What Makes the Organisation Tick?

Text Script of Ben and Ainsely's conversation:

Ben: Come on over and sit down, Ainsley. I'm glad we decided to meet out in the cafeteria - I need my coffee in the morning and today hasn't got off to the best start. I don't know why, but I haven't done a thing right so far. Let's hope I do a better job with our discussion!

Ainsley: (nervous laugh) Okay.

Ben: Welcome to Antz. As you know, we are quite a large organisation now, with lots of people working in different areas. You'll find out more about everything as you go along, so don't get too tied up with remembering it all today. Anyway, I'm the Human Resources Advisor for your section here at the company. That means I take care of all the paperwork and any issues that need dealing with. I'll be starting you off today, and in a little while I'll hand you over to your manager, Hemi. You probably met Hemi at your interview, but you might not remember that he's the sales and marketing manager. He's doing a tour of the sites today, and he's agreed to take you along to introduce you to everyone and to help you get familiar with the company.

Ainsley: Where will I be working?

Ben: Well, for the first week we'll be taking you round as much of the organisation as possible. We want you to get a real understanding of what makes Antz tick. Hemi might leave you at a job for a while every now and then. You're going to be part of the sales and marketing team, and you'll meet them all in the next few days. But we want you to feel part of the whole team, so that's why we start you off with more of an overview.

Ainsley: Sounds good... but where will my office be?

Ben: Ah, I should have shown you a map of the building first thing - it's here in the induction pack. Did you get a chance to look around the main office while you were out there?

Ainsley: Just a bit.

Ben: We have quite a lot of people working in there. You'll be spending some time in the main office this week. There are a number of things that have to be done as part of the employment process. I'll help out with some of them, such as getting you on the payroll and making sure that we have all the information we need to collect. You know that we have to keep information about you, don't you?

Ainsley: Yes. I also understand that it has to be kept carefully and only used for the purpose that you collect it for.

Ben: You're right. Well, we'll fill out all the necessary forms and get you started on the computer network. We have quite an extensive database for ordering and tracking materials and sales records - you might enjoy that.

Ainsley: I like computers.

Ben: Perhaps you'd like some training later too? We have regular training on computer applications and most of the staff have had at least one session. At Antz we have a strong belief in helping people to do their best for themselves and for the organisation - and this often involves extra training. You will have opportunities to develop yourself here if you want to.

If you have any problems or difficulties, your manager will be there for you, or you can contact me at any time. If you have any ideas you'd like to share, we have a system where if you suggest something that is adopted by the organisation you get a small reward. It's quite good actually - the rewards aren't much, but you understand that the company really appreciates your ideas.

As part of this induction process, I have to tell you that Antz is committed to strong values. Our culture puts a lot of value on responsiveness to the needs of customers and employees. We believe in supporting leadership, innovation, creativity, initiative, risk-taking, and openness to communication. We also believe in integrity, honesty, productivity, and innovation. Also, don't forget that we are committed to quality construction! You can read more about all this in our organisational documents.

Oh, another thing... we mustn't forget our health and safety policy. You're probably aware that construction is not always the safest business, but Antz is really strong on health and safety.

Ainsley: I'm pleased about that! In my last job...

Ben: Yes... well, you're here now. Anyway, today you have quite a programme to get into. Here is your induction pack. It has a lot of information about Antz, and also some about your job - there's a job description in there, although you should already have a copy from the interview. I won't go over it all now. You'll have plenty of time this week to go through it, and if you have any questions you can ask. We'll be meeting several times during the week, so if anything needs to be made clearer, just make a note and we'll talk about it.

Ainsley: Sounds great to me. I'm looking forward to working for Antz.

Ben: It is a good company to work for. It hasn't been going that long, but it's growing and developing a lot. As I said, you could have some good opportunities here. Antz really believes that it is the people who make the organisation work, and that's a great feeling.