Employees are the face of the company. They are the main ambassadors and mirror the culture of the brand, leadership, and the company as a whole. To ensure that the message is accurate and aligned with the company’s efforts, it is imperative to find the right talent. And, it is just as imperative to help them succeed. 

Recruiting is not the only essential practice for bringing in and retaining the best talent in the industry. 

Proper education and great leadership are essential to ensuring your employees are set up for success from day one. 

Here is a list of some of the key practices we have at Atech Logistics to ensure employees are set for success from Day 1.

1. Set Clear Standards and Goals From the Beginning 

When a new employee joins the team, they need to understand the role they play in the company as a whole, learn the expectations, and familiarize themselves with the layout that will now become an important part of their career. 

At Atech Logistics, each new hire has the opportunity to meet in person with managers and supervisors to go through Atech’s Employee Handbook, Code of Safe Practices and Injury, Illness, and Prevention Program. This practice ensures the new team member has a clear understanding of the company’s guidelines, policies, standards, and responsibilities. 

To ensure onboarding is completed successfully, Atech also has various tools, including a training checklist. 

“Our managers and supervisors have a list and they go line by line with each employee during their orientation process,” explains Kristian Knox, Director of Fleet Safety at Atech Logistics. “Training is not finished until that checklist is complete.” Such a strategy ensures the employee and the supervisor are on the same page during the process and expectations are clear for both. 

2. Make Education a Priority

In the supply chain industry, proper and effective training can determine the success and safety of the team. At Atech Logistics, we make sure to find and hire the best talent with the proper certifications and experience. 

However, that doesn’t stop there. From Day 1, we are committed to setting employees up for success. This can only be done through the right training and education. 

Training is important for new and current employees. Allocate the proper resources to provide relevant training for your team at hiring, and throughout their time at the company. It gives your team the confidence and the right tools for success. 

3. Be Inclusive and Engaging

While some people might learn better by reading, others might thrive in a classroom environment, and some might need hands-on practice. It is clear that not everyone learns and retains information the same way. 

In fact, some employees might struggle to be trained altogether due to previous frustrating experiences that did not match their learning style. 

For that reason, it’s imperative to implement training strategies that are inclusive and engaging. Implementing training that keeps everyone in mind provides a better learning experience and ensures success and safety for the company, the team, and the employee. 

At Atech Logistics, our successful training program includes human interaction, online training, and hands-on training. 

4. Include Online Training 

Online training is easy to access, track, and monitor. It also gives the opportunity to customize to each employee depending on their roles and responsibilities.

At Atech Logistics, we make online training part of the onboarding process, and part of our ongoing training strategy throughout the company. With the help of Sentix, we can ensure each employee is trained on new technologies, regulatory updates and recertification, and company practices. 

5.Provide Hands-On Opportunity

Just providing information does not ensure success for warehouse employees. All the education is irrelevant until they have the opportunity to put it to practice on the field. “We can train our team online all day long, but if they are not doing it, and being watched, and being guided, then it wouldn’t be beneficial,” says Knox. “That is the successful part of our training”. 

After going out on the field with current employees to see the job being done in real life, employees have the opportunity to do the job themselves with the supervision and leadership of others who can help guide and identify any areas of improvement during the orientation period. 

Hands-on training is one of the most important elements of the training process at Atech Logistics. 

6. Slow Down Training

Because starting a new job can come with an overwhelming amount of information, and because learning and retaining are different for everyone, it is important to take your time with onboarding and training. Atech understands that slowing down the process is the most efficient strategy to give employees time to learn, adapt, and grow. 

“It is important to take our time,” says Knox. “Slowing down our training process is the way to success”, says Knox. “We want to make sure they have time to fully understand it and feel confident. We want to have detailed conversations and detailed interactions to make sure we are answering all of their questions to set them up for success”. 

The success of the employees is directly reflected in the success of the company. Keep your team safe and thriving from Day 1 by arming them with the proper education, training, and tools.