IT Leaders

Team Selection and Induction Processes

Staff Induction Processes

A lot of internal processes and procedures go into recruitment and induction to build our great teams. It is expensive and time consuming, but the reward is in the stability and skill of our teams and the satisfaction of our clients.

How do we do it?

The system is refined every quarter, but currently all prospective staff members go through the following rigors to earn the right to join our team and serve you.

Recruitment

  1. Initial Screening pertinent to role. ( This is often as far as other IT providers go when selecting their next staff member)
  2. All references are checked thoroughly by an external consultant. This is a crucial part of validating all references and qualifications claimed by a potential new staff member. We find many people are ‘creative’ on their resumes and references and we need to cut through the clutter to get the real answers on their strengths and weakness.
  3. Short List interview – including written examination for technical roles. Just as people can sometimes be creative on their resumes, they can also easily present themselves as having a skill level higher than they actually have. Our written exam gives us a snapshot of exactly what their technical skill level is like. This process always cuts down the list.
  4. Practical Exam. FOr technical positions, those who pass the written exam are invited to partake in the practical exam. This is series of tasks they must perform on our test virtual server. An examiner watches on. A lot is revealed about skill levels by how quickly someone moves to the correct settings screen to fix an issue, or moves through a series of screens to arrive at a diagnosis.
  5. Modified Short list all given a Profiling Session by our executive coaches to determine what is behind the polished interview skills. This also assists us in determining particular management techniques that will be required to get a consistent perfect result from that person IF they are hired.
  6. Final in person interview by Operations Manager and General Manager.

Induction

So now we have our perfect candidate starting work, however we have our reputation and our clients’ businesses to protect so we can’t let them loose just yet. From day 1 they go through the following quality assurance process. (This process is slightly different for non-technical staff.) If they cannot pass these processes with flying colours they will be constructively disciplined or terminated.

  1. Induction Week. In the first week they are shown how we do business. This is done via an induction checklist so we don’t miss anything. The new staff member reads our Operations Manual and their Job Description thoroughly and they spend much of this first week shadowing our other brilliant staff. No clients deal directly will new staff members until at least the second month.
  2. Performance Appraisal – Week 1. This is formal Appraisal meeting for us to give immediate feedback/training/discipline to the new staff member and ensures that they are what we thought they would be. We also invite them to review our Induction procedures to see if we can find ways to improve the delivery of the critical information required for their to do their job properly.
  3. Testing Month. For the first month, new technical staff work almost entirely under supervision. This enables us the opportunity to identify any issues in skill, attitude or communication that need immediate attention. This usually involves just adjusting their work habits to fit ours and our clients’ needs.
  4. Performance Appraisal – Month 3. This is an expanded Performance Appraisal which reviews all aspects of their technical and non-technical skills, and their alignment with our vision.
  5. Initial Field Pressure Testing. Depending upon how the new staff member has performed, they will proceed into solo field work in either month 2 or month 3. This depends entirely upon management’s confidence in their technical and communications skills. Initially they are given small jobs and we actively get feedback from those clients. Some people manage the pressures of field work better than others so we monitor this closely, and assess relative to the position they are hired for.
  6. Self-Managed Field Work. Our higher level techs (Client Technical Managers, Senior Client Technical Managers and Specialists) are required to have a high degree of self management and client management skills. In the third month these abilities are monitored closely to ensure that clients are happy with their new technician.
  7. Ongoing Performance Appraisals are conducted every 3 months and then extended to 6 or 9 months if the team member is productive, happy, motivated and has content clients.
  8. Ongoing Training. We encourage our staff to select some training they would like to do, need to do, or that is relevant to their career growth. In most cases we pay for training materials and testing.

Why not ask your current IT provider what they do to ensure the integrity of service levels?

You might like to look at some of our our ethics, or read other good reasons to join the IT Leaders family.