Unless you’re re-hiring a former employee, most new hires need some level of training before starting their new job. The trouble is, many employers either don’t offer training at all, or the training is ineffective. And, as one of the leading staffing agencies in Northern California, Pacific Staffing knows this can negatively impact the bottom line.

In fact, the majority of turnover at companies comes in the form of new hires leaving. Many of them feel disengaged from the start because they aren’t offered the proper training, support and resources. As a result, they almost immediately begin searching for a new job.

The good news is that there is something you can do about it – and it starts with avoiding the common new hire training mistakes below:

Mistake #1: Not giving new hires attention. 

When a new hire starts, their manager should be present on their first day to answer any questions they may have and address any concerns. Their manager should also be the one to give them an overview of the training they will receive and should personally hand them off to the person or people doing the training. A new hire shouldn’t start their first day feeling like they their manager is too busy for them.

Mistake #2: Cramming everything into a day.

New hires are already overwhelmed as it is with new co-workers, administrative paperwork to fill out, and trying to get settled into the position. Don’t bombard them with an 8-hour training day on top of all that! They simply won’t have the attention span to absorb all that’s being taught.

Instead, try to break training up over the course of a week and offer it in one- to two-hour chunks. While you’ll have to offer more sessions, the employee will be much more likely to retain the information.

Mistake #3: Teaching about multiple topics at once.

You want to get new hires up and running as quickly as possible. But training them on many different skills in one day is not the way to do it.

Rather, take a segmented approach where you teach one new skill or topic per session and really dig in deep to it. Give the employee a chance to try out the skill during training; if they make a mistake, a trainer is there to answer questions and help them get back on track.

Mistake #4: Choosing ineffective trainers. 

Sure, John may be an Excel whiz. But is he also a people person who will have the patience to answer lots of questions and walk new hires through the process of creating a spreadsheet? If not, then reconsider whom you tap to be a trainer.

Just because a person is the best at what they do does not necessarily mean they’ll be the best at training someone else to do it.

Mistake #5: Not assigning a mentor. 

When training is all said and done, there should be a person assigned to each new hire whom they can go to with questions, concerns and for feedback. Assigning a mentor will not only help new hires feel more confident, but it will help them ramp up their time to productivity in the process.

Need Help Finding & Training New Hires?

Give Pacific Staffing a call. As one of the leading staffing agencies in Northern California, we can help you find high quality candidates and get them trained and up to speed, so you can focus on other priorities. Contact us today if you’re ready to learn more about how we can help you.