Extending a Warm WelcomeWe all like to feel welcome when we go somewhere new, and it is no different for our new staff. Rachel Wells, General Manager People & Capability, says that we have the opportunity to ensure new staff are set up for success before their first day at Nelson Marlborough Health.

“We are all vulnerable when we start something new, so being prepared and available to support new people is essential,” says Rachel.

She says recruitment is an expensive process so it makes sense to invest in the process of socialising or ‘on-boarding’ new staff.

In 2018, a new induction process was put in place to help improve the experience for new staff joining the organisation.

“We used to front load everything and tell people everything on their first day and expect them to remember it,” Rachel says. “Now the emphasis is on building relationships and connections with their managers or team leader.”

Managers can schedule new staff to start on any day that works for them, and use induction toolkits on the intranet to work through the process with new staff.  This offers greater flexibility to guide, progress and monitor orientation over the three-month induction period.

Rachel appreciates the new process affects many people and is grateful to those that have worked hard to embrace the changes.

“We have had some really positive feedback about the ‘Warm Welcome’ aspect,” she says. 

“There are also some challenges that we are working through, but generally it has gone down well.”

CE supports our warm welcome

Our CE Peter Bramley says starting a new role with Nelson Marlborough Health is a significant event for many people, and we need to acknowledge that.

“People are at the heart of our organisation, and they deserve a warm welcome when they begin with us.” he says, “We want to acknowledge we are excited about them starting with us  in their new role, and also highlight our vision and values and the part they will play in delivering and supporting quality care in our community.” 

“You could see the passion that the managers had… and those people at the orientation were putting that across to us. It just made you feel that you wanted to be part of it. Yeah, it was good.” (Karen Aitken, Public Health Nurse).