Staff Induction Development using Agile Project Management

Continuous Improvement Projects Ltd were commissioned to lead the development of a new and improved Induction course for new starters, including associated processes.

Our client, Gov Facility Services Ltd (GFSL), are responsible for delivery of facilities management services across 48 prisons on behalf of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). The project was initiated because the board had concerns that staff inductions were not effective and wanted to minimise risk to its staff. 

Some of the challenges faced include:

● Staff induction were paper-based and carried out at individual site level so there was no consistency or visibility
● Hard to make changes across all sites to ensure information was up-t0-date and relevant
● Concerns over the consistency and effectiveness of inducting new staff in line with Health & Safety requirements during lockdown

We started by reviewing the existing induction process, materials and tools, and visiting sites to listen to stakeholders which included: site managers; supervisors; regional H&S leads; regional account managers and all members of the senior leadership team, to get a full picture of the problem.

We then set up an appropriate level of project governance aligned with GFSL’s organisation structure and obtained agreement from the senior leadership team on our proposed project approach and plan. It was agreed that we would run the project as an agile project to facilitate tight feedback and quick delivery. We also engaged a number of change champions from across the organisation.

We explored a range of options for an online induction portal and to fill gaps around training and record keeping. We tested the feasibility of these options with change champions and suppliers and presented a costed recommendation to the senior leadership team for sign-off. We wrote the full business case for cabinet office spending controls which was approved and then configured the system and implemented it. Finally, we led “train the trainer” sessions and the system was handed over to business-as-usual.

The benefits realised as a result of this project include:

● Inductions could start before day 1 as recruits could access an online portal with relevant materials
● The recruitment team could use it as part of their recruitment process
● The training portal provided a competency record which strengthened GFSL’s Health & Safety compliance and assurance
● Reduced the work load of site-managers who historically had to update and deliver the paper-based inductions and training
● Improved the consistency and quality of induction and training material
● Improved employee onboarding and experience

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