All of these useful pieces of information and more can be found in your in-room handbook.
An employee handbook is very much like this. It gives your employees easy point of reference for everything they may need to know and doing their day-to-day jobs. Whether your handbook is something you hand your employees in paper form or a searchable section on your intranet accessible for easy reference, having access to this rich source of useful information can make doing the day job much easier.
Policies and procedures
In order to ensure the smooth running as any workplace, there will always be arranged policies and procedures that all employees have to follow. Everything from HR policies through to financial procedures helps to ensure the organisation is performing optimally.
For new starters, finding the information to get the job done all in one place can be extremely helpful. Even employees who have been with your organisation for a long time can find having a central source of useful information very beneficial. This can reduce the amount of time spent looking for documents or asking questions in order to find the answers needed to finish a task.
Part of induction
As part of a new employee induction, a well-written handbook can help to take some of the strain out of explaining everything to a new member of staff. Knowing a member of staff can refer to the handbook at any point if they forget anything they were told during induction can take some of the strain out of induction for both the inductee and the person carrying out the orientation.
It also gives the opportunity to set out the culture of the organisation for the new employee to read. Putting a foreword with a welcoming message from a senior person within the organisation can help the new employee feel immediately welcome within your company.
Saving time
As already mentioned above, having easy access to information is necessary to do a good job and can save time at work. If someone has details to hand on how to fix a problem they’re having, they’re likely to get on and do it rather than taking the time to find someone they can ask and the time of the other person to explain. Not only does that make for a more empowered workforce, it builds confidence and self-sufficiency amongst employees.
Greater clarity
Employees work best when they are clear on what they are doing and how to do it. With a well laid-out employee handbook, both of these can be addressed.
Policies on matters such as taking leave, pay and conditions and codes of conduct can be brought together with simple instructions on carrying out day-to-day tasks to ensure that all employees understand what is expected of them and are on a level playing field with their colleagues.
Conclusion
An employee handbook is a multi-purpose document that can have great benefits for an organisation. Bringing clarity to employees, offering an easy point of reference and reducing time spent fact-finding can all contribute to a more productive and harmonious workplace for employees new and experienced alike.
If your business does not have Employee Handbook then call Alistair Booth and you’ll be surprised how painless this process and how beneficial it will be to you as an employer.
