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There’s a reason that new hire buddy programs are popular. According to Gallup, employees who have a friend or buddy at work are seven times more likely to be engaged in their jobs, are better at engaging customers, produce higher quality work, have higher wellbeing, and are less likely to get injured on the job.
While the research supports having a buddy program, it doesn’t mean that companies shouldn’t evaluate the program’s success. Just because a program exists doesn’t mean that all parts of the program are running smoothly. Especially when it comes to buddy programs, which have multiple stakeholders. In fact, that could be one approach to evaluating the program – check in with the four key stakeholders to confirm that program goals and objectives are being met.
New hire employees. More than 28% of Americans are looking for new jobs, according to an article from NBC News. The last thing companies want is to spend a lot of time and resources hiring someone only to have them leave within the first year.
Check in with new hires to make sure they feel the buddy program is helpful. Organizations can create 1-2 question pulse surveys to collect data and benchmark results. They can also conduct focus groups with new hires to collect stories about how the program is working.
Hiring manager. A primary goal of creating an onboarding buddy program is productivity. The faster employees become engaged, the more productive they become. There’s a strong chance that the hiring manager is going to select the buddy, so they will be looking for feedback about how the buddy relationship is working.
Initially, it could be challenging to receive direct feedback from new hires and buddies about how the relationship is progressing. Electronic surveys could be a great way to start collecting information. Once trust has been established, managers can use one-on-one meetings to get more details.
The buddy. Just a reminder that the buddy isn’t the new hire’s supervisor and they’re not a substitute for training. That being said, the buddy does have a role, and they should be given the opportunity to share feedback with HR, the hiring manager, and maybe even the new hire.
The other aspect of the buddy role to consider is the buddy’s performance. Organizations are going to select a buddy who is a high-performer. No one wants a new hire learning bad habits. Do buddies view their role of helping new hires as recognition? Does having a buddy program lift company performance as a result?
Human resources. Buddy programs do add a few extra steps for HR in terms of making sure that buddies have been assigned, roles clarified, and the program explained during orientation. But conducting the pulse surveys or focus groups (mentioned above) shouldn’t be an administrative burden. Hopefully, surveying employees is already taking place in some form and this is just an extension of those efforts.
If the research supporting buddy programs is correct, HR should see a reduction in turnover. Better onboarding and more engagement leads to greater retention. It should also help with cost per hire. Lower turnover means less hiring (and fewer hiring expenses).
Measuring the results of your onboarding buddy program doesn’t have to be difficult or complex. But, it does need to happen. Checking in with the key stakeholders allows organizations to make sure that everyone involved in the program is seeing the results they need. And using a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods translates into feedback that all groups will find valuable.
Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while grabbing a bubble tea at Kung Fu Tea in Gainesville, FL
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