Responsibility far and Scheduling of Orientation
Although orientation is often the joint responsibility of the training staff and the line supervisor, peers often serve as excellent information agents. There are several reasons for using peers in performing this Function, For one thing, they are accessible to newcomers, often more so than the boss. Peers also tend to have a high degree of empathy for new people. In addition, they have the organizational experience and technical expertise to which new employees need access. Some organizations assign a mentor or “buddy” to each new hire to work with them until they are settled in.
Orientation may occupy a new employee’s first few days on the job. However, some fimis believe that learning is more effective if spread out over time. For example, a company may deliver a program in a system of 20 one-hour sessions over a period of several weeks. Some firms are sensitive to information overload and make information available to employees on an as-needed basis. For example, a new supervisor may eventually have the responsibility for evaluating his or her subordinates. But, knowledge of how to do this may not he needed for six months. A training segment on performance evaluation may be