The first 180 Days of employment 10 Things to closely review

So, you have now made a decision to hire someone (after reading the article “How to hire the right person”). The first 6 months of employment is critical to not only the future success of the role but whether the employee chooses to stay in the organisation. To help you check-in and provide useful feedback, below is a checklist that you may consider as a base.

 

The NBRI July 16, 2013 Infographic states the below 6 things ‘defines a bad hire’.:-

Quality of work                                                         67%

Failure to work well with other employees                   60%

Negative attitude                                                      59%

Attendance Problems                                                 54%

Complaints from Customers                                       44%

Failure to meet deadlines                                           Review44%

If that is case, using the above but also adding in a few more areas, I would recommend completing the below checklist every month of a new starters probation period to cross check progress and provide feedback. The key to the success of this checklist however is to ensure that you cover off as soon as the employee starts that you will review these areas monthly (in fact, even forward book it in both of your diaries so it is not awkward to do later and they keep those points front of mind as well so there are no surprises).

These areas may also be used as part of the Reference Checking process.

Area New Team Member  Score Employer Score
1 Quality of WorkAttention to detail

Accuracy

Standard of work / presentation

2 Ability to work effectively with team
3 Positive, solution-orientated attitude
4 Attendance
5 Customer Service (internally and/or externally)
6 Does what they say! Ability to meet deadlines and gets the job done
7 Provides information as requested (on time, without being prompted)
8 Demonstrates Company Values
9 Takes initiativeHelps others where possible

Looks to overachieve on tasks and proactively find next ones to do

10 Communicates and updates effectively

 

Score out of 5 (5 being highest). Use TE if applicable (too early to tell)

There are many more areas you may potentially add. The above areas are predominantly focused on giving feedback and monitoring key behaviours. Position KPI’s/progress against projects may also be used and added to the checklist. It is important also to use these conversations as an opportunity to get feedback from the employee on how they are feeling about the organisation, team and position; what their observations are and whether they have any ideas on company improvements. New sets of eyes can see things in a different way so you want to make sure you provide the opportunity for them to share!

The Cost of a Bad Hire Infographic – National Business Research Institute, July 16, 2013 by Ken West
Hope you enjoyed the article.

Best Wishes
PK