Whether your shop needs to hire more employees, or it’s reopening, you’ll want to prepare for some changes. The best way to make sure your employees succeed in their job is if they know what they need to do. You’ll need to teach new employees what your shop expects and returning employees might need a reminder. Communication and training material will be critical for everyone to do their part, particularly if your shop has made changes recently.
Job Descriptions
If you’re going to hire once your shop reopens, you’ll need current, helpful job descriptions. Even if you’re not planning on hiring, this is still a good time to make sure your job descriptions are accurate and reflect the work employees are actually doing. If there are inaccurate job descriptions, that might mean some changes for your employees, like giving them a different title. When updating your job descriptions, make sure they:
- Are accurate
- Include needed certifications
- Leave off unnecessary qualifications
- Provide a good summary of the work expected
Once your job descriptions are accurate, it’s also a good time to make sure your training material is up to par.
Training Material for the Job
If you’re hiring new people, it’s important they know how they do their job. If you’re bringing back employees, it might be good to remind them of their job duties. Alternatively, if you’ve been considering changing how something is done in your shop, this is a good time to make those changes. Your shop likely had to make changes because of COVID-19 as well. Whatever your situation, it’s a great idea to have training material for your employees. It can be a process to make an employee training manual, but it’s worth it to have a great resource for your employees. Training materials should include everything people need to know to do their job. For any new requirements because of COVID-19, you may want to create separate material so it’s easier to read and update.
Training Material for Machines and Software
Running machines and software at your shop can be tricky. As you hire new people or have employees come back to work, it might be a good idea to have them brush up on what your shop’s machines and software can do. A lot has changed in our world, so some features of your shop’s machines or software that you didn’t need before may be incredibly helpful now. If your vendors offer it, having an array of training materials can be great. For example, written instructions may be great for detailed jobs, while videos can be just the thing for a demonstration of how to do something.
However you’re staffing your shop, it’s important that your employees know what they’re expected to do and how to do it. Some of your shop’s processes will probably have to change and it’s important that your employees are prepared for those changes.
