Four Lessons to Improve Onboarding from Beavercreek City Schools
Editor’s Note: Deron Schwieterman, Director of Human Resources for Beavercreek City Schools, contributed to this blog.
When you are immersed in the daily demands of work, it’s easy to take for granted you’re the current ways of day to day activities. Sometimes it takes exposure to outside ideas or approaches to awaken a new perspective. For Deron Schwieterman, Director of Human Resources at Beavercreek City Schools (BCS), that moment came when he participated in the Human Capital Leaders in Education (HCLE) Certification Program alongside PK-12 HR professionals from across Ohio. Learning about the differences between orientation and onboarding as part of HCLE prompted him to look more closely at how BCS welcomes new staff and acclimates them to the district. While BCS did a good job of orienting new employees to key policies and safety protocols, employees were largely left to figure things out on their own after the initial orientation event. Furthermore, the orientation processes in place focused on teaching and administrative staff while largely overlooking classified employees.
This realization led Mr. Schwieterman to work with others in the district over the past two years to improve their onboarding processes. He examined how to make better use of existing resources and how to involve principals and other administrators to make the onboarding process more robust. Initially, two questions initially drove the efforts to improve BCS’s orientation and onboarding processes:
How can we develop a year-long onboarding process rather than a one-point-in-time transactional event?
How can we provide a better orientation and onboarding experience for classified employees?
Below are four takeaways from their journey to improve orientation and onboarding.
1. Connect with local partners to introduce new employees to your district and the community.
As BCS looked for meaningful ways to help new employees learn about their district culture and the community, they found great value in working with Beavercreek Historical Society. The Beavercreek Board of Education is located next to Wartinger Park, which is now home to several historical structures built in the 1800s including a home that shares its name with one of the middle schools. New hires are brought to the park to help them make connections to Beavercreek’s history as a community. The district, which was also the location of the 2nd high school ever built in Ohio, has a deep history of valuing education. By partnering with the Beavercreek Historical Society, the district has found innovative ways to cultivate these values in new hires.
2. Make new employees feel valued and welcomed.
Another key change involved reconceptualizing how to make both orientation and onboarding part of a more welcoming process for staff. With a goal of celebrating new staff, the team planned a mock draft event. Each new staff member received a football jersey with their name on the back and was recognized for having been drafted by BCS. The event was commentated by the play-by-play announcer who calls home football games. The mayor, state representatives, board of trustees, and civic leaders were invited to attend this welcome event. This year COVID-19 forced BCS to find a new way to welcome employees. The community celebration was replaced by a video that recognized each new employee and new employees also received a small gift.
3. Plan regular touchpoints throughout the first year.
It’s easy to overwhelm new employees with information at the beginning of the year. To avoid information overload, Mr. Schwieterman schedules meetings with new administrators on relevant topics throughout the year. For example, the December meeting focused on BCS’s structured interview process for hiring before the hiring season ramps up in late winter. In addition, he has check-ins with each new administrator at 3 months, 6 months, and at the end of the year. The check-in process for other positions is less formal, but they continue to monitor and evaluate the amount of support provided to other groups of new employees.
4. Balance teambuilding and differentiated support.
Designing a new orientation program provided an opportunity for BCS to intentionally work to eliminate the implicit class systems that emerged between certified and classified staff. The new five-day orientation program now include events that all new employees are invited to attend such as a welcome breakfast where classified and certified employees are encouraged to interact along with segments that are geared toward specific positions. For example, the associations for classified staff also host their own breakfast on a different day. Each new employee received a detailed schedule, so they know where to be each day. After BCS made deliberate efforts to include classified staff in orientation, the positive feedback was immediate. Newly hired special education assistants shared that it was the first time they felt involved and included in a district’s activities. Even though the BCS must pay to have classified staff attend orientation days, the district has found it has been a worthwhile investment in their personnel.
As BSC looks to the future, their goal is to continue find ways to increase the support provided to new employees.
For tools and resources to enhance your onboarding program, visit the Onboarding section of the Human Capital Resource Center.