Project by: Ainhoa Alcalde
Project Purpose
The core objective of my project was to develop an onboarding program tailored specifically for student leads at BYU Idaho. Recognizing the significance of leadership skills in this university and the structure of most offices on campus, I aimed to empower student leads with an onboarding program that would allow them to get to know their new role better as well as the qualities and responsibilities they will have. This program sought to fill the gap between simply training for new tasks and training for leadership roles.
My Project
Lead Forward is a project that onboards new student leads to learn about their new role and the qualities they will need to acquire. The project has distinct modules that hope to address the various aspects of leadership development for student leads. Attached is a sample of the program as well as the complimentary resources.
Sample of Power Point used for onboarding training
Onboarding Job Aid formatted to be uploaded to Knowledge Base
Handout for leads to use during performance reviews
Challenges
Throughout the project I encountered several challenges, each offering valuable learning opportunities. One significant challenge was the fact that the original plan could not be executed the way it was envisioned since I no longer work at an office on campus. However, I used the feedback from a new lead who had just undergone the transition to her new role to use that as the base for this project.
Another issue that I faced was not being able to incorporate the onboarding program the way it was originally set, although this could not be fixed I was able to adapt this by providing the final onboarding program to the new lead and getting feedback to learn how useful it was compared to the previous resources she had.
The Project Process
The project started with a clear objective: to develop an onboarding program for student leads at BYU Idaho based on organizational principles. The initial phase began by conducting several interviews with a new student lead who works at an office at BYU Idaho.
Once the insights had been gathered I began an analysis to identify the pain points of the current training. After the potential improvements had been identified I moved on to research the best practices in organization and management.
As I was doing extensive research, I kept in contact with the lead as well as a professional advisor and both provided me with great ongoing insights and feedback. Once there was a clear path as to what the content of the program would be I moved on to making a strategy for the best design and layout. Once the onboarding program was created, I created a PowerPoint and performance review handout that served as a compliment to the program.
Overview of My Experiences
Creating this project provided me with invaluable insights into creating job aids for employees. Collaborating not only with employees but also with a professional advisor helped me incorporate diverse perspectives and experiences into this program. Collaboration was a great tool throughout the creation of this project since it required a lot of feedback to ensure I was heading in the right direction. I was also able to get a new perspective on new management practices, which I aim to apply in future management experiences.
Insights and Takeaways
Developing a project has given me a great deal of learning experiences. I incorporated previous project management experience in creating a project based on an idea I had. Most importantly I learned that the end will not be like you originally planned because of continuous feedback and concepts that you learn along the way. Seeking help from those who have had prior experiences is very valuable. Change is normal and inevitable, that is why you need to be able to adapt to new ideas. Adapting can end up making your project even better than you originally expected.