Importance of Training for New Employees

Starting a new job is often a new learning experience, but it can also be stressful and overwhelming. When employees walk into their new place of employment for the first time, their impressions on the company begin and for the next few weeks they will be training to be an integral part of their new organization. For an organization, training a new employee is a very important process for its success as sales associates are most often the part of staff involved face-to-face with the customers, the importance of their knowledge of the company or products they sell is very high. Great training leads to less expenses, less employee turnover, and better customer service.

There are many financial factors to consider when training a new employee. Instruction materials, equipment, wages for both the employee and the trainer all have an impact on the organization’s finances. Per Levy, “it costs retailers more than $4,000 to replace a store employee” (2012 p.440). More than one individual becomes part of the process, often the human resources operations manager, supervisor and/or other employees will be involved in the success of the new associate which will have its own financial setbacks. Going through training materials such as e-learning software, books, and equipment can also use up resources. Hiring skilled employees and retaining them if possible, and having consistent performance reviews to identify more training needs can ensure employee confidence and show them more likely to stay, is one way to keep costs low (Taylor, 2016, p. 3). Hiring a new employee with no experience will take a significant amount of time to properly train and will cost more money, on the other hand, hiring skilled workers will require only a short amount of training, typically a week, to help them acclimate to a new work environment thus costing less to train. For example, a company that specializes in lumber will most likely decide not to hire someone more familiar working in fast food if given a choice for the simple fact that it will take a significant amount of time and money to train them.

The Model of Excellence was designed by author and trainer Nick Drake-Knight in an attempt to find a better way to train employees and help them retain the information given to them. After extensive research, he discovered that the best sales people all follow a common pattern, a “patter which connects” (2012, p. 8). The Model of Excellence includes three steps, level one: explicit standards, level two: consistency, and level three: sustainability. All three are meaningless unless used together.

The first level, is an explicit set of standards that spell out exactly what is expected of the employees, such as: a daily maintenance list, personal presentation, upselling, and customer acknowledgement (Drake-Knight, 2012, p. 9).  Typically, companies will have a standard time frame for each associate as they go through their training. Training generally does not stick and has little impact after the training sessions are finished as most associates grow bored when subjected to e-learning or classroom type of training. On-job-training would be ideal but can be more difficult to train as situations arise. Since the common way of training employees does not seem to work, it is important to implement the explicit standards as a way for employees to know their job even after their training is complete.

Consistency, level two of the model, is a major goal that managers will strive for. Consistency means everything will stay at the same high standards, all the time. The managers that are best at achieving as much consistency as possible are aligning it with level one of the model, and including themselves as part of the selling process. A bad example of consistency is allowing an employee to go through training and months down the road giving no feedback as to their performance and keeping them in the dark about new company procedures.  Training should be done every day along with practicing correct sales procedures; managers can make sure this gets done by recapping goals and quotas throughout the day, actively staying part of the team, and holding regular meetings to keep associates up to date on store news and training.

“Sales training is a waste of energy (and worst of all hope) unless it is made sustainable” (Drake-Knight, 2012, p. 17).  Training is usually something that does not go far after the training events are finished. Much of the information tends to get lost and employees must ask questions later about a subject they should already be familiar with. Sustainability, level three of The Model of Excellence, says that training should be sustained long after training is finished (2012, p.18) “Momentum Management” is the key to sustainability, it is a way to keep training consistent and constant throughout the day. It is like on-the-job training, but comes when the time is necessary.  For instance, if a manager overhears an employee answering the phone with the incorrect script, they can correct the employee after they hang up and inform them of the correct thing to say. Practicing sustainable techniques are a sure way to be involved and ensure that employees are being trained correctly and handling their jobs well.

The Model of Excellence shows that with these techniques, after training is complete, with all three levels being used to their full potential, it could be beneficial with making sure employees know their job well, and are continue to learn as they continue their careers. As employees are the face of the store, it will always be important that they are properly trained. Staying consistent and sustained will make sure of that.

Another simple solution to be sure an employee is getting the proper training and knowledge they need to handle their new job is to have better structured orientation at the beginning of employment. In her book “New Employee Orientation Training,” Lawson begins to compare the typical orientation session to a more successful approach. Typical orientations at an organization are generally presenter centered and tend to be boring for the applicant. The employee does not have much room to participate aside from only listening. Bored employees do not tend to retain the needed information to perform their jobs well and thus feel incompetent on the job. This could be a culprit of why the turnover rate is so high. Four percent of employees leave their jobs after the first day, and within thirty days know if they feel welcome or unwelcome in the work place (Lawson, 2016 p.4). A solution to this type of orientation is to have a more interactive and hands-on environment for training. Socializing the new employee and helping them integrate into their new workplace from day one of training can help them increase engagement in the workplace, better job satisfaction, and of course better job performance. Socializing also gets them involved in the workplace before the training is complete, employees can interact with the new employee and begin to adapt to one another (Mujtaba, 2006 p.262). In other words, taking the time to properly train and teach new employees how to do their jobs is worth the investment as they would not quit as quickly causing need for hiring new employees. It could also be beneficial in the sense that the employer would not have to pay for any mistakes the employee could potentially make.

Having improved training programs for employees are critical to the employee’s success and especially to the employer’s success in keeping the business running smoothly. Employees that are not trained properly can end up wasting not only their time but another employee or manager’s time when they do not understand how to solve a problem. Proper training will also provide better overall customer service and more customers returning. When a customer enters an establishment, they expect to get help when they need it and that the employee will be knowledgeable on the product they are interested in.

As training is the employees first impression into a company, it is important to get it right. Although many finances are part of the training process, it is important to make sure the employee is knowledgeable in all areas of their job. For instance, executing The Model of Excellence is one way to ensure a constant training of employees which also keeps them motivated. When employees are motivated and sure of what their job consists of, it shows a lower turnover rate for employment which is great financially and from a customer service standpoint. Customers enjoy seeing the same people and getting great service in the process. A well equipped employee is one that will be able to give the best customer service.

To sum it up, Training is a very important part of a company’s process for hiring new employees. Some companies tend to have a higher turnover rate due to poor training and lack of knowledge about the organization or product they may be selling. It is worth spending more time and resources on one person, than to spend them all repeatedly on the same failing training program. Employees should be treated like assets to their organization and get the proper tools they need to learn their job efficiently.  Proper training results in less finances wasted, less employee turnover, and a more fulfilling customer base. 

References

Drake-Knight, N. (2012). Training and coaching boost performance of sales staff at B&Q. Human Resource Management International Digest, 20(1), 14-17. doi:http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy2.apus.edu/10.1108/09670731211195918

Lawson, K. (2015;2016;). New employee orientation training (1st ed.). Alexandria, Virginia: Association for Talent Development.

Levy, M. & Weitz, B. (2012). Retailing management, 8th Ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Mujtaba, B. G., & Sims, R. L. (2006). Socializing retail employees in ethical values: The effectiveness of the formal versus informal methods. Journal of Business and Psychology, 21(2), 261-272. doi:http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy1.apus.edu/10.1007/s10869-006-9028-3

Taylor, T.C. (2016). The cost of training new employees, including hidden expenses. Retrieved from https://www.adp.com/thrive