13 Placement and Induction I

Dr Anurodh Godha

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1. Learning Outcome:

After completing this unit, you will be able to:

  • Understand the meaning and characteristics of placement
  • Know the principles of good placement in an organization
  • Understand the various benefits of good placement practices
  • Know the meaning and objectives of induction programme
  • Point out the various types of induction programme
  • Come across the various phases of induction programme
  • Develop and understand various approaches of induction.

2. Placement: An Introduction

 

Source: http://bbdu.ac.in/img/placements/placement.jpg

Selection and placement are often inseparable parts of a single process. After the selection process is over, an employee is put to a specific job, for which he has been selected. In very simple words placement means sending the newly employed person to some department for work. Placing the right man at the right job is as important as hiring the right person. It is, therefore, desirable to have a sound scheme of placement in every organisation so that the employees feel comfortable on their new jobs. Most of the organisations put new employees on probation for a specified period after which they are confirmed, provided they match the organisational requirements. Placement helps the new recruit find a job in sync with what has been promised by the employer at the time of selection.

3. Placement: Meaning and Definition

Source: https://www.firstplacement.in/img/mainlogo2.png

The selection procedure ends with the placement of a worker to the job. The term ‘placement’ is nothing but posting of people to jobs matching their abilities. It implies matching the requirements of a job with the qualifications of the candidate. It involves assigning a specific rank and responsibility to an individual. Matching the requirements of the job with the qualifications of a candidate is the essence of placement.

According to Pigors and Myers “Placement consists in matching what the supervisor has reason to think the new employee can do with what the job demands (job requirements), imposes (in strain, working conditions, etc.), and offers (in the form of pay rate, interest, companionship with others, promotional possibilities, etc.)” They further state that it is not easy to match all these factors for a new worker who is still in many ways an unknown quantity.

4. Characteristics of Placement

  • It is an important human resource activity for an organization.
  • It is the actual posting of an employee to a specific job, in other words it is assigning particular job (specific rank and responsibility) to employee for which they have been identified suitable.
  • It involves the task to understand and capitalize on each person’s individuality. Once the manager establishes a unique profile for each individual, people and jobs can be matched optimally within the constraints set by available jobs and available people.
  • It involves striking a fit between the requirements of a job and the qualifications of a candidate.

  • Placement should be made with as minimum disruption to the employee and organization as possible.

  • Effective placement is a good match of employee’s competence, knowledge, skill and job interest

5. Principles of a Good Placement

 

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(1) The job should be offered to the selected candidate according to his qualifications. The placement should neither be higher nor lower than the qualifications.

(2) Employee should be placed on the job according to the job requirements. The job should not be adjusted according to the requirements of the employee. If a candidate adjusts himself to the job and continues to perform as per expectations, it might mean that the candidate is properly placed. Job first, employee next, should be the principle of placement.

(3) The employee should be made familiar to the working conditions prevailing in the organization and an effort should be made to develop a sense of loyalty in newly selected employee, so that he may realize his responsibilities better towards the organization.

(4) Initially the placement period may be temporary as changes are likely after the completion of training. The employee may be later transferred to the job where he can do better justice.

Proper placement helps to improve employee morale. Right placement also helps to reduce labour turnover, absenteeism and accident rates.

6. Benefits of Placement

The benefits of placement may be summarised as follows:

Source: Designed by Author

A. Benefits to New Employee

  • Make him suitable for the job
  • Increase the satisfaction level
  • Increase the productivity
  • Continuous learning and high morale

  B. Benefits to the recruiting organisation

  • Reduction in cost and save the productive time involve in hiring process
  • Improve the quality of new employee
  • Enhancement in retention
  • Improvement in efficiency
  • Achievement of Organizational goals

If placement is neglected, it may increase employee absenteeism, turnover, accidents, poor performance, etc. The employee may quit the organisation in frustration, complaining about and criticising everything.

7. Induction or Orientation

Source: https://www.lovelandpreschool.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/orientation.jpg

When a new employee joins an organisation, he should be welcomed as a new member of the family and must be helped to get acquainted and adjusted with his fellow employee and work environment. Induction is a technique by which a new employee is rehabilitated into his surroundings and introduced to the practices, policies and purposes of the organisation. The new employee is a complete stranger to the people, work place and work environment. Thus Induction is a welcoming process – the idea is to welcome a newcomer, make him feel at home and generate in him a feeling that his own job, however small, is meaningful and has a significance as a part of the total organisation. Initial impression counts, much in the attitude of the employee towards the job and the company.

Gary Dessler says, “Carefully selecting employees doesn’t guarantee they will perform effectively. Potential is one thing, performance is another. Even high- potential employees can’t do their jobs if they don’t know what to do or how to do it. Therefore, managers should ensure that employees do know what to do and how to do it. This is the purpose of orienting employees.” Thus, all organisations have some type of formal or informal induction programme.

8. Meaning and Definition of Induction

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Induction, is designed to provide a new employee with the information he needs to function comfortably and effectively in the organisation. Inductions may be viewed as the socialising process by which organisation seeks to make an individual its agent for the achievement of its objectives and the individual seeks to make an agency of the organisation the achievement of his personal goals.

A few definitions of induction are written below:

According to Michael Armstrong, “Induction is the process of receiving and welcoming employees when they first join a company and giving them the basic information they need to settle down quickly and happily and start work.”

According to Edwin B. Flippo “Induction is the welcoming process to make the new employee feel at home and generate in him a feeling of belongingness to the organisation.”

In the words of John M. Ivancevich, “Orientation orients, directs, and guides employees to understand the work, firm, colleagues, and mission. It introduces new employees to the organisation, and to his new tasks, managers, and work groups.”

According to Donald Currie, “Induction is a process through which new employees, preferably on joining, are introduced to the organisation in the broad context; its culture, rules and procedures; then in the local context where they meet their new work colleagues.”

Thus, after selecting compatible personnel the organisation must communicate to the new employee its philosophy, policies, customs and practices. The new employee is handed over a rulebook, policy manuals, progress reports, company booklets and documents containing company information which are informational in nature. It is the responsibility of the HR department to execute the induction programme. Planned induction helps the new employee, creates a good attitude, reduces labour turnover and the employee feels at home right from the very beginning.

9. Objectives of Induction Programme

 

Source: http://www.ecbcouncil.com/images/about/objective.jpg

An organisation especially a large one should have a systematic induction programme to achieve the following objectives:-

1. To reduce the initial anxiety and stress all new entrants feel when they join a new job in a new organisation.

2. To build up the new employee’s confidence in the organisation and in himself so that he may become an efficient employee and to promote a feeling of belongingness and loyalty towards the organisation

3. To provide favourable initial job experiences and to answer any questions and to clarify any doubts.

4. To understand the firm in a broad sense (its past, present, values, culture, and vision), as well as key facts such as structure, product, policies, rules and regulations.

5. To bring an agreement between the organisation goals/ expectations and the personal goals of the organisation.

6. To foster self-directed behaviour which is consistent with the company’s needs.

7. To familiarize the new employees with the job, people, work-place, work environment and the organisation.

8. To assist the new employee in acquiring appropriate role behaviours and to adjust to the work group and its norms..

9. To create a sense of security for the worker in his job by impressing upon the idea that fairness to the worker is the inherent policy of the organisation and to reduce employee turnover and start-up costs.

10. To reduce the time it takes for the newcomer to reach proficiency.

10. Types of Induction Programme

 

Source: https://remiyasivan.files.wordpress.com/2015/10/17397603-abstract-word-cloud-for-induction-training-with-related-tags-and-terms-stock-photo.jpg

According to a classification, induction programmes may be of following types:

A. Informal or Unplanned Induction: It is generally done by the small scale units. This may be simply an introduction to the new entrant about the job and organisation. It can be conducted by the immediate job supervisor or by an experienced employee.

B. Formal or Planned Induction: It is usually carried out by the large size organisation to integrate the newcomer into the organisation. It is carefully designed to introduce the newcomer to his job, colleagues and organisation. Accordingly, the contents of the formal induction programme cover the following various aspects:

  • The company, its mission, goals, rules, policies, practices, history and products, process of production and major operations involved in his job;
  • The significance of Job, job training and job hazards;
  • Employee’s own department and job and how they fit into the organisation, methods of reporting, tardiness absenteeism;
  • Terms and conditions of service, hours of work and overtime, employee benefits, holidays and vacations, amenities, and welfare facilities;
  • Organizational Structure- functions of the various departments;
  • Social benefits, grievance procedure and rules of discipline;
  • Follow-up interviews at the end of 3 or 6 months with a view to finding out how the new employee is getting along;
  • Opportunities, promotions, transfers and job stabilisation

On the basis of purpose and objectives, an induction programme may be of three types:

Source: Designed by Author

General Orientation: It is conducted by the personnel department. This type of induction is general; it gives the necessary general information about the history and operations of the organization, the purpose of this is to build employee’s pride and interest in the organisation. Information is also given on specific employee services, such as social benefits, pension, health and welfare plans, safety programmes, etc.

Specific Orientation: It is conducted by the job supervisor. This type of induction is specific in nature and requires skill on the part of the foreman. The employee is oriented his department or place of work, introduced to other employees of the department, informed about the organisation’s specific practices and customs (such as lunch timings and length of rest periods, the work dress etc). The purpose of this induction is to enable an employee to adjust himself in his work environment.

Follow-up Orientation: It takes place within one week to six months from the time of the initial hiring and orientation. It is conducted either by a foreman or a human resource specialist. Its purpose is to find out whether the employee is satisfied or unsatisfied with the work place, how he feels about his fellow workers, how he feels about his boss, and whether he has any suggestions for improvement in organization. The interviewer records the answers as well as his own comments on the employee progress. At the same time, the immediate supervisor does an evaluation of the employee about his strong and weak points. Through personal talks, guidance and counselling, efforts are made to remove the difficulties.

11. Phases of Induction Programme

The socialisation process may take months hence the induction programme can be divided into following four phases:

Phase one: Acclimating workers by providing expectations and product training.

Phase two: Providing training sessions on the company’s history, strategy, policies, and benefits.

Phase three: Putting the employee on the job for first three months and focusing on training of employee about the market, its customers, and business plans.

Phase four: It carries on through at least six months and consists of interim reviews and feedback.

According to Edwin B. Flippo the induction programme can be divided into three phases as mentioned below:

A. First Phase: It is usually conducted by the staff personnel unit. In thus phase the newly recruited employee is make aware about products of the company, employee benefits, salary schedules, safety, probationary period, time recording and absences, holidays, equal employment opportunity programmes, parking, and the grievance procedure.

B. Second Phase: It is performed by the immediate supervisor. The inductee is introduced to fellow employees, given a tour of the department, and informed about such details as locker and rest rooms, supply procedures, hours of work, overtime, call-in procedures, rest and lunch periods, and lunching facilities.

C. Phase Three: The complete induction programme provides a ‘follow- up’ some weeks later. This is conducted by either the supervisor or a personnel specialist, and it is concerned with (1) employee satisfaction with the job and organisation, and (2) supervisor satisfaction with the employee. Dissatisfactions may be cleared up by explanations or actual transfers to a different job.

12. Induction Approaches

 

Source: https://fixingtheeconomists.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/differentapproachtosuccess.jpeg

Based on the managers’ attitudes to induction, resources, objectives, he adopts several types of induction approaches. Organisations adopt several approaches to induction, out of which some are more complex and larger in duration than others. Some approaches are discussed below:

A. ‘Induction Pack’ Approach

Under this approach, the new employee is provided with various information materials in writing which we call induction pack. This may include annual reports, briefing about corporate structure & history of the organisation, something about its future plans, vision, layout for car parking, the staff canteen, any other facilities, terms and conditions of employment and the procedure of disciplinary and grievance handling.

B. Initial Briefing Approach

Under this approach, the new employee is explained about the main points of ‘induction pack’ by the HR practitioner. At this stage, a favourable picture of the organisation, especially in terms of its employment policies is shown to the newly appointed employee. A detailed briefing about the organisation is not normally offered at this stage.

C. Walk and Talk Approach

Under this approach, the new employee is visited to actual site and is given explanations about each work activity of each place. At the end the employee is taken to the department in which he will work and then a more detailed explanation of what happens in department is given. This is a good time to introduce the new employee to the staff.

D. Induction Training

A large number of organisations have adopted it as it is the most successful and effective form of induction. In this approach a number of training sessions are conducted and each session deals with a particular subject and is usually delivered by a person who has specialization in that area. The duration of the training sessions varies, and sometimes they are staggered across a number of days or even weeks, depending on the amount and complexity of the information to be delivered and work profile of the newly employed person.

13. Summary

Placing the right man at the right job is as important as hiring the right person. It is, therefore, desirable to have a sound scheme of placement in every organisation so that the employees feel comfortable on their new jobs. Placement involves assigning a specific rank and responsibility to an individual. Matching the requirements of the job with the qualifications of a candidate is the essence of placement. A good placement programme makes the employee suitable for the job, increase his satisfaction level & productivity and provide continuous learning to enhance the morale of employee.

Induction is a technique by which a new employee is rehabilitated into his surroundings and introduced to the practices, policies and purposes of the organisation. Inductions may be viewed as the socialising process by which organisation seeks to make an individual its agent for the achievement of its objectives and the individual seeks to make an agency of the organisation the achievement of his personal goals. Under induction the new employee is handed over a rulebook, policy manuals, progress reports, company booklets and documents containing company information which are informational in nature. It is the responsibility of the HR department to execute the induction programme. Planned induction helps the new employee, creates a good attitude, reduces labour turnover and the employee feels at home right from the very beginning.

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