4 Tips For Onboarding New Staff

We all hire staff from time to time and how we onboard that employee into our chamber workplace is a critical first step!

Everyone is busy, but it's important to take the time to have a formal onboarding process that will position your new staff member to be successful.

Here are four areas I focus on:

• Job Description - what a great place to start.  Do you have a detailed job description for the new staff member of your chamber?  You might want to even have an operational manual of the duties that the previous staff member has created to help with your onboarding process.  This manual could be broken down into a day, week, and monthly list of tasks.

• Set Expectations - it's very important to set your expectations upfront. That way there will be no misunderstandings down the road.  I wrote a blog post HERE on that subject matter.  For me there are four: professionalism; positive attitude; strong work ethic; and results.

• Resources - give that new staff member the proper resources that will allow them to excel in their new job.  What do I mean by resources? Your time, the technology to accomplish the tasks at hand and the ability to learn your organizational structure (staff vs. volunteers) and the mission of your chamber.

• Feedback - it's critical to be honest and constructive in giving ongoing feedback on how your new employee is doing based on your expectations and the expectations of your members.

I'm reminded of a staffing concept laid out in Jim Collins' book Good to Great. The book talks about a lot of good stuff but I want to highlight where he talks about getting the right people on the bus.

Do you have the right people on your team (bus)?  And are they in the right position (seat)?

Something to think about!

For a great article by The Bridgespan Group on onboarding and supporting a new CEO go HERE.

When Hiring Staff Set Your Expectations

What do you look for when hiring a new staff member to join our team?

There is no question that the wrong hire can be devastating to your chamber.

I’d like to share a general philosophy I’ve used over the years when hiring new staff members.

While this is only one aspect of what I look for in a new employee, it’s worth a review.

• Professional – very simply, this means to me, looking professional (dress), acting professional (treat others with respect).  We are a social society and what is one of the first questions you get when you meet someone new?  Where do you work?  That staff person is an extension of your organization 24/7.  We’re all always on!

• Positive Attitude – our staff’s are doing more with less over the past couple of years.  There is nothing worse than a negative attitude, the rumor mill that will make any chamber become dysfunctional, especially with the small staffs that many of us work under.

• Strong Work Ethic – while this is tough to detect in an interview, you want a person that is self-motivated and a smart hard worker.  These are the people who will always do the right thing whether anybody is watching or not.

• Results Oriented – are your staff members focused on the chambers bottom line?  Are they cognizant to the fact that the organization met its overall recruiting goal, retention goal, or met the number of attendees at your annual meeting?

If you hire people who have the above attributes and are results oriented I suggest you’re going to hire a winner.

And, your chamber will be better off because of it!