now called Opening. Day, is a come and go for students and their families throughout. Student service offices are open and all new students. Academic divisions each. Again, the event structure. Assessment. Following. This data is used to. In. addition, all students who attend a new student orientation session. GPA, persistence and retention. Enhancements. to new student orientation were implemented in the summer of 2. Johnson. County Community College. Orientation. in a Success Center Environment: Hourly Orientation. The Success Center at Johnson. County Community College (JCCC) is an integrative one- stop center. Counseling Center, Career Services, Access Services, Financial Aid, Admissions, Registration,and the Testing Center. Collaboratively. services are provided for over 1. History. Over. the past 3. JCCC has evolved and gone in many. Originally, orientation was provided individually. Next we had an organized . Currently, we offer orientation hourly, with. Development. In. 2. The system in place was a twice daily (and 3: 0. Additionally, students. JCCC’s online orientation. In spite of both offerings. We knew there had to be a better way to reach our students. Since. the Success Center is integrated. Student Services departments, we created an orientation. In consideration of our millennial. We set- up. a conference room to accommodate up to 1. Internet and Power. Point within the. Success Center staff and student workers. The. current hourly system was implemented July 2. We now average 1. Student evaluations have been. We have recently initiated a new orientation task force. The. authors encourage you to contact them if you have questions or need. Authored by: Becky Boyd. Former Director of Student Development. Johnson County Community College. Liz Largent. Dean of Student Development. Oklahoma City. Community College. Susan Rondeau. Retired Counselor. Pima Community College. Tucson,Arizona. New Student Orientation. References. & Resources: American Association of Community Colleges. National. Resource Center for the First- Year Experience and Students in. Transition. National Orientation Directors Association. Cite. this resource using APA style as: Boyd. B., Largent, L. Community. College Orientation Basics: How to structure a new student orientation. Retrieved. from NACADA Clearinghouse of Academic Advising. Resources Web site http: //www. Type/Article. View/article. Id/9. 0/article. aspx.
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