How Can I Validate and Motivate Participation in Our New Buddy Program? Seeking Your Ideas and Insights

Hello friends,

I am a management trainee for one of the MNCs in IT. The company wishes to implement the buddy program. I need to validate the need for this program in the company with data and also suggest measures to motivate people to be a buddy. Please suggest your innovative ideas, and if someone has any documents or reports regarding the same, please share them with me.

Thanks and regards,
Harshal

Hi,

May I know who is involved in the buddy system - employees and their immediate supervisor or peers?

Regards

Hi, the buddy program is for the new joinees, and I think the team members will be the buddies.

Please let me know if you need further assistance or if you have any other questions.

Hi,

Thank you for your suggestion. Could you provide some details about the activities to motivate the buddies, especially those that are not too expensive for the company?

Thank you,
Harshal

Hi Harsha,

You can have a scorecard/feedback form from the new joiners on the buddy, and based on the results, you can recognize the buddy of the month or the year publicly, which will make them feel important. Also, you can add the weightage of the result to their final appraisal/score.

Regards,
MB

Hi, adding to Banerjee, what I suggest is... In the beginning, you don't assign buddies to the new joiner. Let the new joiner work in the company for 1 month or more. After that, allow them to choose their own buddy. Only then can they have a buddy who is very comfortable with them.

Regards

I feel that being a buddy is a very important task that an individual takes up. There has to be a personal willingness to be a buddy for a new joinee.

Some of the prerequisites in selecting a buddy:
1. Ensure that the employee has spent considerable time in the company to provide an understanding of the workings of the company.
2. The buddy is more like a brand ambassador of the company.
3. The individual should have the willingness to be a buddy for a new joinee and be able to spend time with the new joinee.

Hope this helps!

Regards,
Niki

Hi, brother.

I think that after one month when the employee settles down, there will be no point in assigning a buddy because a buddy is assigned to help the new employee acclimatize well with the organization.

Thanks, Nikki. You are right that it should be out of willingness, but in order to sell this concept, we need to show "What is in it for me" kind of things. Only then will people be motivated to be a buddy. So, I am asking what can be those things other than those mentioned in the above suggestions.

Hi Harsha, I hope you are well and good. Here I am giving one suggestion that you can motivate your employees by giving punctuality chocolates to those who come in on time. (You can give them every month). I hope this helps.

Hi Harshal,

One game to improve team bonding can be done as follows:

1. Let the employees form buddy pairs at the beginning of the month.
2. They will agree upon improving opportunities in their behavior, work, and general aspects.
3. They will rate each other based on set parameters for their experience during the period.
4. In the last week of the month, the low scorers of the group will vote for the winners (those with the highest points) in the group.
5. The person with the maximum points will be recognized as the ambassador of the month.

You can award them as the best buddy as they are assumed to possess all the ideal qualities deserving of being the best buddy in the department/company/unit.

Benefits:

1. The culture will improve as people strive to enhance their behavioral patterns to earn maximum points.
2. The quality of work, being one of the parameters, will also improve.
3. Strong team bonding will be observed among the employees.
4. A learning environment will be fostered in the company.

Please post your comments on my suggestion, friends. Maybe I can also improve upon my ideas.

Best Regards,
Samir Kulkarni.

Hi,

The buddy program is a form of hand-holding provided to new employees in the organization. The buddy should possess good interpersonal skills. They will introduce the new joiner on the first day to the organization. Additionally, the buddy will conduct a tour of the company infrastructure for the new joiner on the second day. During the first week, the buddy should spend one hour daily with the new joiner. It is preferable that the buddy is not in the direct line of reporting. Furthermore, the buddy is expected to meet the new joiner on a daily basis for the first three months.

To better understand and present the program, try breaking it down on a weekly basis in a presentation. The necessary data can be obtained from the attrition list for the first three months of a new employee joining.

Hi, you can start some kind of H.R. activities like team building games, ice-breakers, etc. It will give huge motivation to your employees.

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Thank you,
Debajit Roy

Hi Harshal,

Always remember to choose the buddy before the new joiner joins the organization. It's always better to get in touch with the BU Head and confirm who can be the buddy.

After the confirmations, send out an email to the chosen buddy, copying the BU Head, stating that they have been chosen as the buddy for the new joiner joining your team.

There are specific responsibilities for the buddy or anchor. Once the new joiner joins, HR should introduce them to the buddy. The buddy will then introduce the new joiner to each team member, explaining their contributions. The buddy should also show the cubicle, cafeteria, take the new joiner for breaks, lunch, etc., and provide information on whom to contact in case of any issues.

After a month, inquire with the new joiner about their experience with the buddy, gather feedback, and if the feedback is positive, consider giving a gift voucher from Shopper Stop as a token of appreciation. This gesture can motivate the buddy.

Such initiatives will assist the new joiner in settling down comfortably within the team and the organization.

I hope these details are helpful.

Regards,

Prakash

Hi Harshal,

The place where I did my summer internship was a multinational corporation, and they also had a buddy program in place. In their buddy program, immediate superiors were assigned as buddies. It was an informal and frank orientation process. The buddy was responsible for taking the subordinate out for lunch or dinner (at the company's expense, of course). They also had a mentorship program within the company. Any senior member of the company could act as a mentor for a new employee, whether they were in the same team or not (though preferably from the same team). The mentor's role was to assist and guide the new employee throughout their initial period. On average, it took around two months for a new employee to feel comfortable in the company. Therefore, the maximum time a mentor had to spend with a new employee was two to three months, after which both parties were free to go their separate ways.

I hope this information proves helpful to you.

Regards,
Anuja

Buddy should be predesignated, and performance should be matched to his/her KRA. They should take care of the new joinee from the very first day. Basically, the new joinee's first friend in the organization who would help the new joinee from getting their desktop to lunch coupons and also helping them get their goal sheet done.

Hi Harshal,

I agree with Niki that a buddy should be appointed as the brand ambassador of the company for new joiners. I believe having a team member who can serve as both a mentor and a buddy would be the most suitable choice. This person can assist the new joiner in understanding the project, the work, and provide information about general facilities.

Thanks,
Simi

Hi,

I completely agree with Harsha. A buddy is required to make the new joiner comfortable and to acquaint him with the organization.

I had introduced the Buddy programme a while back in my organization. I see a very good response to this programme, and it has helped the new joiners a lot.

All you have to do is:
- Motivate your employees to be the Buddy.
- Tell them the objective of the programme.
- Ask for their ideas to make it better.
- Give them a sense of ownership of the entire programme.

What makes them feel happy and motivated is sharing the feedback of the new joiners (positive ones :) ) with the buddy. And then don't forget to reward; it could be a small gift as an appreciation.

I have attached the feedback forms; you could use them if it helps :)

Thanks,
Kalyani

The buddy system in the organization is implemented to assist new joiners in understanding the culture, work, values, and processes, enabling them to quickly acclimate to the organization. The buddy system can also serve as a backup for employees in case of an absence, allowing the buddy to help the absent employee complete their assigned tasks.

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Amit Oza

I want to implement a Buddy Program in my organization. Can you please tell me how to start this program? I am confused.

Hi,

Thanks for your valuable suggestion on the Buddy Program. Can anyone please provide me with a PowerPoint presentation on the same, maybe focusing on the orientation of a buddy program or something similar?

Regards,
Harshal

That's what I am doing. Anyway, try to draft the following things:

- Need for the program
- What's a buddy
- Qualifications to be a buddy
- Role of a buddy
- Advantages of this program
- Evaluation

Please let me know if you need any further assistance or information.