Learning from the Intranet

Our Intranet is not the best organised. It can be a little tricky finding some things (like the expense claim form…no, not under procurement… no, not under finance…no, not even under forms…there it is, under HR - ?). Each department has its own section and once you get accustomed to the menu and sub-menu relationship, it is possible to learn a lot about the different functions of the company.

My wider understanding of the different teams and their functions has already started to benefit me when I attend organisation-wide meetings (to better understand different people’s perspectives on a situation) and will no doubt prove invaluable going forward as I better understand their priorities and obstacles when it comes time to gain support for initiatives. Clearly, this relationship can’t be based entirely on what I have read on the Intranet, but it has certainly provided me with an excellent starting point.

Company business plan

Business plans don’t normally grab the reader in the same way as an airport novel does and unfortunately, ours is no exception. Having said that, it is good to understand how/where our funding comes from (this determining who our customers really are) and to find out a bit about the other aspects of the company and what is planned for them. It was also useful to read about the priorities for my department as I could better see where some of the things that I have been asked to prioritise fit in.

R&D programme prospectus

In my experience, the first week or two of a new job seems to entail a lot of reading. I suspect that this is a result of a few different factors ranging from cynical ones (to keep new starters busy while those with whom they need to meet are otherwise occupied) to more practical ones (new starters – particularly in a new industry – have rather a lot of background to get caught up on).

One of the things that I read in my first few weeks was the R&D programme prospectus. The funding for the R&D programme is renewed every three years and 2006 was a renewal year. The purpose of this document was to demonstrate the value of the programme and to make the case for its continued funding. As it happens, it was successful (or I would likely not have a job with these guys).

From my perspective, it was a pretty useful document to read to get an appreciation of how our work fits into the wider context of the industry, something that none of the other inductions did.

R&D induction

This induction was a little bit like the company one but on a local scale. It was also a lot more personalised (not least of all because it was a one-on-one session) in that we focussed on my role and how it fit into the department. Having been here almost two months, now, we were able to discuss where things were going to go rather than day-to-day topics (e.g. processes). Earlier in the month, I had an induction with HR which covered a few personnel things and this department one picked up where the HR one left off as this was part of the official process that my line manager and I had not yet completed.

Like the company one, it was useful in terms of understanding the unique governance of the R&D programme (which is only managed by the company and is not funded by the company).

Company induction

Today, I joined a few other ‘new starters’ at a company induction. It was a chance for us to meet with one of the directors and have him take us through the company’s strategy, business plan, governance and structure. It was a pretty useful overview in that it helped me to understand how funding and reporting is arranged as well as knowing where the company is trying to go. Some of the others in the room had started this week. They seemed to be a little overwhelmed by the volume and complexity of the content of this presentation (especially around governance) and I think that it helped that I had already been here about a month before the session.