Developing Effective Leadership

DMX 2630

Effective Staff Induction within a Learning Environment

Noel Johnson

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction .................................................................................................. 3

Background to the study ............................................................................... 4

The need for Effective Induction .................................................................. 7

Critical Review ............................................................................................. 8

Changes made to practice………………………………………………….12

Appendices………………………………………………………………...15

Hull Training Staff Induction Programme

Staff Induction Presentation (Appended Separately in titled document file)

References………………………………………………………………….33

Glossary……………………………………………………………………34

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Introduction

Within a work based learning (WBL) environment there is an increasing demand on

both learners and teaching staff to continually develop themselves whilst at the same

time meeting challenging targets for achievements set both nationally through

Government targets/initiatives and locally to meet the needs of a particular areas

residents and employers. This is compounded by the fact that work-based teachers

delivering vocational and applied learning subjects are, in general, practically minded

having come from a trade background and often find it difficult to balance their time

between the practical instruction of learners, teaching the theory of the given subject

effectively and developing their own teaching and assessing skills.

The purpose of this assignment is to analyse the experiences of new staff during their

induction and probation period and the effectiveness of the Hull Training Leadership

Team in effectively introducing new people into the organisation as well as

developing existing staff into new roles through our succession planning. This

assignment will investigate strategies to improve the induction and probation period

in order to minimise any problems encountered by new staff and to ensure that new

staff are working as effectively as possible within the shortest timescale and also the

effective use of the staff induction programme for introducing existing staff into new

roles within the organisation.

The focus of this study is to analyse the affects of transition from trade specific career

to one of teaching on staff within work-based learning and the ability of

organisational leaders to plan, manage and monitor the effectiveness of this transition

period. I will also monitor and reflect on the impact that a structured staff induction

programme can have on teaching and learning. Although trade specific people can

find the transition from workshop to classroom, at times, daunting, can this period of

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change experience be used to enhance their teaching ability through an increased level

of understanding the difficulties encountered through this transition.

Background to the Study

Hull City Council Training Group (HCCT) is a Learning and Skills Council (LSC)

contracted work-based learning provider. As part of Hull City Council (HCC) we

deliver a wide range of occupational skills training to over 2000 people within the

Humber sub-region.

Hull City Council Training was formed in 1998 following a decision made by Hull

City Councils’ Economic Regeneration Committee (ERC) to merge two of its training

organisations, the Hull Information Technology Centre (Itec) and the Opportunity

Centre (OC) which consisted of four training centres.

Due to the word limit of this assignment the study will concentrate on the experiences

of the existing staff team during their induction into a new organisation and new staff

introduced to the group over the past twelve months looking also at the experiences of

new teaching staff during their induction period.

The Opportunity centre focussed its areas of activity on community based

programmes and youth training schemes, primarily in traditional skill areas such as

engineering, construction, manufacturing and horticulture. However, there was no

requirement within the community programmes for candidates to gain any formal

qualifications. “The only demand on instructors at that time was to keep the lads busy

and out of trouble”. (Tom Wilkinson engineering instructor).

At the time of the merger the Itec staff team comprised of one manager, one full time

and one part time administrator, one workshop team leader and five training staff. The

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opportunity centre however consisted of nine administration staff with an

administration manager, one marketing officer, four recruitment officers, four

managers and around forty training staff.

The opportunity centre had a large management team with a hierarchical structure and

a single grade pay structure for all staff, the Itec on the other hand had a flat structure

with an emphasis on staff empowerment and a career grade pay structure in place

allowing staff the opportunity to progress and earn more money through continuous

professional development.

The manager of the Itec secured the position of group training manager for the new

training provision and initially spent his time visiting the other centres to gain an

insight into how they operated, however no meetings were arranged and no formal

consultation took place to discuss future plans or inform staff of any organisational

vision. Despite the opportunity centre having over five times the number of staff they

felt that they had been taken over.

Following the merger the Hull Training leadership team undertook an analysis of

employment needs within the Humber region looking in particular at skills needs of

the current workforce and those of a future workforce in the shape of apprentices.

Following this a decision was made based on the needs of local industry to deliver

apprenticeship training in a number of current areas of need and some considered

growth areas, however, no discussion took place with the current staff team and no

consideration was given to the training needs of staff to ensure that they would be

able to deliver both the organisations and the City Councils’ objectives.

During this time I was a member of the engineering instructor team within the

opportunity centre and although I found the hierarchical structure to be inhibiting the

majority of the team found it to be acceptable.

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The merger brought with it a new management structure with an emphasis on

empowering staff. During the early months of the merger it became apparent that a

number of staff within the group could not work effectively in their new autonomous

role and they started to fall behind with their work, having a negative impact on the

achievements of their learners and leaving programmes subject to Minimum Levels of

Performance (MLP) which at the time were 40% achievement. Falling below this

level of achievement left the organisation at risk of loosing the Learning and Skills

Council contract and unable to carry out and meet the City Councils ‘skills Pledge’

It was relatively easy for the instructors and work shop supervisors at that time to

work with young people helping them develop broad practical skills without the need

to follow a set accredited programme with criteria for achievement. However,

following the merger of the two centres and the development of the apprenticeship

frameworks it became apparent that because staff had not undertaken a programme of

induction into their new roles and had not been given any targets to meet through the

leadership team, they were not able to effectively design, deliver and assess the

programmes being delivered, had little knowledge of curriculum development and

they were falling short of meeting the needs of learners and their employers leaving

organisational motivation at an all time low.

None of the delivery staff had any formal teaching qualifications and a number of key

existing staff members were reluctant to undertake any formal teaching programme

(‘what’s the point? I’ve always done it this way’)

It could be argued that because the instructors had not within the opportunity centre

needed to design and deliver structured training, and may have been reluctant to

change what they had always done, just because of the merger. However I would

argue that if there had been a structured programme of induction with an

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organisational vision and clear aims for developing individuals into a teaching role, a

new company structure and introducing them to the other staff within the newly

formed group, meeting on a regular basis with their line manager and addressing any

problems as they arise then the instructor teams would have found this transition from

“working on their tools” to classroom teaching considerably less daunting and

ultimately more achievable and this would also have helped the management team

identify any training requirements for needed by individual staff members.

The need for effective induction

Although the merger of these two organisations was imperative to reduce overhead

costs, eliminate duplication, improve performance and meet the needs of employers

and the Cities residents, the implementation and execution of this merger fell short of

meeting the needs of current staff and planning for the introduction of new staff.

Following an introduction to and informal group discussions with, the newly

appointed group manager the merger took place. There were no introductions to the

staff teams, no familiarisation of the new autonomous staffing structure and from a

personal point of view; it was a very confusing period where people reached their own

conclusions through gossip and hearsay and were far from motivated to undertake a

more difficult and demanding, formal teaching role without the mention of personal

reward.

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Critical Review

It is possible to identify three major purposes of staff induction (Middlewood &

Lumby 1998 pp 73-74)

These are:

Socialisation

Achieving competence

Exposure to institutional culture

Socialisation

The socialisation of new staff is one of the most important aspects of any induction

programme helping them to settle into the new organisation quickly, effectively and

confidently. Schein identified five stages to this process.

1) Accepting the reality of the organisation (i.e. the constraints governing

individual behaviour)

2) Dealing with resistance to change (i.e. the problems involved in getting

personal views and ideas accepted by others)

3) Learning how to work realistically in the new job, in terms of coping with

too much or too little organisation and too much or too little job definition (i.e.

the amount of autonomy and feedback available)

4) Dealing with the boss and understanding the reward system (i.e. the amount

of independence given and what the organisation defines as high performance)

5) Locating ones place in the organisation and developing an identity (i.e.

understanding how an individual fits into the organisation

(Schein, 1978 pp36-7).

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Two implications arise from this. Firstly, the influence, initial reactions and attitudes

of peers, middle and senior leaders and others employed within the organisation have

a significant impact on the success or failure of the induction programme.

Secondly, the performance of a newly appointed member of staff, and ultimately the

performance of the whole organisation will be affected by the outcome of that

induction programme.

Achieving Competence

When “finding your feet” and learning how to work effectively in a new post,

Kakadse, Ludlow and Vinnicombe suggest that the new staff members induction

cycle will have three stages.

1) Getting used to the place i.e. overcoming the initial shock and

immobilisation of the new organisation and job demands.

2) Re-learning i.e. recognising that new skills have to be learned or how

existing learned skills have to be re-applied.

3) Becoming effective i.e. consolidating your position in an organisation by

applying new behaviours and skills or integrating newly formed attitudes with

ones held from the past. (Kakabadse, Ludlow and Vinnicombe 1987).

The provision of induction for a new member of staff and for existing members of

staff changing their job role within learning organisations varies considerably and this

can also be the case within different departments in the same organisation when the

responsibility for the induction of new staff falls on the head of department.

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A maintenance fitter, for example may be able to make an immediate contribution on

the first day while a supervisor or manager will need a greater degree of

familiarisation with people, processes, equipment etc, before being able to make a

particularly meaningful contribution (Roberts 1997 pp 233).

This can be said equally about trade specific people entering a teaching role for the

first time, they too must gain this level of familiarisation before being able to make an

effective contribution to a learner’s progress.

A balance needs to be struck however, between ensuring that there is sufficient

information provided to speed up the induction process while avoiding information

overload which can make it unnecessarily difficult for the new person to absorb and is

therefore counterproductive.

However, some people are prevented from undertaking an induction programme

because a group of young people are already waiting by the time they are appointed.

Whilst general agreement exists amongst staff that induction is necessary, the opinion

of department heads tends to be polarised between a gentle and protected entry into

post 16 education and learning by doing the job. (Allan & Gartside SCRE).

I would argue that as a provider of Government funded work-based learning, we have

a responsibility to new staff into the teaching profession to provide an effective

programme of induction and clear leadership direction because of the implications for

the education of learners’ and because of the cost involved in initial training.

In addition, the notion of effective staff induction have an additional significance with

the Governments move for all post 16 teaching, training and mentoring staff to

achieve Qualified Teacher Learning and Skills (QTLS) status which became a

requirement in September 2007.

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Within my own organisation the formal induction/probation period for new staff lasts

for six months and during this time the individual formally meets on a monthly basis

with their line manager to discuss progress to date, identify training needs and to set

targets for the following four weeks.

This induction period covers all the basic needs of a new member of staff from

knowing where the coffee machine is to how to process examinations (see appendix).

However, an apprenticeship programme can last for up to four years and it could

therefore be argued that it is not possible to be fully inducted into an organisation

until you have completed at least one full programme of teaching, assessment and

examination for a given cohort of learners.

Gareth Roberts states that the first part of the induction begins long before the role is

taken up. Information provided to the candidate throughout the selection process

should be aimed at encouraging enthusiasm and managing expectations. In order to

improve self-selection in the selection process, sufficient information should already

have been given to the candidate to enable him or her to have a very clear idea of how

the role will shape up. (Roberts 1997 p 232).

Equally, some organisations begin the induction process as soon as an offer is made,

not waiting until the candidate accepts, so that enthusiasm and commitment can be

engendered in candidates who may be wavering in their decision.

A large percentage of the staff team within Hull Training (30%) left the group within

the first year of the merger and a further 50% left within two years, partly because

they were resistant to change but primarily because the transition into the new

organisation was not structured or supported by the leadership team and “staff were

left to find their own way and at the same time trying not to listen to rumours or

gossip (David Coulson – Engineering instructor).

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For those staff members with a reticence to change it was an opportunity to familiar

surroundings, returning to their tools within industry.

Although this gave us the opportunity to recruit and select new staff into the group

with a new mandate to undertake teacher/assessor training, it also meant that a wealth

of experience was lost through the departure of existing staff that may not have been

had the transition been better managed by the leadership team.

Changes made to practice

Following the merger and the subsequent departure of a number of staff I was

appointed to the senior leadership team, initially to manage the engineering training

centre and more recently to manage the group (February 2008)

It was during my time as manager of the engineering training provision that I started

to closely monitor the achievement outcome rates within the apprenticeship

frameworks. Having failed to impact on learner framework success during and

following the merger I made the decision to re-structure the centre giving autonomy

and accountability to all staff thus giving them the freedom to develop the curriculum

within their area of expertise and the opportunity to share practice, not only with each

other but also with colleagues from other learning providers, developing networks of

partners. Through this re-structure teaching staff became the principle management

within the classroom with responsibility for all aspects of planning, delivery and

evaluation of the learning process.

As described by Briggs & Sommefeldt (2002, p90) ‘The teachers responsibility as the

acknowledged leader in classroom – based management will be evident across all

areas.’ And this has been particularly evident in the increase in learner participation

and attainment.

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Stoll & Fink (1996), commenting on the notion of learners as partners make the point

that the classroom/ learning environment is as much a workplace for learners as it is

for teachers. They cite Levin (1994, p.759) who states that learners are much more

that raw materials since their ideas and behaviour have an enormous influence on how

the process of education unfolds.

They go on to say:

Our own work suggests that many teachers are resistant to the notion of partnerships

which includes learners. Our questionnaires to teachers and learners at both primary

and secondary levels not only revealed little learners involvement in school decision

making but also reflected the teachers’ belief that learners should not be involved

(Stoll & Fink, 1996, p.139).

I would argue that teachers resistance to working in partnership with their learner

group’s stem in part from their own lack of self belief in their ability to coordinate

learning on equal terms.

Through the effective implementation of an induction programme introducing new

and existing staff to their new roles we have been able to instil the confidence

necessary to enable them to confidently interact equally with their learner groups.

Through this re-structure transition I designed and developed an induction programme

(see portfolio) that enabled me to introduce new staff to the centre and also to develop

existing staff into their new roles.

Through this process I encouraged regular discussions with individual staff members

and myself as well as monitoring their ability to engage with learners and improve

achievement outcomes through the observation of teaching and learning within the

induction period.

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Through regular structured one to one and team meetings within the centre we were

able to build a healthy, effective relationship between staff and the leadership team

which lead to (through constructive discussion) an 80% increase in learners

framework achievements and a 100% return on teaching sessions observed as good

(grade2) or better.

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Appendix

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Hull City Council Training

Staff Induction

Programme

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HCC Training

Quality Assurance procedures

Document Control

Unit Document Version Issue date

1 Lead Manager

Welcome Letter

1 Emergency contact form

1 Sickness reporting procedure &

Return to work discussion form

1 Health and Safety Induction checklist

1 Health and safety Policy

1 Business Travel and expenses

1 Probationary period form and details

2 Hull Training

Organisational Chart

2 Hull Training Contact list

2 Internet policy and guidelines

2 Internet Authorisation form

3 Customer promise

3 Customer feedback scheme

3 Employee welfare policy

3 Equal opportunities in Employment policy

3 Achievement and development interview

3 PPD policy and procedure

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INDUCTION FOR NEWLY APPOINTED MEMBERS OF STAFF

Date post commenced

Name Welcome to your new post at Your Line Manager is

This induction pack has been produced in order to provide you with the information and training that you need in order to do your job.

As well as training courses, this involves getting to know the people you will be working with in the future, familiarising yourself with the organisation and its policies as a whole, as well as the different sections within it. You may well be familiar with some of the areas of work already. We hope, however, that you will take the opportunity offered to extend and refresh your present knowledge and contacts in your new role as well as develop new skills. This induction pack is designed for you to use at each visit/training session, with a checklist at the end of the points to cover. This will hopefully ensure that the purpose of the induction programme is clear and that you receive the information that you require. This particularly relates to the induction period where many different people are involved. We hope this programme will help to give you a good start in your new post. We welcome any comments you may have from a customer’s point of view about this Induction Pack. Your views will be valued to our feedback process.

Thank you on behalf of: Hull City Council Training

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Induction

A Training package for Newly Appointed Staff

What is it for?

Starting a new job can be exciting, challenging, confusing and frightening. Questions range from “Is this somebody else’s cup?” to “Is there a policy on this issue?” One of the more tricky tasks is to know, who to ask about what, if you don’t know the question in the first place. This induction programme aims to:

1. Provide you with the opportunity to develop the necessary Knowledge, Skills and Contacts to do the job.

2. Demonstrate how to share the responsibility for this between:

Line Manager

Colleagues

Other workers and directorates within the Local Authority

Training and Development staff The new employee (you)

3. Provide the Line Manager with a structured Induction Programme that

will include most of the requirements for the new starter. (Let’s face it, we will never, get it all in!)

4. Finally the pack aims to recognise the right of each new employee, to

be given good, quality training, and that this will take time, but will be worth every minute, as a long term investment in your future.

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Notes for the New Member of staff.

Interview & Selection panels choose the people they feel have the ability to do a good job, but this doesn’t mean you are expected to know and be skilled at all aspects of your new job straight away. The aim of this programme is to help you learn the basic skills and information you need to do the job. The process we have suggested requires your active participation and in the end the quality of this package depends not only on your Line Manager, your Colleagues, but also on you. You will be anxious to get on with the job, but please give yourself the opportunity to learn a bit about the service area you work in, before you get on with the task. Each office, each job, has a culture of its own, this is the way staff think, the way things are done. The culture gives us information about what behaviour is acceptable and valued and what isn’t. Hull Training is a service area which is a fully committed “learning” organisation and we embrace the principles of a “total quality” culture. We actively support the continuous improvement of our service areas through our commitment to the Matrix standard, ISO 9001 and Investors in people (IIP). We have a Quality Manager and a continuous improvement team, which are responsible for the quality assurance and continuous improvement of our organsation. Each centre area has a team representative and the team consists of Managers and staff at all levels. Our staff team is our greatest asset and we actively promote the principles of Team working and adopt the “whole organisation” approach in the delivery of our services to ensure efficient and effective use of our resources. As a new member of staff, you are an asset. You can suggest new ideas and approaches. Please don’t be afraid to ask questions, however simple they may sound to you.

After the Induction Towards the end of your induction programme, you and your Line Manager should discuss your further needs and prioritise as regards the courses available to develop you from here onwards.

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On Appointment Prior to your start date you were issued with the following information:

ITEM INITIAL DATE COMMENTS

Appointment Letter

New starter Information Pack

Employment Information

Statement of the main Terms of Employment

Job Description/Outline

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A BLANK SCHEDULE FOR YOUR FOUR-WEEK INDUCTION FOR YOU TO COMPLETE.

This is for you to complete with your Line Manager when you have arranged and negotiated your programme. Units 1 to 4

Week 1 Week 4 - 8 3 – 6 months

Unit 1 Unit 2

Unit 3 Unit 4

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

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FIRST DAY - WITH MANAGER OR SUPERVISOR

Unit 1

Item Your Initial

s

Date Comments Initials of Manager or Supervisor

1) Welcome letter from the Lead Manager

Environment 5) Hours of Work Flexible working hour’s scheme. Completion of Flexi - sheets

6) Meals, Refreshment arrangements

7) Emergency contact form

8) Introduction to Your

Mentor – colleagues – names of what they Does, seating plan links etc.

9) Sickness reporting procedures.

10) Your desk & work area,

your workstation, to ensure that all the basic equipment is in place.

11) Tour of immediate workplace First Aid box & Accident book First aiders

12) Security Issues.

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Arrangements for ID badge

13) Travelling/Parking facilities

Safety

14) H&S Induction Checklist

15) Copies of the H & Safety policy

Conditions of Employment

16) Wages/Salaries. Method and frequency of payments, career grade, increments and honorariums.

17) Completion of the Time-sheets Overtime payment facilities etc.

18) Allowances.

Procedures for Business Travel

expenses Subsistence, other Expenses, Mileage forms (if applicable)

19) Superannuation scheme

details

20) Probationary period form

and details

21) Notice (periods and procedures)

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22) Holiday Entitlements and arrangements, Holiday forms / cards etc.

23) Access to your Personnel files.

24) Explain what is expected of a

new member of staff relevant to your service area

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FIRST WEEK – TEAM INDUCTION

Unit 2

Item Your Initial

s

Date Comments Initials of Manager or Supervisor

Job Details 25) Main tasks/Duties of job and

role of Employee.

26) Area/ s of responsibility

and level of authority

28) Structure and role of the Team.

29) Team objectives / targets

30) Hull Training organisational chart.

31) Hull Training contact list

Procedures

33) Issue current SAR

34) Development plan objectives relevant to service area

35) Telephone system – Use of system, transferring calls, making outgoing calls, receiving calls, nature of calls, where and whom to report to, arrangement for personal calls.

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36) Use of Photocopier.

37) Communication Systems – Management meetings, Team Meetings, Intranet and e - mail

38) Storage and filing systems.

39) Use of Computers.

Intranet / Outlook Issue internet policy and procedures. Authorisation form to complete

40) Discipline/Grievance Procedures.

Familiarisation. 41) Organise to Meet Head of service

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Unit 3 – During the first 4 - 8 weeks. Item Your

initials

Date Comments Initials of Service Quality Manager

45) Customer feedback scheme

Complaints, compliments and suggestions

50) Employee welfare

51) Equal Opportunities in

Employment

54) PPD Interview

55) PPD

Policy and procedures

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DURING THE FIRST THREE TO SIX MONTHS CORPORATE INDUCTION COURSE

Unit 4

Item Your Initial

s

Date Comments QPD Initials

Kingston upon Hull City Council. 58) The role and structure of H.C.C.

59) Corporate Initiatives.

60) The Decision Making Procedure.

61) The role of the Elected Member.

Conditions of Services

62) Established conditions and procedures.

63) The role of Trade Unions.

64) Statement of main terms

of employment.

65) Training & Development

and Educational facilities.

Welfare, Health & Safety. 66) Safety, HIV/AIDS.

67) Accident prevention.

68) Emergency Procedures.

69) Welfare facilities/contacts.

70) Security.

Customer Care.

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71 ) The public image.

72) Handling people.

73) Handling complaints, suggestions and comments.

EVALUATION

A) Review Induction

Programme.

B) Identify Outstanding

Needs.

C) Set date for Review

Session.

SIGNATURE: MANAGER/SUPERVISOR: DATE:

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ADDITIONAL TRAINING UNDERTAKEN DURING THE INDUCTION PERIOD

NAME OF COURSE DURATION DATE

Training can be arranged through your line manager:

THIS AND ANY FURTHER STAFF DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES OR TRAINING SHOULD BE RECORDED IN YOUR CPD FILE.

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STAFF INDUCTION PROGRAMME

RECORD OF COMPLETION

Name: Centre / Department: Date Commenced: Designation:

I confirm that I have undertaken and completed the

Induction Programme which commenced on the above date.

Signed: Date:

Employee

I confirm that the above named person has undertaken

and completed the Induction Programme.

Signed: Date:

Line Manager

Signed: Date:

Lead Manager

On completion of the Induction, this page must be signed and a copy of the page sent to:

Marilyn Lines

Hull Training

Orchard Park Campus

Dane Park Road

Hull

HU6 9AR

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References

Briggs, A and Sommefeldt, D (2002) Managing Effective Learning & Teaching

London: Paul Chapman Educational Publishing

Kakabadse, A Ludlow, R and Vinnicombe, S (1987) Working in Organisations.

Aldershot, Gower Press

Levin, B, (1994) Improving Educational Productivity: Putting students at the centre.

Phi Delta Kappan

Middlewood D, Lumby J – (1998) Human resource management in schools and

colleges. London: Paul Chapman Educational Publishing

Roberts, G. (1997) Recruitment and Selection: A Competency Approach, London

CIPD

Scein, E (1978) Career Dynamics. New York: Addison Wesley

Stoll, L and Fink, D (1996) Changing our schools, Buckingham: Open University

Press.

Additional references

Tom Wilkinson Placement Officer Hull Training

David Coulson Lead Teacher (Fabrication/Welding)

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Glossary

LSC – Learning & Skills Council

Itec – Information Technology Centre

OC – Opportunity Centre

HCC – Hull City Council

HCCT – Hull City Council Training

MLP – Minimum Levels of Performance

QTLS – Qualified Teacher Learning & Skills

WBL – Work Based Learning

ERC - Economic Regeneration Committee