Creative New Employee Orientation Programs: Best Practices, Creative Ideas, and Activities for Energizing Your Orientation Program [Hardcover]

Doris Sims (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0071381848 | ISBN-13: 978-0071381840 | Publication Date: December 4, 2001 | Edition: 1

New employee orientation is the most commonly offered type of training in organizations, yet very few books have been published on the topic. Creative New Employee Orientation Programs is filled with downloadable, customizable training games, sample curriculum, handouts, and checklists used in leading organizations such as Arthur Anderson, Ford, Micron, and Alcatel. Whether creating an orientation program for the first time, enhancing an existing program, or moving orientation on-line, HR pros will find ideas and tools they can use immediately.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

How Today's Most Successful Companies Make Orientation Personalized, Fun­­and Dramatically More Effective

New employees hit your workplace eager to show their stuff and make their marks. Creative New Employee Orientation Programs shows you how to keep their energy levels high with creative orientation activities, customizable worksheets, innovative icebreakers, and more.

Filled with checklists, "best practices" articles, and case studies from leading companies including Ford Motor, Red Lobster, Alcatel, and others, this state-of-the-art orientation guide will show you how to:

• Energize and revitalize your current orientation program
• Create a great first impression with new employees and managers
• Effectively communicate your company's values, vision, and mission
• Accelerate new employee productivity
• Start employees off on the right track ­ by explaining the culture and attitudes that support the company's business.
• Increase understanding of­­and compliance with­­sexual harassment guidelines
• Deliver consistent orientation messages across multiple remote locations
• And much more

Nothing will squash the spirit of new hires quicker than snail's-pace lectures and dry, tedious classroom sessions. Transform your organization's orientation program­­and get your newest employees off to a flying start­­with the best practices, tips, tools, and guidelines in Creative New Employee Orientation Programs.

Many companies have an orientation process that addresses the paperwork issues but does not include vital information about the company's products and services, culture, policies, customers, safety issues, and so forth. This book is designed to help those who are responsible for their organization's orientation process by providing unique and creative ways to make orientation special, memorable, and effective.

About the Author

Doris M. Sims is the Director of Human Resource Development at Alcatel USA. She is a speaker and author on training topics, and is a past winner of Lakewood Publications' Outstanding Performers in Training award. Ms. Sims has a Master's degree in Human Resource Development from Indiana State University and more than fifteen years of experience in employee training and development.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 360 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (December 4, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071381848
• ISBN-13: 978-0071381840
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #953,006 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Doris Sims, SPHR, The Succession Consultant
My LinkedIn Profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/dorissims
[e-mail] OR 214-906-3155
www.SuccessionConsultant.com

Welcome to my Author site! I am a talent management, succession planning, and new talent onboarding consultant provides training, communication services and consulting services to support your talent management strategy.

If you like the practical approach of my books, you will like my workshops and consulting services. I also write customized materials for corporations to document and communicate their succession plans to their business leaders. Please also join my LinkedIn Group: Succession Management Professionals!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Everything Orientation, June 20, 2005

By 

Layla Halabi (Dubai - UAE) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Creative New Employee Orientation Programs: Best Practices, Creative Ideas, and Activities for Energizing Your Orientation Program (Hardcover)

This is a compendium of almost everything that one might need to create or improve existing orientation programs. From best practices in orientation videos, small businesses, intern & buddy programs to case studies from companies like Ford and Alcatel.

The book also includes numerous useful lists, tools and aids that can be reproduced or used as a basic template for planning new orientation as well as evaluating and improving existent programs. In other words, this is a practical book filled with implementable ideas and suggestions guaranteed to make your new hires feel 'special' and at the same time, taking them through all the knowledge and information bits that they need to learn in a fun and engaging manner.

I found the case studies chapters very informative and particularly enjoyed Part 5 of the book: Orientation Games & Activities which includes 18 very useful and effective games like the hunt for company policies which turns a normally boring part of any orientation program into a really fun activity.

Also quite useful was the Part 6: Orientation Checklists & Surveys covering such areas as 'Before the Employee's First Day'; 'I'm New Here - What Should I Learn?'; and 'A 90-day New Employee Survey'.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Where's the beef?, June 1, 2009

By 

Sheila Callander (Minnetonka, Minnesota) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Creative New Employee Orientation Programs: Best Practices, Creative Ideas, and Activities for Energizing Your Orientation Program (Hardcover)

I was dissappointed in this book. As an HR manager wanting to create a "Best Practices" New Hire Orientation program out of our exisiting "good" program, I did not find the book very useful. There was very little new information to improve my current program. Rather than informing you how to create your own program, most chapters highlighted programs from other businesses and your option is to attempt to squeeze a few ideas out of whatever chapter is similar to your business. I did find a few ideas throughout the book that I may incorporate and there is a good chapter on games and activities to energize the session. Otherwise the bulk of the information wasn't of use to me. The book might be helpful to someone who is establishing their first NHO session.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Helpful guidelines, June 1, 2007

By 

Michelle Woodyard (San Clemente, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Creative New Employee Orientation Programs: Best Practices, Creative Ideas, and Activities for Energizing Your Orientation Program (Hardcover)

This book is a great place to start when creating or updating an employee orientation. The nice thing about it is you can use some or all of the information provided to suit your needs. It is organized well and is easy to find what you're looking for.