Has anyone done a formal job shadowing program as part of an orientation process? If so, do you have any suggestions, structure, or outlines that you would be willing to share? Thanks so much.

We do a lot of formal job shadowing as part of new hire training. What's critical is to have a complete checklit of what the new hire needs to see in a given time frame and a backup plan if it doesn't happen. We also combine job shadowing with a number of other work experiences.

We also use job shadowing very early in the new hire process to make sure that new hires see reality of what really happens on the job. This part of the orientation is really important.

As part of developing Learning Paths for job roles, I included a component for a new employee to "observe" or job shadow a proficient employee. The new employee is armed with a workbook that provides summary of processes and tasks, step-action tables of procedures, and a checklist of what to think about or look for during observation. The employee's manager or designated coach has a Coach's Guide that identifies the outline of the job shadowing process. The outline followed this basic pattern:

1. The coach briefly explains the process in terms of input and output, and expected quantity, quality, and speed.

2. The new employee is tasked with job shadowing a proficient employee following the summary of the process and suggestions in the workbook, and documenting notes to help them prepare to do the work themselves.

3. The new employee is then provided an assignment to perform the same tasks as what was observed. If possible, this should be done on actual work, otherwise a set of practice work should provide as close to the actual experience as possible.

4. The coach reviews the work and provides feedback to the new employee, and determines through a Skills Validation Checklist if the employee is ready to proceed to the next topic, or if they should continue practicing these tasks.

In a nutshell, they are following a Tell, Show, Do, Measure approach to master a specific process or set of tasks. The topics are ordered from simple to complex so that as the new employee masters a topic, they are able to build on that to master the next complex topic, to become a useful contributor and ultimately proficient at the job.

If you can include this in the Learning Path or orientation process beginning on Day 1 with actual work, then the new employee is actually doing the job and contributing to the business on Day 1.

Thank you both. Would anyone be willing to send checklists or materials you use? You can e-mail them to me at barbsmith@springmail.com. Thanks so much.

If training is what you want to do, you don't want to do job shadowing - this is technically not the same as training. Many people confuse job shadowing with on-the-job training (OJT). Job shadowing and UNstructured OJT when used in place of training often just perpetuate errors and inefficiency.

The only way to really train people on-the-job is with a structured OJT program in which you have: trainers who have been trained to deliver a very structured 4 or 5 step process; performance objectives for each task; written training modules for each task; and training that occurs at the workplace on real equipment, with real tools and materials. There are many excellent resources. You might try "Training On the Job" by Diane Walter available through ASTD Press.

Job shadowing should be used only to gain an awareness of the job - not to train specific tasks.

Also, you have to be careful with the term coaching. It has a thousand different definitions. Just be sure to use a formal, structured process that includes the above mentioned components if real training is what you're after.

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