If you’re going to go to the trouble and expense of recruiting and hiring, doesn’t it make sense to be sure the new employee actually wants to stay once they start? Three tips to make sure that happens:

1) Be ready and welcoming – Inform reception of the new hire’s name, expected time and who to call. Be sure the on-site manager is ready to welcome the person with a complete workstation (including all necessary computer equipment, working telephone, etc.) and introduce him/her around the office. Have someone lined up to take the new person to lunch.

2) Introduce them to your culture on day 1 – Don’t just hand the new hire the employee handbook, which typically reads as guidebook to what NOT to do. Also introduce the new hire to everything that makes your company a great place to work. If you have a strategic recognition program, show the employee how it works. Make it clear your company is all about working hard and praising hard work.

3) Have meaningful work ready for the first day – Too often the first day on a job is spent dealing with minutiae, forms, etc. Give the employee an introduction to the valuable contributions they will be making to the company. Have a project ready they can begin on day 1 to give them a flavor of the work they will be doing, but also set realistic expectations on delivery and completion based on training needs, etc.

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can break my heart.”

I was glad to see you include the power of positive words, too. In terms of the workplace, think how powerful it would be to create a culture of recognition and appreciation in which employees at all levels regularly express and hear positive words – words of commendation and appreciation with specific details on why that person and their efforts are matter.

For too many years, the aphorism above has been allowed in the workplace, if not actively encouraged under the false belief that “hardness” – cracking the whip – inspires employees to work more.

This couldn’t be farther from the truth. When employees know their work has meaning and that someone has noticed their efforts and appreciates them, they are far more motivated to continue down that path. I write passionately about this on my own blog (linked above) and am glad to see others do the same to carry this important message forward.

Your last point about carrying these skills home is critical, too. I firmly believe that being thankful and appreciative becomes a habit. Employees who may not experience in their personal lives but begin to experience regularly at work often carry these new skills in appreciation and thankfulness into their home lives as well. I wrote about this recently in a post about Zappos Culture Book in which one employee said:

“Our culture reminds me to be patient, generous, and kind. And, because I’m living that every day at work, it spills over into my personal life, and I find myself more patient, more generous, and more kind there also. In that way, the Zappos Culture not only benefits me, but it also benefits my friends and family.”

That post is available in full here: http://www.recognizethisblog.com/2011/07/would-you-publish-your-company-culture-in-a-free-book/
Many thanks to you and the team at Respectful Workplace for the good work you do that is most assuredly contributing to changing the workplace attitude for the better.