Objective
Centre Square Apartments needed help developing a comprehensive training program, to improve the onboarding process and address issues related to turnover. As a member of the operations team, I wanted to make this process more efficient and effective for future managers and employees. My task was to create a structured training program that covered key areas such as orientation, policies, procedures, role specific information and to help new managers transition effectively into their roles. There was also a serious need of updating current training and procedures, since they had not been reviewed for a while, I was able to go through and either make improvements on current training or completely overhaul the outdated information.
The Project
Challenges
- There were a few challenges I encountered while working on this program, one of them being technical difficulties. I had found that the student side of Canvas and the teacher side don’t always communicate the way you want them to, and as I was finalizing the course different technical issues had taken place before I could launch it.
- Another challenge I faced was time, there was a lot of information to review and update, as well as creating new training protocols based on my observational research.
Process
I had to first understand the material I was updating, by reviewing and analyzing current onboarding and training materials. After gathering enough information to have a foundation, I was able to do some more extensive research through observational research of the three departments (Operations, Sales and Marketing, and Resident Experience), at Centre Square and their prospective duties. After having done the research, I met with all of the managers in each department and discussed my findings and created a game plan for the future training program. Then I was able to start compiling all the new and necessary information to create the training program. I utilized Canvas for the training course, Knowledge Base for the policies and articles on how to accomplish certain tasks. I met once more with the managers to make sure that the course and training materials were all up to date and we launched the new training program.
My Experience
Overall I had a great experience with this project, it not only gave me better insight in what it takes to be an human resource leader, but also the opportunity to branch out to other departments. I also was able to learn some new skills that will be invaluable to any profession. One of the skills I learned was adaptability, and being able to change when necessary. There were multiple times throughout this project I thought it would go one way, but then when I least expected it I had to pivot to another angle.
Insights Gained
- Having a better understanding managerial needs and challenges
- The importance of Structured Onboarding
- The role of feedback in program development
- Impact of training on employees
- Building relationships with stakeholders