Effectively managing a new staff members’ probationary period is key to their success in your company. Many employers, having put so much effort into the recruitment phase, relax once the new employee starts and ‘lets them get on with it’. Very few effectively hit the ground running without some direction and management.
It is unfair to expect a new employee to be psychic – to know, without being told, what’s expected of them, what their departments objectives are and ultimately what the company’s are.
To effectively manage a probationary period set acheivable but demanding objectives, possibly 2 weekly to begin with, moving out to monthly after a period of time. Review regularly, otherwise this is a completely wasted excercise.
Apart from performance of the objectives, understand how the employee is getting on personally. Is he /she getting enough support, direction. Is the role what he/ she expected. Has he/she any constructive feedback on their department or the organisation in general at this stage.
When the outcome of a probationary period is negative/ positive from the new employees perspective, it shouldn’t be a shock to him/her. It should be almost expected. If it isn’t, you haven’t effectively managed the probation or given your employee a fighting chance of making a positive impact in your business.