New Supervisors

New Supervisors: Best Practices Manual

Sara L. Daniel

Axia College of University of Phoenix

March 6, 2008

Any company that has hired employees knows how important orientation and training can be. Without the proper training will always be one step behind. The proper training early on can save an untold amount of hours of error correcting and re-training. An explanation of the company policies and expected work ethics early on can make the difference in a new hires attitude toward the job (Rue & Byars, 2004).

This training and orientation program is designed to be completed in only 3 days, and teaches 3 of the critical aspects that are needed for the company. You will get an in-depth look into the proper policies and procedures to operate our computer system, along with the policies and procedures for interaction with the customer, and a basic knowledge of our most popular products being sold. This will allow you to be able to perform more comfortably once you are on the sales floor.

The orientation process will start with a welcome to the company. This will be followed by an explanation of the companies operations along with an overview and introduction to the different levels of management and how these relate to each other. This shows that management will make time to meet the new hires. Meeting the new hires lets them know they are important. For example the store manager can introduce themselves and then give a brief history of the company. They will also go over the functions of management. The co-manager can go over what is expected of the new hires: attitude, reliability, initiative, emotional maturity, and personal appearance. Letting the managers go over some of the orientation objectives further proves the importance of teamwork and communication between all the employees.

After this the HR representative can go over the rules, regulations, policies and procedures. We will then go over any state and federal laws that they may need to know. Orientation will be covered on the first day. We want to have a well planned orientation program. With this program we will reduce job learning time, improve attendance, and lead to better performance. This will ensure the employees have a better educated attitude on the job.

Now we want to let the human resources department come in and go over the following:

Performance evaluation

Skill training and why it is important

The ladder of opportunities

Conditions of employment, punctuality, attendance, conduct, hours of work, breaks, meal times, overtime, and reasons for immediate termination

Pay procedures (pay period starts, ends, and hoe often you get paid)

Benefits, job security, insurance, holidays, vacation, different types of paid and unpaid leaves (bereavement, sick, and leave of absence), tuition refunds, retirement plans, stock purchases, and bonuses

Safety procedures

Personal policies

Techniques for training

The orientation program will be covered on day one along with the human resources review. This is a well planned orientation program and with it we will reduce the training time, attendance, and lead to better performance. This will give the new employees a better attitude on the sales floor.

It is no secret that the retail industry experiences a rapid and constant turnover in staff. This part of the training program will help you understand the importance of providing excellent customer service. You will be able to overcome some of the barriers that keep you from delivering it. We will also go over some important tension relieving tactics that will help you remain clam when faced with even the most demanding customers, whether it is face to face or on the phone.

Not everyone has the natural born ability to say the right thing no matter what the situation. During the part of the training process, you will learn the secrets of communication pros, including building personal creditability, delivering positives and negative feedback, improving listening skills, rephrasing for better relationships, dealing with difficult people and handling negative situations. This part of the program will allow you to open doors in the business world that may have otherwise closed.

You may have heard that old saying, “It’s not what you say but how you say it.” Customers are not only going to respond and pay attention to what you say, but also they will be listening and responding to your tone of voice and body language. The way you communicate with customer has the ability to make or break a sale. Proper communication with co- workers can make your job easier and less stressful.

Communication Skills Objectives:

Explain 4 basic behavioral styles and how to adapt to each

Describe the impact of body language and voice tone on communication

Rephrase blunt language to achieve results without offending anyone

Demonstrate how to deliver constructive feedback and how to politely disagree

Explain the effective use of office communication tools (telephones, and email)

Develop action plan to improve communication skills

In a perfect world, difficult behaviors would have no place at work. However, in reality, dealing with difficult people is something many of us face as part of our everyday work life. Difficult people tend to place us in difficult situations which cause stress, a lack of productivity, poor attitudes, and a reluctance to come to work.

In order to see the success of this program the first method I would use would be surveys. This lets the employees be honest about the program without the fear of repercussion since they are done anonymously. This would let me know what they thought of the program and let me know if anything could or should be done better.

Another method that could be used to evaluate the success of the program would be employer evaluations. The evaluations will show how well they are performing on the sales floor and with their co-worker.

Now, we are ready for our first 3 day orientation and training program.