by Vanessa D. Alexander

Created on: June 23, 2008

Building confidence in a new or first time employee actually begins with the final or hiring interview. Giving the new kid on the block a boost in morale by making them feel welcome once they're hired is significant. There is nothing like starting a new job and not knowing what to expect or getting a bad impression from an interview.

The new hire team is crucial to employees feeling like they belong right from the start. Some companies may overlook this process, deliver a welcome packet, a handshake and walk away. But your interview team can make or break your company in the long run.

Human Resources plays a big role. You may have hired their skill but their personality in an interview is priceless. They are the welcome mat of your company and while the Interviewer is observing the prospective employee, well, the prospect is also observing the interviewer. Is this the person representing the character of the company? Absolutely.

A job applicant may forget many things about a job search experience, but rarely the Interview or the person sitting on the other side of the desk.

How job applicants are treated makes a difference. If an applicant becomes a new hire, the first day may be the last day. The impact of a negative interview, coupled with the stress of the first day reporting to a new job, is enough to cause a new employee to go home and pull the resume back out.

Imagine, a new employee waking up the first morning for a new job, getting dressed and stressed about the first day. But if Human Resources took the time to elevate the welcome process during interview and hire, that same new employee's first day can be one of anticipation instead of dread.

Building the confidence of a new employee at the front door may take a little more work but, it has powerful benefits that could result in your employees passing on good will to friends and associates about your company.

I don't know how many companies think about the hiring process as part of branding their companies, but it might be a great topic for the next brainstorm meeting.

New and first time employees range from first jobs to veteran professionals, but when it comes to making a new employee feel like part of the team no one should be excluded.

If you have not considered creating a team that specializes in walking new employees through the Interview to hire process, let me motivate you to at least think about it.

You have a great company, but a poor hiring rate. How much money could your company save in the long term by making a great first impression on new employees? An Interview team could be the saving grace of your company or the ongoing headache no one figured out how to solve.

Building confidence in new employees should begin at the front door of your company during the hiring process. It's like going out on a first date. Sometimes it just doesn't work out. But when it does, you just can't wait until the next date. How would your employees describe their experience of being new? Was it positive?

Who you place at the front door of your company has the wonderful job of creating the foundation of building confidence in every new employee you hire. Choose them well and you boost the brand of your company.

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