TABLE OF CONTENTS

ORIENTATION

“The process of welcoming new employees, bringing them into the organization,
and familiarizing them with its operations and culture.”

OR

Orientation according to bnet.com :

“A process through which a new employee is integrated into an organization,

learning about its corporate culture, policies and procedures, and the specific
practicalities of his or her job.”

It is the part of the familiarization process in which a new employee is told of

the firm's history, its beliefs and cherished values, long term goals,
and management structure. He or she is given specific information, such as about
the firm's products and markets in which it competes, the behavior patterns it
views as desirable or undesirable. Company's policies regarding discipline,
information access, promotions, quality, and vacations,
and regulations regarding health, safety, and security rules are also made known
during the orientation process.
Effectively orienting new employees to the campus and to their positions is critical to establishing
successful, productive working relationships. The employee's first interactions with you should create a
positive impression of your department and the campus. The time you spend planning for the new
person's first days and weeks on the job will greatly increase the chance for a successful start.it is lso
called New Employee Orientation (NEO).

An orientation program should not consist of a one-day introduction, but should be

planned and paced over a few days or weeks. This process work to assimilate a
new employee rapidly into the culture of the employing organization.

WAYS OF ORIENTATION:
Orientation occurs by two ways:

(1) Formally

(2) Informally

FORMAL ORIENTATION PROGRAM:

“An orientation program sponsored and developed by an organization.”

It is held as soon as possible after a new hire begins the job, usually the first day
of work, so that the new employee does not have time to pick up any bad habits.

COMPONENTS OF AN ORIENTATION:

WELCOMING:

Orientation begins with an official welcoming of the employee. In small

organizations, this should be done by CEO. In larger organizations, someone from
human resources or the immediate supervisor should welcome the employee and
make him or her feel comfortable and acceptable. A welcome letter to a new
employee who has accepted your job offer confirms the employee's decision to
accept the position. The welcome letter helps the new employee feel wanted and
welcomed. The supervisor of the position should always send a new employee
welcome letter to encourage a successful reporting relationship from the start.
Human Resources may also send a new employee welcome letter, , but the HR
letter should be in addition to the letter from the position's supervisor.

Welcome letter serves many purposes. .

Every new employee wants to feel welcomed and wanted by their new
employer. This enhances their expectation of their ability to succeed in the new
job. Mentions start date, start time, business dress code and other details that
the new employee needs to know. The welcome letter confirms what the new
employee is expected to do on the first day of employment. This saves the new
employee some feelings of insecurity and avoids misunderstandings. May
provide the opportunity for Human Resources to send, in advance, some of the
benefit forms and other employment forms so the new employee can review and
fill them out with a partner or spouse. Sending the employee handbook and
other policies and procedures in advance, for the new employee’s review, avoids
the impression that the first day was all paperwork and HR orientation.for better
understanding I have attached a sample welcome letter.

Date
Dear (New Employee Name):

We’re writing to welcome you to (Name of Company) and to tell you how
much we are looking forward to you joining our team. You bring experience,
knowledge and skills that enhance our capabilities.

We’re expecting you for new employee orientation on (Date), Tuesday at 9

a.m. You will meet with me to discuss your successful integration into our
company and with Human Resources staff to learn about employment
related issues. Our dress code is business casual.

Your new team anticipates taking you out to lunch to get to know you and
to make sure you meet everyone with whom you will be working. Your
agenda, for the rest of your first day, follows.

MEETING THE BOSS AND FELLOW EMPLOYEES:

The employee should be inteoduced to those with whom he or she will work by
either the supervisor or someone from human resources. These introductions are
very important and should not be taken lightly.

COMPLETING PAPERWORK:

All essential paperwork should be completed during orientation so that the

employee is paid accurately and on time. Some one in the company should be
given the responsibility to be the expert on new hires. This person should ensure
that all needed forms for new hires are completed promptly and accurately.
REVIEWING THE EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK:

One of the critical step of orientation is the review of the employee handbook as it
contain vast amount of information. This handbook covers two board categories:

(1) General topics of interest to most new employees . It include information

about organizational issues and employee benefits.
(2) Specific, job related issues of concern only to specific job holder. It contain
the introduction about the supervisor, coworkers, trainers , employee
counselor and job duties are also mention in it.
FORMAL ORIENTATION PROGRAM IMPROVEMENT TECHNIQUES:
Organization need to focus on updating and revamping their orientation program.
Some suggestions for making needed changes follow:

 Keep the paperwork portion of the orientation light the first day.
Information overload can be a real turnoff for employees.

 Start the orientation with an informal meeting of immediate supervisor with

the new recruit’s. the meeting should be brief and it should start on time.
This meeting will serve two purposes. Firstly, the employee will see that his
or her immediate supervisor is a person with whom he or she can come to
woth problems and concerns. Secondly, it shows that the firm and the
supervisor stress punctuality.

 Provide the new employees with a glossary of terms unique to the

organization.

 Find a buddy for each new employee.it is a supplement to the supervisor’s

orientation effort.Matching employees with new recriuts does not have to
focus on the job to be performed. Sometimes it may be useful to match
people on a personality basis rather than on a job basis.this allows new
employees to build links with employees outside their immediate
department. Further reinforcing the organization’s culture of working
together as an organization. This helps to reassure the new employees that
the organization is made up of people, not just forms and rules.

Audiovisual components of successful NEO programs provide emphasis to

the program and provide a positive message. Frequently successful videos
or slide tape presentations were used to describe the organization's culture,
history and philosophy. 
INFORMAL ORIENTATION:
“ An orientation that an employee receives from other employees.”

Informal orientation occurs when new hires receive information about the
organization and how to perform their jobs from current employees. Organization
hope that the information passed to new hires from current employees matches
the information given during the formal orientation program. The stronger the
belief of the employees in the organization’s culture, the closer the two types of
information will be.

Individual/Collective Orientation program

 The individual approach aims to develop far less homogeneous views in individuals about their
respective jobs & is also likely to preserve individual differences & perspectives.

 Collective orientation aims to socialize individuals with themselves & with the organization as a
whole.

Serial/disjunctive orientation program

 A serial orientation is the one where an experienced employee inducts a new hire.

 When new hires do not have any predecessors available to guide them or to model their
behavior in the organization, it is know as disjunctive orientation.

INVESTITURE/DIVESTITURE ORIENTAITON PROGRAM

 Investiture orientation seeks to ratify (approve) the usefulness of the characteristics that the
person brings to the new job.

 Divestiture orientation, Seeks to make minor modifications to seek a better fir between a new
member & the organization.
WEAKEST PART OF ORIENTATION:
The weakest part of most orientation program occurs at the supervisory level.
Although after hr department have develop orientation program and trained
supervisors to conduct their part of it but supervisor may have more pressing
problems or everything may seem so familiar to them that nothing stands out as
important for newcomers to learn. To help ensure a systematic orientation, the
supervisor may be given a checklist of topics to be cover. The supervisor’s
checklist focuses on the introductions and job duties.

The success or failure of a new member rests in large part on the supervisor. This
checklist is a minimum measure of the supervisor’s responsibility for orientation
of the new employee to the department.
Sample checklist

Things To Do Before the New Employee Begins Work:

Yes No

1. Have staff been informed of new employee (name,

_____________ _____________
title, start date)?

2. Has a desk or office been prepared with appropriate

_____________ _____________
supplies?

3. Have office key(s) been ordered? _____________ _____________

4. Has a long distance access code been requested (if

_____________ _____________
needed)?

5. Has a name plate for the new employee been ordered

_____________ _____________
(if applicable)?

6. Has new employee been instructed where to park? _____________ _____________

7. Has a co-worker been assigned to help acclimate and

_____________ _____________
train the new staff?

8. Has the Mailroom been notified to add the new name

_____________ _____________
to the mailing list?
ROLE OF HR IN ORIENTATION:
The human resource department’s efforts help integrate newcomers into the
organization and enable socializaton to take place. The socialization process helps
the organization meet its need for productive employees while enabling new
employees to meet their needs.

Orientation programs are particularly effective socialization tools because they are
use among new employees. Since newcomers have a strong desire to be accepted,
they attempt to internalize.

RESPONSIBLITIES OF HR DEPARTMENT & SUPERVISOR:

To retain the new hired employee both the HR department and the supervisors are
responsible to see that the employee is not:

 Overwhelmed with too much to absorb in a short time.

 Overloaded with forms to complete.

 Given only menial tasks that discourage job interest and company loyalty.

 Asked to perform tasks with a high chance for failure.

 Forces to fill in the gaps between a broad orientation by the HR department

and a narrow one by the supervisor.
OBJECTIVES OF ORIENTATION:
Major objectives of orientation are to

 Gain employee commitment.

 Reduce his or her anxiety.

 Help him or her understand organization's expectations.

 Convey what he or she can expect from the job and the organization.

BENEFITS OF ORIENTATION:
Orientation leads to some specific development in an organization

 Turnover among the recently hire employees drop.

 A greater number of employees stay at job.

 New employees learn their job more quickly.

 It reduces employee anxieties.

 Realistic job expectations.

 Well oriented newcomers need less attention from coworkers and

supervisors.

 Perform well.

TIPS FOR EFFECTIVE NEO

An effective orientation will:

 Foster an understanding of the campus culture, its values, and its diversity
 Help the new employee make a successful adjustment to the new job
 Help the new employee understand her role and how she fits into the total
organization
 Help the new employee achieve objectives and shorten the learning curve
 Help the new employee develop a positive working relationship by building
a foundation of knowledge about campus mission, objectives, policies,
organization structure, and functions
 Cuts costly employee turnover

Here are few tips for improving orientation for new hires

Discuss about your current orientation program from start to beginning and
look for the good and the bad points and make changes accordingly.ask the
on the job employees for ideas and advices because they might have a lot
to say about their experience regarding your company’s orientation.

Discuss the main points about your organization with your employee.if you
discuss each and every footnote of your organization they feel bored and
exhausted.

 If possible, prepare a binder with all written training

materials and give it to your new hires before the orientation
session. This will give them a chance to begin familiarizing
themselves with the organization’s policies and procedures in
advance. This way, they’ll have more personal engagement in
the process, and they’ll be ready to ask questions about
anything that was unclear.

Mix your training sessions with quizzes,gifts,premiums and name

recognition games that allow new employees to get to know one another.

 Planning ahead for your new employee's arrival will allow you to spend
productive time on that first day. Draft a training plan for the new
employee's first few months.

give long orientation instead of shoet ones and warn the new hires about
any issues of hazing in advance.

Take them for lunch to discuss anything.this will leave a friendly impression
on them.
Mistakes of orientation programs

Orientation programs should not only cover HR information but should answer the
new hires questions as well.questions like what is the organization’s
culture?.orientation program should be developed with input from on the job
employees also.

Start the new employee with a one or two day new employee orientation during
which Human Resources personnel make presentation after presentation after
presentation after presentation.Making orientation programs sound like boring
and lengthy presentations is a big turn off for employees.instead go for a more
friendlier format.newly hired need to learn a lot but not at once.on the first day
just discuss the main points. publish the information in a reference format -
notebook, web page, etc - so new-hires can use it as needed back on the job.

Many organizations think of orientations as one time event. Orientation is a

process, not an event. A good Orientation program is set up as a process, making
it possible for new-hires to get good answers to their urgent questions right after
they are hired, but also making it possible to re-engage with them later during
their first few months as their needs change.

Leave the new employee standing in the company reception area for a half hour
while reception staff try to figure out what to do with him. Schedule the new
employee to start work while her supervisor is on vacation. All these should be
planned in advance as such acts cast a bad image of your organization.

Provide an hour in a noisy lobby for the new employee to read and sign-off on a
100 page Employee Handbook.the new employee should be treated very friendly
and should be placed in a comfortable environment.

sure a work area has not been created or assigned. (Let him sit in a hall or share
a cube.).all the stuff like pens paper table and so on should be organized in
advance before the new hire arrives.it is the supervisors task to ensure that all
the required material and the cabin of the new hire is prepared well.
References