BLOG : Training a new hire

Training is an aspect of the employment process that goes on continuously because you simply cannot foresee all scenarios and predicaments.

It is best to give your employee a written copy of your Terms & Conditions (feel free to contact me at atrocchia@aol.com and I’ll send you mine which you can personalize). You will constantly refer to this document when your employee deviates from the do’s and don’ts you have set forth.

Prior to the first day of employment, I like to divide training into 3 different sessions on 3 different days. (Keep in mind that new Personal Assistants are paid for training hours on the first check.) This will help you to see how dedicated he/she is and to gauge his/her punctuality. Have your best Personal Assistant provide all the trainings. The last training session is when your soon-to-be employee actually performs all important aspects of the job, with your trusted PA observing. You can add more training sessions as needed. Keep each session to two hours.

If your employee misses a training session or arrives late to a session, that is a red flag you must take seriously. Remember that the training sessions are when your prospective employee should shine. Do not shrug something off as being unimportant or you’ll later regret it.

You get the kind of employee that you’re willing to put time and effort into interviewing and training.

Written by Anthony Trocchia

Note: While Concepts of Independence does not provide guidelines or advice on hiring, training, supervising and/or terminating Personal Assistants, we are pleased that many of our Consumers are happy to offer such advice from their own experiences. They are peer mentors, and their advice is their own to offer, and does not reflect the policies or guidelines of Concepts of Independence.  This article is written by a Concepts Consumer in the spirit of peer mentorship.