The welcome book: a means of disseminating company culture
The hand over of the welcome booklet comprises an important stage in the integration of a new recruit into the company. This toolbox should contain all the information needed to enable a new recruit to find his or her bearings in the new working environment. It should therefore include a mixture of information related to the company culture as well as practical details that will be useful in everyday life. The information should be wellorganised and structured and adapted to the users’ needs.
An instrument for conveying the company’s image
The booklet should above all portray a true picture of the company: the aim is for the new joiner to learn more about its history, its organisational chart, its positioning, its vision, its philosophy, its values, etc. And this list is not exhaustive, since everything depends on the messages the company wishes to convey. It therefore has the potential to be a strong tool with a unifying power, which transmits the company culture and already develops the beginnings of a feeling of belonging. As it is often one of the first internal documents that the employee will receive, the booklet must make a “good impression” from the very first pages, it should leave a lasting impression. This is why this support tool constitutes an important vector of the company’s image, and for this reason, the content is as important as the form.
Generally speaking, and according to a study carried out by the INRS (Institut National de Recherche et de Sécurité) in 2009, designing an effective approach to integrating new employees enables the employer to:
- Limit turnover
- Improve the company’s image
- save time (in the long run, taking a little time for the new employee can save a lot of time)
- reduce the risk of work-related accidents and illnesses;
- Have a positive effect on the newcomer’s attitude, and therefore the quality of his or her work;
- Mobilise and motivate staff
Similarly, for the newcomer, the following advantages can de distinguished: - Reassuring them
- Giving them a sense of direction
- Enabling them to acquire a good insight into the company culture more quickly
- Giving meaning and purpose to work
- Reducing the risk of accidents and occupational illness
- Taking care of the induction of a new employee is therefore a win-win strategy.
Asking the right questions
Designing an induction booklet requires you to put yourself in the shoes of the new recruit. What are their needs, their expectations, their first contacts, etc.? These are the sort of questions you will need to ask.
The following conditions must be met in order to involve the participants, manage the documentation and thus create an effective tool:
- Create a basis for regular collaborative interaction
- Master the document management process
Working groups
The creation of a working group may help to identify the needs of both the staff and the employer. They will highlight key issues and help define HR-related challenges. Such groups should ideally be composed of communication and human resources managers, as well as representatives of the company’s employees.
The document management process
Each document must be subject to specific processing in order to be identified and identifiable. The production phases range from analysing the need, to collecting information, via drafting, proofreading, validating, managing translations, editing, testing and finally collective distribution.
Drafting documents
The drafting method should also consider the need to update the support tool. For this reason, the document should be modular and flexible in order to facilitate updates and to allow for the elimination of obsolete documents on a regular basis. The information should be written concisely and clearly so that the user does not get lost in a profusion of data and can quickly find the information they are looking for. Ideally you should alternate between visuals and text in order to make the tool more dynamic.
The test
Before distributing the tool in real life, a test on a sample of current employees will ensure it every chance of success and integration. Thanks to this sort of test you will be able to make any necessary changes and readjustments at several levels: is the medium well adapted to the content, does the form serve the content, is is easy to read, does the translation reflect the initial meaning, accurately is the document user-friendly, ergonomic… in short, will the booklet be well received?
Presentation and distribution off the booklet
It is essential to present the tool to all the staff, as this will underline its status as a reference document for the company and help to bring it to life.
This tool, which is sometimes considered superfluous and as such does not exist in many companies, is an effective means of supporting integration and of reinforcing the feeling of belonging among employees. It also makes it possible to promote staff loyalty. It remains for those involved in its production and dissemination to ensure it is useful, to make it durable, to keep it up-to-date and to improve it constantly.
Senior Consultant @MindForest Group
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