Create an unbeatable team with an effective induction process

A proper induction process is the key to making sure your business stands out in a crowded high street,  says Antony Whitaker. So you’ve just recruited a new stylist. She’s creative, talented and enthusiastic, and will fit right in with all the like-minded individuals in the salon. You know clients will love her and she’ll help keep the business ticking over nicely. You couldn’t really ask for anything more, could you? Well, actually, yes, you could. It’s a crowded marketplace out there, and if you want your business to realise its full potential and stay ahead of all those other salons full of creative, talented and enthusiastic individuals, you need to make sure it stands out from the crowd. In a high street full of salons offering pretty much the same basic types of service, it’s not just the ‘what’ you do that counts; they ‘how’ you do it is equally important. How you do what you do is what defines your brand. That means focusing on what it is that sets you apart, ensuring all those individuals you employ work together as a team, united behind a common vision of your business and your brand, and for that to happen, induction is key. Induction is often overlooked. But it’s an essential – perhaps the most essential – part of an individual team member’s training. A thorough and formal induction process will ensure that, from day one, everyone is singing from the same song sheet. It lets any new recruit know that, whatever their skills or previous experience, ‘this is the way we do things here’. It establishes your culture and makes sure everyone understands the values and qualities your brand represents and your clients expect. It can cover anything you deem important to the running of your business – the way team members dress and communicate with clients, the way your business deals with problems, the way you work together as a team, the way each person interacts with any and every aspect of your business. You decide what matters and then make sure everybody understands how they fit within that vision. The key is consistency. Skip the induction and you risk losing this consistency, and your clients. New team members will do things the way they always have done, perhaps the way their previous employer – your competitor – did them. The client will get something that differs from your usual service – it may be better, it may be worse, but it will be different. You’ll become just another ‘me too’ business in an environment where the consumer is already spoilt for choice. This isn’t to say you need to crush every speck of individuality out of your employees to create a team of automatons – we are lucky to work in an industry that cherishes individuality and the creative force that often goes with it, but team members have to understand from the outset that their individuality must work in the service of your vision, not theirs. Top tips for induction

• Base induction on a written checklist and ensure every point is covered every time, no matter who is overseeing it
• Make sure induction happens at the very start of a person’s employment, so they know: ‘This is how we do it here’
• Use induction to integrate new recruits into the team culture and expectation
• Be thorough and be sure to state exactly what is considered positive behaviour
• Include small individual responsibilities that allow new team members to experience success and build confidence and self-esteem

Antony Whitaker is a leading educator and motivator, with a worldwide reputation based on more than 30 years’ experience in the hairdressing industry. www.growmysalonbusiness.com