A practical rule: every riyal spent on proper onboarding saves several times as much in correcting errors and re-hiring.
1 The onboarding programme
| Stage | What happens |
|---|---|
| Before the start date | Desk, account, equipment and access rights prepared · a welcome message and the first-week programme sent |
| Day one | A welcome · a tour · introductions to the team · handing over the job description and the policies |
| Week one | Introduction to the systems and procedures · assigning a buddy (a mentoring colleague) |
| Month one | Clear initial objectives · a weekly check-in with the manager |
| 90 days | Probation review against published criteria · a documented decision |
A familiar scene
An employee arrives on day one to find no desk, no account and nobody expecting them, and spends the day “getting to know people”. This is not a small detail — it is the organisation’s first message about how seriously it operates.
2 Training needs analysis
Training need = required performance − current performance, provided the cause of the gap is a lack of skill or knowledge. If the cause is a missing tool, missing authority or missing motivation, training will not fix it.
Identify the gap
From performance, indicators and observations
Analyse the cause
Skill? Tool? Motivation?
Design the solution
Training, coaching, or a process change
Deliver
Internally, externally or on the job
Measure the impact
Did performance actually change?
Training is a solution to a specific problem, not an annual activity run because the budget allows it
3 Measuring training impact
| Level | The question | Measurement tool |
|---|---|---|
| 1 — Reaction | Did the participants like it? | A post-programme survey |
| 2 — Learning | Did they acquire the knowledge? | A pre- and post-test |
| 3 — Behaviour | Did they change how they work? | Manager observation after 60–90 days |
| 4 — Results | Did the indicator improve? | Comparing performance indicators before and after |
Where do most organisations stop?
At level one: a satisfaction survey. The real value starts at level three — did behaviour at work change? It is enough for the manager to ask themselves: what is this employee doing today that they were not doing before the training?
4 Career paths and succession plans
- The career path: a map showing an employee what qualifies them to move to the next grade or role.
- The succession plan: identifying critical roles, each with a successor ready or being prepared.
- The skills matrix: a table showing who can do what, exposing single points of dependence.
- Knowledge transfer: documenting procedures and training a second colleague on every critical task.
| Task | Ahmed | Sara | Khalid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly close | Proficient | Beginner | — |
| Periodic returns | Proficient | — | — |
| Bank reconciliations | Proficient | Proficient | Beginner |
| Management reports | Beginner | Proficient | — |
Reading it: only one person is proficient at periodic returns — a dangerous point of dependence. The fix: train Sara on it within a quarter, and document the procedure step by step.
Lesson summary
- Onboarding starts before the first day and runs to 90 days with a documented review.
- A training need is a gap caused by a lack of skill — not every performance gap.
- Impact measurement has four levels, and the value starts with changed behaviour.
- A skills matrix exposes dependence on one person before they are away.
- Succession plans and knowledge transfer protect operational continuity.
5 Test your understanding
Three quick questions
Pick the answer you believe is correct and you will see the result immediately.
1. An employee cannot deliver because the system does not grant them the access rights. What is the solution?
Training does not remedy a missing tool or missing authority; diagnose the cause before prescribing the cure.
2. Which level of measurement reveals training’s real effect on the work?
Satisfaction and knowledge are preliminaries; the impact appears when what the employee actually does changes.
3. Only one employee is proficient at a critical task. What is the risk, and the remedy?
Dependence on one person is an operational risk addressed by transferring knowledge, not by tying the organisation to an individual.