We understand that starting a role in a new organisation can be daunting, no matter how much prior experience you have. We want to help you start your placement off on the right foot, feeling comfortable, confident, ready to learn and contribute.

There are a few things you can do to help set yourself up for success, by arming yourself with the right information and tools, you will feel right at home with your placement host company. Here are some things you might like to consider in a workplace orientation. 

Before the first day even begins

Before your work placement commences on day one, ensure you have confirmed the following information with your host company supervisor:

• Is your first day in the office or remote?
• What time to start or arrive at the office?
• Where is the office located and how do you access the building/floor?
• Is there a dress-code you need to adhere to?
• Is there a specific team member or supervisor you should ask for on arrival?
• Is there anything you need to prepare or bring along with you?

Office tour

When you arrive at the office, your host company supervisor should offer you an office tour to help you get your bearings. If they don't, that's okay, simply ask them for a short tour to help you feel comfortable with the space. Ask them to show you where the essentials are located:

• Where the bathrooms are
• Where reception is
• Where you and your team will sit
• Where they, or your supervisor will sit
• Lunch, tea rooms and breakout areas

It’s also important that they show where fire exists, emergency gathering areas are located and bring your awareness to OH&S specific details.

Be ready to introduce yourself

It is likely that your host company supervisor will introduce you to many new faces in your first week (and throughout your time of your placement). Be ready to introduce yourself confidently, showing enthusiasm for your placement opportunity, and interest in the company and the people you are meeting.

You should show a keen interest in how you will work with these new people and how your contribution can assist them.

The skills your company needs

Hiring career-changers is a great way to access an untapped talent pool. Career-changers provide you with an opportunity to bring employees into your business with diverse experience and a wide range of skill sets.

Looking at candidates who want to shake up their career, start fresh and are ready to learn, provides you with an opportunity to think outside the box when building out your team. So, what should you look for when shortlisting participants to interview and how do you know if they’re right for your company? Here are some things to consider when assessing profiles.

Transferable skills

Also known as a candidate’s ‘portable skills’ are the qualities we have as humans that can be transferred from one job to another. These are often professional or ‘soft skills’ and they happen to be highly sought after in a workplace, as they can often provide insight into how a person will work, and what they are like to work with.

Some key transferable skills to seek out in a participant’s profile may include:

• Time management
• Sales and business development
• Teamwork
• Leadership
• Communication (written, listening)
• Research and analytical thinking skills 
• Personal and professional development
• Creative thinking
• Project management
• Empathy and patience

Complementary skill sets

It is human nature when we’re hiring employees, that we tend to hire people that remind us of ourselves — shared previous experience or roles, common interests, or similar ways of working. We often want people who can fit into the ‘mould’ of the company fabric from the get-go. But this way of thinking can harm diversity and limit fresh perspectives being brought into your company.

When looking at candidates to hire, step away from the status quo, and seek out candidates with complimentary skills and experience to those that already exist in your business. Career-changers bring a wealth of knowledge and experience that can only be gained when moving from one industry to another, some will have 10+ years of experience already under their belt.

An eagerness to learn

Great hiring managers recognise potential — showing a capability of further development and even greater success. Career-changers recognise that they are making a huge change and thus are highly motivated with an appetite to learn, having shaken up their careers to move into a brand-new skill set.

This fantastic eagerness to learn should be nurtured, and your company has an opportunity to continue their professional development through further on-the-job learning. If you think your company has something to share with and further teach a candidate, then this is a fantastic mutually beneficial opportunity to grow together.