Orientation leads techs in the right direction

Getting them up to speed quickly on operations, regulations and general shop culture will help them get comfortable in the bays as much as it will help you keep business running smoothly. Putting a well planned, detailed orientation plan for new hires — whether they are new techs or veterans — into place can save you in the long run.

"I think if there's a formal orientation, you can avoid all that confusion and people making assumptions (like) 'Well, that's just what I thought you'd want me to do,'" says Bill Haas, vice president of education and training with the Automotive Service Association (ASA). "And that's usually when people start getting into trouble."

Starting with some basics, like highlighting similarities between a previous shop and yours for veteran techs, can help jumpstart the process.

"There's I think a lot of routine things that go on in the course of the day-to-day business within a shop that without an orientation — and if I'm a brand new tech fresh out of tech school and come to work in that facility and there's no orientation — I'm kind of like a lost puppy," Haas explains. "So then I sort of have to hope that someone else will take me under their wing and kind of show me the ropes or give me some guidance on, 'Hey, don't do this or we don't do that, that way' or those kinds of things."

Putting a Plan in Place

"That's where you start to run into problems where the technician will say, well, at the last place I worked we always ordered our own parts," Haas says. "Well, are they ordering parts from suppliers you have accounts with or people you don't normally do business with? All those kinds of things are considerations for that orientation program so that within a day or two of that new hire coming on, they hit the ground running and they just fall into the same processes that the rest of the employees use."

Aside from the accidents and parts information, also share with the technicians:

• Who is allowed to answer the phone and the proper way it should be done.
• When shop meetings are conducted and what is expected of them during the meetings.
• How to address customers.
• Where shop equipment is located and any systems in place to check it in or out.
• Policies on time off, breaks and other work day information.
• Services performed and the manner in which maintenance or repairs should be addressed.

Covering at least these areas in an orientation program can help eliminate friction between employees when a new technician comes on board.

"I think one of the things that becomes tragic is that you have employees that have been with you for a period of time and they understand what you want, how you want it done, what the expectations are and the processes," Haas describes. "And then a new hire comes in and just sort of is oblivious to all of that and starts his own methodology of how he's going to work within his business. Then there's this sort of turmoil that's created with the rest of the employees, like wait a minute, why's he so special that they don't do what we do? I think all these kinds of things can be avoided."

Jim Enger, owner of Enger Auto Service and Tire with 23 locations in Northeast Ohio, actually starts his orientation program early. A three-step interview process includes meetings with the other technicians in the final step as a way to start building the team as soon as possible to help maintain shop cohesiveness.

"As a shop owner, I really like to involve the manager, the service manager and other technicians after the hiring process has taken place. It's very important for the guys that are in that shop to know and receive the new guy coming in before he actually starts," he explains. "And it takes a lot of the edge off the new guy if he already knows the technicians, the roles, the service manager, what they expect, how it flows."

Enger adds that this orientation and other meetings should be done after work hours and after financial terms of the position have been agreed to.

Timing is Everything

Once you have the plan in place and your new and old technicians are on board, map out how much time should be devoted to the orientation. Haas says most orientations happen during the course of a couple of days.

Make sure someone can spend just a couple of hours each day with the new hire showing him or her the ropes of the business.

"Then I don't think it's unpractical to think that maybe a couple days down the road, someone follows up with them," Haas says. "But I think you want to be careful that at the same time you don't go into overload."

As for the veteran technicians, keep in mind any similarities you find between how you run your shop and how their previous location operated. That can help you get the new hire accustomed to your shop quickly without beating an issue into the ground, Haas suggests.

"At the same time where there may be differences in what they're used to doing and what you're expecting of them as the new hire in your business, it's important that you take the time to make sure that all their questions are answered and that they're comfortable with the systems and processes you've implemented within the business," he explains. "I think you can avoid the insulting thing by quickly coming to an understanding that that's what we do and getting on the same page and moving on."

Orienting Yourself

If you're not quite sure where to begin with an orientation program, sit down and start mapping out the processes that you feel are important to learn to successfully work in your shop. Getting ideas out on paper is a good first step.

You also can involve outside resources to create employee handbooks or procedural manuals to include in your orientation. Haas adds that speaking to someone outside your shop can help you make sure you're not crossing any legal boundaries in your orientation process that could violate employment laws.

But in the end, making sure you have a plan in place to show your new employees will keep the business running smoothly like there never was a change in the bays at all.