New Employee Orientation-BHRM Graduate Project - Safaa Hanjoul

GRADUATE PROJECT
BHRM695 - Graduate Project in Human Resources
NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION AT THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH
COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES (LEBANON) AND ITS IMPACT ON
EMPLOYEE SATISFACTION
Submitted to the Lebanese International University
The School of Business
in Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree of
MBA in Human Resource Management
by
Safaa Hanjoul
ID No. 40830277
Saida, Lebanon
Supervised by Dr. Mohammad Mteirek
Spring 2018
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DEDICATIONS
This paper is dedicated to my family: my husband, son and my parents. To my
husband for his love, support and understanding. To my son for the countless moments of
joy. And to my parents for passing on the qualities that helped me finish this project:
perseverance, patience and sense of humor.
I also dedicate this thesis to Dr. Mohamad Mteirek who believed in my competency
all throughout the project and was a real mentor with all the unlimited support and guidance
that he has provided.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The completion of this project wouldn’t have been possible without the honest support
received from my colleagues at UNHCR, namely Sandrine Zuger, Eniko Bocsi and Lynn Yu.
Thanks to their extended support and inspiration which has allowed to turn my educational
endeavors into a real achievement.
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ABSTRACT
The focus of this quantitative study is to discover whether new employee orientation has an
impact on employee satisfaction.
Based on a survey conducted with employees at six offices of United Nations Higher
Commissioner for Refugees in Lebanon, this paper examines the procedures taken to prepare
and support a new staff when recruited, and then measures the staff satisfaction at entry level.
These procedures when put together are called new employee orientation.
To facilitate this, a twelve question web-based survey was designed on survey monkey and
distributed to employees working at UNHCR Lebanon offices.
The data returned was analyzed on survey monkey and SPSS. The percentages, valid
percentage and frequency of each survey item were examined. In addition Pearson correlation
test and significance tests were conducted to determine if there was a relationship between
the employee orientation and employee satisfaction.
A strong positive correlation and strong significance was found between new employee
orientation and employee satisfaction components in the survey. Thus it was concluded that
new employee orientation has an impact on employee satisfaction.
Finally recommendations were made to make the orientation procedures more comprehensive
and standardized among different offices, in order to ensure that employee satisfaction entry-
level is sustained. Future studies can tackle whether the orientation done at organizational
level affects employee satisfaction differently from the orientation done at the unit level.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT ......................................................................................................................…...4
TABLE OF CONTENTS……………………………………………………………….……5
LIST OF TABLES ……………….......……………………………………………………………..…….….……..7
LIST OF FIGURES …………………………………………………………………………………………….……8
PART I: THE THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK9

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCING THE GRADUATE PROJECT 10
1. INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………………..10
1.1 RESEARCH PROBLEM……………………………………………………..11
1.2 OBJECTIVES OF THE GRADUATE PROJECT…..……………………..11
1.3 RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS………………..………………………………..12
2. OVERVIEW OF THE SECTOR/DOMAIN/ORGANIZATIONS……………12
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW………………………………………………………………….14

1. NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION: CONCEPT, TYPES AND INFLUENCE
…………………………………………………………………..……...…14
1.1 DEFINITION OF NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION…………………..14
1.2 TYPES AND APPROACHES OF NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION...18
1.3 IMPACTS OF NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION……..………………..21
1.4 TRENDS IN NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION PROGRAMS………...23
2. NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION IN THE HUMANITARIAN
CONTEXT………………………………………………………………………………..26
2.1 DEFINITION OF HUMANITARIAN NON-GOVERNMENTAL
ORGANIZATRIONS(NGOs)…………………………………………………........26
2.2 CURRENT EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION IN NGOs…………………..…28
2.3 IMPORTANCE OF NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION IN THE
HUMANITARIAN DOMAIN……………………………………………….…..….30
2.4 SECONDARY DATA ON NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION VS.
EMPLOYEE SATISFACTION…………………………………………………….33
PART II: THE PRACTICAL FRAMEWORK 36

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY……………………………………………..………….37
1. INTRODUCTION TO THE RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
2. QUANTITATIVE OR QUALITATIVE METHOD USED?.............................37
3. DATA COLLECTION METHOD 37
4. POPULATION AND SAMPLING…………….…….………………………….38
4. STUDY LIMITATIONS 40
CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND RESULTS 41

1. DATA ANALYSIS METHOD 41
2. FACT FINDING RESULTS 41
2.1 PERSONAL PROFILE OF RESPONDENTS………………………………42
2.2 TESTING THE HYPOTHESIS……………………………………….……..50
2.3 MEANS OF ORIENTATION VARIABLES………………………….…….52
2.4 MEANS OF SATISFACTION VARIABLES………………………….……56
2.5 ANALYSIS OF RESPONDENTS’ SUGGESTIONS……………………….58
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PART III: GRADUATE PROJECT CONCLUSIONS AND
RECOMMENDATIONS…………………………………………………………………...60
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS…………………...61
1. CONCLUSIONS 61
2. RECOMMENDATIONS 61
2.1 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR UNHCR…………………….………………62
2.2 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FURTHER STUDIES……….…………….66
REFERENCES 68
APPENDIX A: QUESTIONNAIRE 79
APPENDIX B: INTERVIEW FORM………………………………………………………………………...82
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LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: Breakdown of Respondents by Gender…………………….………………….....…43
Table 2: Breakdown of Respondents by Duty Station…………………………………....….44
Table 3: Breakdown of Respondents by Years of Experience…….……………………..…..45
Table 4: Breakdown of Respondents by Employment Category……………………….……46
Table 5: Breakdown of Respondents' Type of Contract…………………………….…....….46
Table 6: Breakdown of Respondents' ages………………………………………………..…47
Table 7: Breakdown of Respondents' Educational Level…………………………………...49
Table 8: Pearson Correlations Test Results………………………………………………….51
Table 9: Means of Orientation Variables……………………………………………………52
Table 10: Means of Satisfaction variables…………………………………………………..56
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LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: Breakdown of Repsondents by Gender……………………………………...…43

Figure 2: Breakdown of Respondents by Duty Station………………………………..…44
Figure 3: Breakdown of Respondents by Years of Experience……………………..........45
Figure 4: Breakdown of Respondents by Employment Category………………………..46
Figure 5: Breakdown of Respondents' type of contract……………………….….……....47
Figure 6: Breakdown of Responents' Age…………………………………….…....….....48
Figure 7: Breakdown of Respondents' Educational Level…………………...…….……..49

Figure 8: Pearson's Correlation Line…………………………………………….……….51
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PART I
THE THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCING THE GRADUATE PROJECT
1. INTRODUCTION
“When people are financially invested, they want a return. When people are
emotionally invested, they want to contribute.” – Simon Sinek, Author and Professor at
Columbia University.
Companies and large corporations spend fortunes on the recruitment process of a talented
work force. Thus it is of utmost importance, to ensure the best initiation process which shall
then ensure employee satisfaction and retention while saving the money invested.
Human Resources function has a big role here since we’re talking about hiring and support
thereafter. It is in an HR manager’s basic foundation that he has to support employees to
integrate into a new company until he/she completely reaches socialization.
Sumantra Ghoshal, an Indian scholar and Professor at the London Business School
describes this matter by saying: “You can’t have faith in people unless you take action to
improve and develop them”.
Studies revealed that one-third of employees quit within 6 months of a new job, and in
general the employee turnover rate across industries was 17.5 percent, while non-for-profit
organizations had rated 15.7 percent. On the other hand, 73 percent of organizations refurbish
their onboarding to improve their employee retention (Hogan, 2015). These facts and figures
inspire proactive organizations and human resource professionals to put special focus on
developing the best orientation procedures during the hiring process so that they can attain
maximum productivity and employee retention. Last but not least, designing an effective
orientation program helps safeguard the resources invested during the hiring process and can
pay dividends for years to come (Wallace, 2009, pp.168).
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The rest of this chapter will deal with the problem of the research, the objectives, and
the research assumption (hypothesis).
1.1. Research Problem
Competition among large companies and organizations over talented employees is
fiercely growing nowadays. Thus low job satisfaction and high employee retention rates are
in nobody’s favor. That being said, it is a worrying fact that 22% of big organizations don’t
have a formal onboarding program (Ferrazzi, 2015). Therefore, it has been a stimulating
research topic to look into United Nations Higher Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in
Lebanon as one of the most important humanitarian international organizations, to review
their current new employee orientation program and study its impact on their employee
satisfaction.
The research has tackled the following question: Do New Employee Orientation
Procedures at UNHCR (Lebanon) impact employee satisfaction? This research question
belongs to the correlational/predictive type of research questions since it is testing the
correlation between new employee orientation and employee satisfaction. It is thus taking
groups of variables and trying to develop a relationship between them, or in other words
using them to prove an existing relationship, where one variable can predict another one.
1.2. Objectives of the Graduate Project
The purpose of this study was to find whether there’s a correlation between the new
employee orientation procedures and the employee satisfaction at the entry level.
The results from this paper should demonstrate to the Human Resources unit at UNHCR an
analysis of the impact of the current orientation procedures on their employees’ satisfaction
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level, in addition to recommendations on where improvement within these procedures is
possible so that they can enhance their new employee orientation overall process.
1.3. Research Hypothesis
Redman and Mory (1933, pp.10) explain that it is unfeasible for a researcher to reach any
exploration if he hasn’t specified his subject and objective in the first place. They then add
that a researcher is best guided by a hypothesis concerning the interrelations of the
phenomena of his study. Through this research paper, the following hypothesis statements
will be tested and answered.
H0: The new employee orientation program doesn’t affect employee satisfaction at UNHCR
Lebanon
H1: The new employee orientation program affects employee satisfaction at UNHCR
Lebanon
2. OVERVIEW OF THE SECTOR/DOMAIN/ORGANIZATIONS
The United Nations High commissioner for Refugees is an International Non-
governmental organization. According to the official website of UNHCR: The office of the
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees was created in 1950, during the aftermath
of the Second World War, to help millions of Europeans who had fled or lost their homes.
Today, around 67 years later, the organization is still working hard on protecting and
assisting refugees around the world.
The primary function at UNHCR is to protect the rights and well-being of people who
have been forced to flee. UNHCR works together with partner organizations and
communities to ensure that everybody has the right to seek asylum and find safe refuge in
another country, as it also strives to secure lasting solutions.
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For around 50 years, UNHCR’s operations in Lebanon were relatively modest, where
they focused on assisting a few thousand refugees and asylum-seekers mostly from the
Middle East and Africa. In 2010, UNHCR’s Lebanon office was centered mainly on meeting
the needs of some 10,000 mostly Iraqi refugees.
In 2011, and due to the eruption of the crisis in the neighboring Syria, hundreds of
thousands of refugees were forced to flee across the border into Lebanon, which has caused
the operations of Lebanon office to grow drastically.
In Lebanon currently, there are six UNHCR offices: Beirut, Mount Lebanon, Beqaa,
Tyre, Tripoli and Qobayat that work hard to respond to the needs of refugees.
UNHCR always works closely with the Government of Lebanon and numerous other
national and international partners in providing protection and assistance to refugees and
stateless persons, as well as to Lebanese communities affected by the crisis.
In 2015, the Executive Committee at the High Commissioner’s Programme issued a
circular highlighting major development in the area of human resources management. In the
circular UNHCR recognizes its staff the ‘greatest resource of the Office’ (Pp. 3), and then
announces the people strategy that will be followed from 2016 – 2021. Through the people
strategy, UNHCR was aiming at five major goals: preparedness and diversity, performance
and competence, flexibility and timeliness, care and support, and working in partnership
(UNHCR, 2015, pp. 3-5).
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CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW
1. NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION: CONCEPT, TYPES AND INFLUENCE
New Employee Orientation is not a new concept, nor a fancy phrase, it is a theory.
New Employee Orientation is usually the gateway towards a successful recruitment process.
Employee Orientation defines a company’s image in the eyes of the hired employee, and can
sometimes even define whether an employee will stay or not.
1.1 Definition of New Employee Orientation
New Employee Orientation is a concept that has been tackled, discussed and studied
richly from different lenses: some authors tackled it from a business management lens, some
from a social lens and some from a psychological lens. Moreover, new employee orientation
has evolved throughout history from being addressed and researched as organizational
socialization, reaching to employee orientation and onboarding recently. Several authors have
defined these interrelated terms, while others worked on differentiating between them.
According to Oxford Dictionaries (2018), the term orientation is defined as:
“Familiarization with something”, while the term employee is defined as: “A person
employed for wages or salary, especially at non-executive level”. Then the term Employee
Orientation is defined in Business Dictionary.com (2018) as: “An introductory stage in the
process of new employee assimilation, and a part of his or her continuous socialization
process in an organization.”
One of the first studies done on orientation programs was conducted by Gomersall
and Myers (1966, pp. 62-72) in Texas. The study purpose was based on the proven negative
impact of anxiety among newly hired staff. Therefore, a one-day orientation program was
designed to help new hires overcome their anxiety by encouraging them to keep open
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communication, ask questions, and think innovatively. This group’s performance was
compared with another newly hired group that received the standard orientation without the
anxiety-reduction additional day, to find that the former exhibited more productivity, better
job attendance and high levels of competence.
Also, Louis, Posner, and Powel, (1983, pp.858) explained that socialization practices
refer to the “techniques that organizations use to orient and socialize new employees”. They
have also discovered that various socialization practices were related to post-entry job
satisfaction, even though different practices had different effectiveness levels. In addition,
they stressed on the fact that insiders can be specifically helpful since they found in their
study that newcomers rated peers, senior coworkers, and supervisors as the most available
and helpful sources.
In the same year, Maanen (1983, pp.2) defined Organizational Socialization as a
“theory about how new skills, belief systems, patterns of action and, occasionally, personal
identities are acquired (or not acquired) by people as they move into new social settings”. He
further explained that it is also a concept about what kinds of issues take place in these
settings when responsible people such as HR/ supervisor organize tasks and social relations
for their recruits in particular ways. Thus organizational socialization is about new hires’
responses to organization demands as emphasized by the task and social organization
portraying a setting.
Grabmeier (2000) explains that orientation programs are usually perceived as the
boring and routine process that an employee has to pass through. However, he then assures
that good orientation programs can do more than just pass along the information – it can
strengthen commitment to the organization and help an organization build and maintain a
strong culture.”
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According to Wanberg (2012, pp.17), organizational socialization is the process
through which individuals obtain the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behaviors, required to
adapt to a new role. It can pertain to an employee starting off at a new organization, or to an
employee shifting to a new position. However, the term onboarding has emerged over the last
decade. And thus, Wanberg distinguishes between socialization and onboarding stating that
the primary differentiation is that onboarding is a narrower term than socialization. Based on
information from Klein and Polin (2012, pp.268), onboarding was defined as the specific
practices initiated by an organization or its agents to facilitate employee adjustment to new
roles. Thus organizational socialization includes the general onboarding, but in addition to
that it still covers the information seeking, learning and other adaptation processes involved
in socialization on the part of the newcomer.
Dessler and Al Ariss (2012, pp.188) define Employee orientation as the procedure for
providing employees with basic background information about the firm. They also go beyond
that definition to specify that orientation should achieve four main things: making the new
employee feel welcome and at ease, have him understand the organizations’ broad sense (it’s
past, present, culture, vision, policies), making the employee clear about what is expected
from him in terms of work and behavior, and helping the employee become socialized.
In addition, Mondy (2012, pp.215) explained orientation as the Initial Training &
Development effort for new employees that informs them about the company, the job, and the
workgroup. A good orientation program is pretty important because first impressions are
often the most enduring. In actual fact, it is during the first six months of the year that a new
employee decides whether to stay at the company or not. Orientation programs give
companies an opportunity to get the relationship off to a good start, especially after all
considerable time, money and effort have been invested into the selection process.
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Blanchard and Thacker (2013, pp.376) define an effective orientation as: “a way to
assimilate new hires into the company environment. When done properly, it provides the new
employee with information on what is required from them, as well as some history of the
firm, the company’s culture, and its strategic vision. It is actually the official launcher of the
socialization process for new employees, by aiding them to learn about the organization’s
system and principles.”
In regard to the time frame of the orientation period, Blanchard and Thacker (2013)
explained that orientations can be short (half or one day) or much longer (a week with
periodic meetings for months thereafter). Wanous and Reichers (2000) support the time
frame idea by stating that with a well-defined duration, orientation programs can be freely
separated from other orientation practices. This feature makes it easier to study orientation
programs, particularly through field experimental studies. They have also worked on
differentiating a new orientation program from a formal training by three major points: a)
training is more concerned with task performance while orientation is mainly concerned with
context performance, b) orientation takes place at the beginning of recruitment while training
is a continuous process, and c) orientation takes place during a period of high anxiety and
stress, while trainings can take place later on during calmer stages.
Klein and Heuser (2008, pp. 317) define orientation practices as: “all formal and
informal practices, programs, and policies enacted or engaged in by the organization or its
agents to help socialize new members”. They also state that any action taken by the
organization to promote, facilitate and encourage newcomer proactivity and to maximize its
effectiveness is considered to be organization orienting practice.
Wallace (2009, pp.168) explains that orientation accompanies training, but the two are
not alike. Training usually focuses on specific details like what and how, while orientation
emphasizes the bigger picture (why). Wallace then continues: “the first day is clearly an
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important part of orientation. However, as has been widely recognized, orientation is not just
a first day or a single event, but a process”.
The Country office director for U.S Department of Labor and consultant, Carol A.
Hacker, clarifies in a conference that new employee orientation is the precursor of
onboarding (2016). She then continues that first impressions do actually count and they are
everlasting, and thus managers need to be creative in their orientation programs to assure
effectiveness”.
Despite the various scholarly studies and researches on orientation, many
organizations still treat employee orientation as a non-priority function. Orienting employees
to their workplaces and their jobs is one of the most neglected functions in many
organizations (Brown, 2017). “Many managers are ignoring a very basic and simple
technique for integrating people’s needs into the objectives of the organization” (Kanouse
and Warihay, 1981, p.34). Klein and Heuser (2008, pp.326) even went further with the matter
referring to the lack of studies that were done on the effectiveness of socialization/ new
Employee Orientation practices, where they state that: “the absence of systematic research
assessing the effectiveness of different socializing activities, both formal and informal, that
occur during the socialization process is a major gap in the literature”. In addition Fan,
Buckley and Litchfield (2012, pp.88) based on information from Ashforth, Ross and Harisson
(2007) and Bauer and Ardogan (2010) highlight that research on orientation programs seems
to have stagnated in recent years even as broader research on newcomer socialization has
flourished.
Acevedo and Yancey (2011, pp.349) state that orientation programs are extremely
influential on an employee’s development and although many organizations include such
programs, few are the ones who actually utilize its full scope.
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1.2 Types and Approaches of New Employee Orientation Programs
Different companies conduct new employee orientation programs differently. Some
companies even perform orientation tasks, but they don’t necessarily name them orientation
programs. Mainly there are four types of Employee Orientation that were illustrated by
previous scholars. These types include:
1.2.1 Post-Hire Realistic Job Preview (RJP)
(Brose, 1999, pp. 25) describes it as a method by which a new hire is exposed to the
characteristics and requirements of the job. Thus introducing the desirable and undesirable
aspects of the job, and therefore reducing unrealistic expectations and boosting the degree of
employee commitment. In the end, a new hire who chooses a job after being exposed to both
negatives and positives will stay longer and will be more successful.
1.2.2 Expectation Lowering Procedure (ELP)
An ELP is the sister approach of realistic job preview and an addition to it, except for
the fact that an ELP is not job-related, unlike RJPs. An ELP generally aims at lowering the
new hire’s high expectations. They are usually composed of three major components: an
explanation on how organizational expectations are built, the likelihood of unrealistic
expectations and their negative outcomes, and finally explaining the fact that idealistic
expectations are usually unfulfilled. (L. Nyberg et al., 2007)
1.2.3 Realistic Orientation Program for Entry Stress (ROPES)
According to Wanous and Reichers (2000), the primary focus of ROPES is to reduce
new hire’s stress and anxiety during the primary entry period. They also add that ROPES
program development includes three main steps: a needs assessment should be conducted to
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identify the main stressors at work, second an employee is provided with realistic information
regarding his job, and finally newcomers are then taught some coping skills to enable them of
dealing with stressors.
1.2.4 Self Fulfilling Prophecy (SFP)
This is also known as the Galatea programs, and it is mainly built on the idea of
inducing new hires to feel higher self-efficacy relevant to their job/position. Thus, the higher
efficacy is believed to create motivated employee behavior which then will lead to better
performance. (Fan, Buckley and Litchfield, 2012, pp.108).
On another hand, there are two main approaches to New employee Orientation: The
Japanese and the Western Approaches: The major difference between the two approaches is
that New employee orientation is of much more importance to Japanese organizations
because they want to build a life-lasting relationship with their employees.
According to Mestre et al. (1997), Japanese firms start to hire almost entirely at the
entry level so that new hires can be properly capacitated and socialized into the new
organization to ensure a good person-organization fit. This process might vary from 6 months
to three years, unlike in western organizations where the new hire merely completes
paperwork and is expected to start functioning in his role. Mestre et al. (1997) explain that
the Japanese approach is different due to their group work approach, thus how a person is
included and who trains him is a corporate responsibility, and why employees succeed and
how long it takes them is also a teamwork effort. Therefore, this approach is highly
dependent on the Japanese organization culture which is highly collectivist and team spirit
based.
Furthermore, Mestre et al. 1997 explain that the Japanese approach to new employee
orientation passes through five stages: The first stage occurs in the corporate training center
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with the goal of helping students transition to employees and acquire company values. The
second stage occurs at the divisional headquarters were employees are rotated among several
divisions so that they get the big picture. The third stage will also involve departmental
rotation but for longer period, to get a deep understanding of the working department. The
fourth stage includes an individual assessment of the employee’s strengths, weaknesses, and
interests. While finally, the fifth stage occurs in a single department where the employee
receives a job assignment and a thorough on-the-job training.
Contrary comes the western approach, where the new hire starts off directly in a
specialty department, without going through all the general introductions first. According to
Acevedo and Yancey, (2011, pp.354) most western organizations, will start in a functional
specialty. Only if he or she climbed across the corporate ladder, they’ll be able to develop
skills across different units. He adds that unless western organizations change their working
cultures, they will not be able to embrace real orientation, despite the whole revolution on
employee orientation.
In conclusion western organizations can take a few steps of the Japanese approach to
assure person job fit together with a person- organization fit, however, this entails a shift in
their organizational cultures: from individualistic to collectivist culture.
1.3 Impacts of New employee Orientation
Employee satisfaction is key to employee retention, customer retention, and the
overall organizational success. Satisfaction is defined as “fulfilment of one’s wishes,
expectations, or needs, or the pleasure derived from this” (Oxford Dictionaries | English,
2018). While Job satisfaction is defined as “contentment (or lack of it) arising out of the
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interplay of employee’s positive and negative feelings towards his/her work” (Business
Dictionar.com, 2018).
The degree to which employees are satisfied with HR policies and practices can be
measured using attitude surveys. These can obtain opinions on matters such as the salary,
management, flow of information, communication channels, policies, treatment, besides
learning and development opportunities (Armstrong, 2006, pp.67). Overall, researches to date
suggest that what organizations and individuals do in the organizational socialization can
make a big difference with respect to a variety of important outcomes including employee
satisfaction, commitment, retention, and performance (Wanberg, 2012, pp.18).
The uncountable researches on employee orientation show that it has multiple impacts
on the employee as an individual and the organization as a whole. Many scholars strived to
measure these impacts that are listed below:
1.3.1 Increased Job Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment
Effective Orientations result in several positive outcomes for the organizations
including increased job satisfaction and high commitment (Blanchard & Thacker, 2013,
pp.380). Furthermore, Boettcher (2009, pp.7) explains that employee retention issues are
usually traced back to the orientation process, or any lack in it, including what was included
in the process, how it was done and who did it. In his opinion: “if the wrong people get hold
of the new hire, they can plan poison and cause the new hire to develop preconceived ideas.
These ideas can have lasting effects on the new hire, and that could lead to short-term
employment”.
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1.3.2 Reduced Start-Up Costs
Orientation helps in speeding up the learning process, and therefore reduces the costs
associated with the learning period, such as the cost of learning, lack of efficiency cost, etc.).
(Bacal, 2017, Brown 2017).
1.3.3 Socialization and Reduced Anxiety
A well-done orientation can make a great difference in reducing anxiety levels that
results from entering into mysterious situations, which can also show the standards for
behavior and conduct, and avoids employees from going into the stress of guessing. (Bacal,
2017, Brown 2017). Some organizations have found that employees subjected socialization
programs, including the topics of politics and career management, perform better than those
who have not undergone such training. (Mondy, 2012, pp.217). “An approach to reduce the
anxiety is to reduce the unknowns” state Kanouse and Warihay (1981, P. 36).
1.3.4 Reduced Employee Turnover / Higher Employee Retention Rate
Orientation shows that the organization values the employee, and help provide tools
necessary for succeeding in the job. (Bacal, 2017, Brown, 2017). Moreover, orientation
increases commitment and reduces turnover, which saves money on the long run (Wallace,
2009, pp.169).
1.3.5 Save Time for Supervisors and Co-workers
The better the initial orientation, the less likely supervisors and co-workers will have
to spend time teaching the employee (Bacal 2017, Brown 2017). Wallace (2009, pp.169) also
adds that it shortens the learning curve, increases productivity and reduces mistakes.
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1.3.6 Develop Realistic Job Expectations
It is important that employees learn early on what is expected of them, and what to
expect from others, in addition to learning about the values and attitudes of the organization.
(Bacal, 2017, Brown 2017)
Yet, Kanouse and Warihay (1981, pp.35) also added other mutually beneficial
outcomes of orientation programs such as: beginning positive employer/employee
relationship, providing uniform training guidelines, and balancing company’s productivity
needs with individual self-esteem needs.
1.4 Trends in New Employee Orientation Programs
Different organizations have different new employee orientation approaches and
checklists to complete. In addition, the time frame will also vary from one company to
another. What matters is to have a confident and content employee with the amount of
information that he was equipped with.
Todays’ very famous organizations, specifically their HR departments, are taking
good care of the orientation process. The HR Department at Indiana University believes that
the departmental orientation sets the stone for a new employee's entire career with an
organization and that new employees need to know departmental-specific information.
Therefore, the HR department have set up a guide on employee orientation objectives
together with 58 item checklists starting from the day one preparation of welcome, passing by
the office tour and the job specific information (Indiana University.com, 2010).
In addition, Boston College has paid similar attention to orientation by introducing an
online guide for supervisors and new employees. They explain that the supervisor has the
most immediate effect on creating a positive initial experience and work environment.
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Making the new employee feel welcome, providing the necessary basic information, and
responding to questions and concerns are accomplished by a well-planned orientation
(Boston college.edu, 2016).
According to Mondy (2012, pp. 216), orientation can occupy a new employee’s first
few days on the job, some firms believe that learning is more effective if spread out over
time. These firms are sensitive to information overflow and thus prefer to conduct twenty
one-hour sessions on a period of two weeks rather than doing them all at once. Some
organizations also assign a mentor or “buddy” for each new hire to work with them until they
are settled in.
According to HR360.com (2018), the key orientation agenda items are the
welcoming, the New Hire paperwork, explanation of compensation and benefits, an
explanation of attendance and leave, an employee conduct session, a safety and security
session, and other required trainings. While at the same time they propose three main points
for the checklist: a) to notify everyone in the employee’s department that a new person is
starting. b) To assign one of your employees to show your new hire the new workplace
environment, make introductions and answer questions, and C) to encourage the team to
welcome and support the new employee.
Moreover, Google recently created a ‘Just-In-time’ checklist that has improved
onboarding results by 25%. The idea is the following: the Sunday before a new hire arrives,
the new hire’s supervisor receives a reminder alert email to prompt the manager about the
five small tasks with proved high impact on the productivity of new hires. These tasks
include: a) have a role and responsibilities discussion, b) match the new hire with a peer
buddy c) help the new hire build a social network d) set up on-boarding check ins once a
month for the first six months, and e) encourage open dialogue. The main advantages of this
25
idea is that managers act voluntarily, without HR dictating them what to do, and it’s very
short and simple (Sullivan, 2015)
Another smart and new idea in the world of employee orientation was the software
application that was recently designed by Urban Bound, a Chicago-based startup that helps
manage relocation services for ventures and other companies (Urbanbound.com, 2015). The
company provides a centralized online location for new or relocating employees to access
their company-specific content, and even office specific content. Information can include any
information, like frequently asked questions, such as what to wear on their first day and what
documents they should sign. Jeff Ellman, the co-founder and president of Urban Bound,
explains: “Moving to a new job and moving to a new city are two of the top five most
stressful life events. Our goal was to find a way to solve it by technology. We built the first
relocation software, and currently, we’ve signed up about one Fortune 500 company every 10
days” (Chicago.cbslocal.com, 2015).
Finally, in 2013 Aberdeen Group ran out a survey and the results showed that
organizations with the best onboarding programs experience improved customer retention
16%, and increased revenue per full-time employee 17%. Thus recent consultation companies
that are specialized in providing orientation/ onboarding solutions have emerged, to sell
structured orientation programs and help other companies overcome their orientation
challenges. Their services include program diagnostics, business case analysis, program
design & Development, Hiring manager guides & tools, and implementation, planning and
support (Stein, Christiansen and Hagerman, 2015, pp.16).
26
2. NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION IN THE HUMANITARIAN CONTEXT
This research is about New Employee Orientation in one of the operations of the
United Nations Commission for Refugees. Since this organization is an International non-
governmental organization it is of utmost importance to look deeper into the definition, scope
and purpose of NGOs and discover how they are different from other sectors of work in their
hierarchy, constitution and approach. Then it will be of the same importance to discover
previous studies looking into new employee orientation within the humanitarian context.
2.1 Definition of Humanitarian Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs)
Many different scholars have thrived to define organizations that work in the
humanitarian domain, trying to define their role, effectiveness and their wide area of
intervention. Below are different definitions that were built around the topic:
According to Lewis (2009, pp.1), non-governmental organizations are now considered
main third sector actors in development, human rights, humanitarian action, environment, and
other such areas of public action. He then explains that the term itself includes a wide variety
of meanings, and there are other terms used for it such as “non-profit”, “voluntary”, “civil
society” and “international pressure groups”. On the historical background of NGOs, Lewis
explains that in 1945, the UN charter formalized the involvement of NGOs in the UN
processes and activities specifically in Article 71 of the charter. This has allowed NGOs such
as World Health Organizations (WHO) and United Nations Economic, Social and Cultural
organization (UNESCO) to include NGOs in their charters as well.
Brett (1995, pp.96-97) explained that the term ‘non-governmental organization’ with
its negative phrasing is unsatisfactory; as it could encompass any grouping that is not a
government. Adding that the CSCE (Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe)
27
recognized NGOs as ‘those who declare themselves as such according to existing national
procedures’ with a bar only on those using or publicly condoning violence or terrorism.
As government roles were reduced and redefined, this has opened new roles for
NGOs to be involved in service provision. The essential explanation for the emergence of
NGOs was based on their ability to offer a ‘development alternative’, through tackling
poverty and unequal relationships (Turner, Hulme and McCourt, 2015).
According to the Human Development Report by UNDP; NGOs have had an impact
in four main areas: advocacy on behalf of the disadvantaged, empowerment of marginalized
groups, reaching the poorest, and providing emergency assistance. Moreover, the report
clarifies that NGOs often manage to reach the poorest 20% of the population and those in the
rural areas, where government services may be few or even non- existent. Not to forget that
one important strength of NGOs is their ability to respond quickly and effectively to
emergencies and their ability to empower and support people’s organizations to challenge
local elites and claim their rights (UNDP, 1993, pp.8).
Moreover, the term NGO should be used as a common denominator, a collective term
for, all organizations within the aid channel that are institutionally separated from the state
apparatus and are not-for-profit-distributing. NGOs are now counted as a third sector in the
US and in parts of Europe, following the first sector: public sector and the second sector:
private sector (Tvedt, 1998, pp.16).
The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) defines an INGO as
"any organization which is not established by inter-governmental agreement" (Resolution 288
(X) the 27th February 1950), "including organizations which accept members designated by
government authorities, provided that such membership does not interfere with the free
expression of views of the organizations" (Union of International Associations, 2017).
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In Lebanon currently there’s a big number of non-governmental organizations
existing, some are national and some are international. According to the (Ministry of Social
Affairs - Lebanon, 2018), the total number of local NGOs in Lebanon in 2018 is around 3500
distributed among all Lebanese territories. However this figure doesn’t include the
International NGOs such as, but are not limited to: UNHCR, UNDP, WHO, IOM, ICRC,
WFP, etc.
The number of International NGOs interested to operate in Lebanon, and the number
of active local NGOs in Lebanon has boosted after the Syrian war broke out and refugees
started arriving to Lebanon. This is considered normal since international funding for local
NGOs in Lebanon fluctuates in response to conflict and violence (Seyfert, 2014, pp.4). This
increase in humanitarian operations has resulted in a huge recruitment phenomenon by NGOs
and INGOs to respond to this crisis. Therefore it will be very interesting to look into a sample
of the employee orientation done in one of these organizations and its impact on employee
satisfaction.
2.2 Current Employee Orientation in NGOs
The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (2007, pp.25) mentioned employee orientation
in their guidelines on Mental Health in Emergency Settings. Precisely, in the Matrix of
Intervention during Emergencies, the IASC advises humanitarian organization to: “organize
orientation and training of aid workers in mental health and psychosocial support” as one of
the minimum response tools.
UNHCR has developed and published a recruitment brochure for internationally
recruited staff (RECRUITMENT BROCHURE - General Information on Entitlements &
Benefits for International Staff, 2017, pp.27). In the brochure ‘Induction and Orientation’ are
29
one of the main issues addressed: “All newly hired staff are required to undergo an
orientation process (the Induction and Orientation training) during the first 3 months of their
assignment. The training package training tackles a range of topics, focusing on key
operational concepts such as Accountability Framework for Age, Gender and Diversity
Mainstreaming (AGDM) and Results Based Management (RBM). The Induction and
Orientation training includes the online mandatory courses and a number of resources to help
new staff quickly get acquainted with UNHCR and to contribute to the organization’s
operational effectiveness as well as an Induction and Orientation Webinar.
In addition, UNHCR has published a separate recruitment brochure for locally
recruited staff (UNHCR, 2011, pp.28). This brochure also includes important content on the
new employee orientation including the UN specific induction course called: ‘Welcome to
the UN – A UN system induction course’. This package was a common package for all UN
agencies to support them during their orientation period and to help the staff become familiar
with the goals and principles of the UN. The course also tackles the following topics:
segments on UN core competencies, career development, security, the UN organizational
structure and core-working programs as well as the UN reform. Also to make sure that new
hires completed this web-based course, learners can test their knowledge and apply for a
certificate of completion.
In a similar way, the American Red Cross also has the New Employee/Volunteer
Orientation called NEVO. It is a self-study program available online that includes: an
articulation demo, a module on the history of the organization, another module on the
mission, structure and strategic direction another module on the key services, and a last
module on the values and ethical standards of the organization. This program is 70 minutes
long and its efficiency depends on whether the organization includes other aspects of
orientation (American Red Cross, 2018).
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Another live example is the Staff Integration Program (SIP) at International
Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). In partnership with Cross Knowledge, ICRC created a
blended learning program with the aim of enabling their staff to effectively and rapidly
deploy their humanitarian services when needed. The program brings together staff into a
combination of distance and cooperative workplace learning activities, composed of three
stages: online, face to face and work-based learning. (Tedgui, 2018).
As a conclusion, we can see that most NGOs are front-runners in training and
development, with rather mediocre focus on the complete new employee orientation process.
Some organizations have set complete checklists for their offices on how to embrace a new
employee, while others have just focused on training and development while putting less
focus on the office environment in welcoming and supporting the new employee to hold his
roles. This concretely means that a new employee orientation at a Non-Governmental
Organization will vary according to several factors: HR awareness and pro-activeness, the
supervisor’s character, and office culture.
2.3 Importance of New Employee Orientation in the Humanitarian Context
New Employee Orientation is of utmost importance within any kind of organizations,
however, it is specifically important in the context of NGOs due to the high stress and
emergency levels.
Working in the Humanitarian Sector can be specifically stressful due to the specificity
of this domain. Illustrated below are researches proving this fact, followed then by other
resources proving that new employee orientation is a vital tool in reducing occupational stress
and anxiety. This then verifies the importance of New Employee Orientation in Humanitarian
organizations like UNHCR to reduce the famous job-related stress. In other words, since
31
humanitarian organizations are known for the high occupational stress & anxiety, an efficient
new employee orientation can help in dragging down the stress to average levels.
Colliard (2014, pp.8) in his book: Training, Support & Follow up for Humanitarian
Field Staff explains a set of phases that an organization should follow to support their staff
and reduce stress. The First and foremost phase is the ‘before a mission’ phase which as a
major part of staff care best practices. He states that an organization is responsible of making
the future staff aware of all the technical aspects of a mission, in addition to giving him/her a
good preparation and training on stress management in a hostile environment.
According to Ehrenreich and Ager (2012, pp.5), “Humanitarian organizations today
are more professionally managed and better equipped and prepared than years ago. However
direct exposure to misery, the ever-growing numbers of people affected by humanitarian
crises, deteriorating safety and security conditions, and limited available resources mean that
humanitarian workers remain exposed to a wide variety of sources of stress.” Thus, Good
Staff care has been proven to be an important asset in stress management and the prevention
of traumatic and post-traumatic stress.
None the less, Colliard (2014, pp.5) states that: ‘The nature of Humanitarian
fieldwork, whether in emergencies, rehabilitation or development, results in specific stress
factors, which are well recognized: complex work environments requiring experienced
professionals, adaptability to a variety of cultures, heavy workload and long work days, little
privacy, insecurity harsh climates, and separation from family members to name a few.
The Staff Welfare section in UNHCR (2011, pp.5) recognizes that stress among
humanitarian workers is a major issue and as a result has prepared several tools researching
and addressing the matter and capacitating its staff. In 2011 the UNHCR staff welfare section
prepared a report called Managing Stress in the Humanitarian Emergencies which states that:
“UNHCR has become familiar with the particular stress associated with humanitarian work,
32
and recognizes it as occupational in nature. No one responding to a humanitarian emergency
is untouched by the experience”.
Krasman (2015, pp.9) explains in his guidance report that a happy and engaged
employee doesn’t happen by coincidence: “The development of a truly satisfied and engaged
workforce begins with a comprehensive onboarding process”. He further stresses the
importance by stating that: “for today’s organizations, a robust onboarding process isn’t just a
good idea, it’s a fundamental requirement for business growth and sustainability”.
In their guidelines for good practice Published by the Antares Foundation, Ehrenreich
and Ager (2012, pp.19) reveal that the third core principle that Humanitarian Organizations
needs to follow is Pre-assignment preparation and training in Managing stress. This principle
includes four indicators; two indicators focus on a training to new hires on stress and
emotional self-care before an assignment begins. The other two focus on training and
evaluation to managers on stress management skills and capacities, so that they can properly
support their teams.
In 2014, The Staff Welfare section in UNHCR conducted a staff well-being survey.
The study found that between 25% and 38% of the respondents were classified as at risk for
anxiety. However, at the same time, most participants were somewhat to very satisfied with
their jobs. Job Satisfaction is moderately and negatively correlated to anxiety. This means
that as the job satisfaction increases, the chance of being at risk for this health outcome
decreases (Suzik et al., 2016, pp.7).
In addition, Suzik et al. (2016, pp.13) also indicate that it is clear that the context of
humanitarian work is intrinsically demanding: humanitarian workers operate in complex
environments characterized by protracted problems such as wars and civil strife, severe levels
of poverty and famine, personal tragedies and natural disasters. Humanitarian aid workers
33
have an overwhelming workload, lack privacy and personal space, and are separated from
family and friends for extended periods of time.
Some major studies proved that an inclusive and practical orientation program greatly
pays back to both the organization and the employee. Grabmeier (2000), showed in a research
done in Ohio State that new employees who completed the three-hour orientation program
showed a higher level of commitment to their employer than did those who skipped the
program. Thus, the summary of the research was: “If employers want a committed workforce,
a good orientation program is an important first step in developing that commitment”
(Grabmeier, 2000).
All the above-mentioned facts support the conclusion that New Employee Orientation
is definitely crucial in Humanitarian Aid domain, to mitigate its related stress to the extent
possible and to avoid any trauma. Thus in order to avoid high employee turnover, manage the
stress and anxiety levels among new hires in the humanitarian domain, new employee
orientation is a must.
2.4 Secondary Data on New Employee Orientation vs. Employee Satisfaction
Uncountable studies were conducted by different researchers in the world of human
development, human psychology and Human Resources, to corroborate the link between new
employee orientation and employee satisfaction. Listed below are some of these studies that
show the direct relation between Employee Orientation and employee satisfaction.
Rowland, Ruth and Ekot, conducted a study in 2017 with the staff of United Bank of
Africa (UBA), to determine whether there’s a relation between employee orientation and
employee satisfaction at work. 74 questionnaires were distributed to workers and the data
were analyzed using different methods. The findings showed that employee orientation does
in fact has a substantial impact on employee satisfaction at work, especially that around 75%
34
of the respondents agreed that induction wired their sense of personal accomplishment. The
study also recommended senior managers to stick to the minimum induction and orientation
since it forms a groundwork for employee satisfaction at work.
Another study was conducted by Sarpong Alberta in Ghana Education Service (GES)
through a survey that has targeted 101 employees in 2012. The objective of the study was to
discover how employee orientation can affect the general employee performance and
specifically employee satisfaction. The study revealed the Ghana Educational Service (GES)
had inadequate orientation policies in their different sectors, which are also not always
formalized due to lack of budget and other resources. More importantly, the second main
finding was that their weak orientation program has caused low satisfaction levels among
employees, showing thus a positive correlation between new employee orientation and
employee satisfaction.
Also another interesting study was conducted by Meyer and Bartels (2017, pp.11)
where they have examined the Impact of the four Levels of Onboarding: Compliance,
Clarification, Culture and Connection on Job satisfaction besides other work attributes. A
survey was designed and filled out by 734 employees of the Amazon Mechanical Turk. The
Findings of the study were that employees who received the highest levels of onboarding
indicated higher levels perceived job satisfaction besides other work attitudes.
Moreover, Micheal Stetzer (2006, pp.72) conducted a relevant research for his PHD
in Psychological sciences at Kansas State University. The study inspected the Impact of
Onboarding Information Acquisition and the impact of shared mental model of job
satisfaction besides other elements. One of the main results of study showed that even from a
mental model perception, a new employee experiencing onboarding shall experience a
positive impact in their job satisfaction.
35
Based on the above researches and studies, this study will be tackling new employee
orientation from the same angle. The study will address the hypothesis question: Does New
Employee Orientation procedures at UNHCR affect employee satisfaction? We will discover
the answers in the second part: the practical framework.
36
PART II
THE PRACTICAL FRAMEWORK
37
CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
1. INTRODUCTION TO THE RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
“All progress is born of inquiry. Doubt is often better than overconfidence, for it
leads to inquiry and inquiry leads to invention.” Hudson Maxim (1853-1927) a U.S inventor
and chemist who invented a variety of explosives state, referring to the significance of
research. Redman and Mory, (1933, pp.10) define research as the systematized effort to gain
new knowledge. They also add that scientific research is the experiment conducted for the
discovery of new facts and their relation to other facts.
2. QUANTITATIVE OR QUALITATIVE METHOD USED
This study sought to identify the impact of the new employee orientation procedures
on the employee satisfaction, especially at entry-level. To achieve this goal, the study
examined the new employee orientation practices in UNHCR Lebanon offices. The findings
were meant to help the Human Resources and Staff Welfare units to enhance the current new
employee orientation procedures into a more standardized program for new hires among the
six offices of UNHCR in Lebanon. For this reason the study was conducted through a
quantitative method of research. The quantitative method was resembled in a survey that
allowed to gather numbers and statistics on the topic. In brief the study has targeted a large
group, and has strived to test one main question: Does New Employee Orientation at
UNHCR impact employee satisfaction?
3. DATA COLLECTION METHOD
The aim of the study was mainly to ascertain the effect of employee orientation on
their employee satisfaction. Thus, the chief data gathering instrument of the survey was a
five-minute structured questionnaire which was designed with the objective of the study as its
38
backbone. The questionnaire was composed of three main parts: first the personal profile
details, second: the components of the current employee orientation procedures, third:
employee satisfaction with the orientation procedures and their further suggestions. The
questionnaire included 12 questions: 11 closed questions and 1 open ended question. The
closed questions are divided as follows: 2 dichotomous questions, 5 multiple choice
questions, and 4 Likert’s 5 point scale questions, out of which 2 are with a not applicable
(N/A) choice. All questions are all clearly mentioned in appendix A.
The target population of the study was large, and geographically dispersed, since it
involved staff of UNHCR in its 6 different offices in Lebanon, that are located in different
regions in Lebanon. Therefore, the research tool used was a web based survey. The survey
was designed on survey monkey website and sent to all staff on their UNHCR email address,
so that they can fill anonymously and thus confidently. A cover letter was included in the
invitation email to explain the idea and objectives of the survey to the potential participants.
When the surveys were sent, the staff were asked to fill the survey within a maximum of 7
days.
When the survey was announced to the employees, a duration of one week was given
as a completion phase. The use of survey design facilitated data collection from such a large
number of respondents, and helped capture a good amount of data ready for analysis.
4. POPULATION AND SAMPLING
The theoretical population for this study is Employees in the Humanitarian sector in
general. For reasons of comprehensive and more representative sampling, the study
population was taken as the entire UNHCR Lebanon operation workforce, which pertains to
an estimation of 600 employees. The population of study included all categories of
employees comprising, entry level, and junior and senior management employees. This
39
means that the people who participated in the new employee orientation feedback survey
were employees from the six offices and different levels at UNHCR Lebanon.
In the study, the sample drawn from the population, was a voluntary sample, where a
questionnaire was built online, and subsequently all the individuals of the study population
were invited through a broadcast mail to take part in it, on their own accord. This type of
sampling is known as self-selection sampling and it is one of the main types of non-
probability sampling.
The instrument used for the study was a web based, self-administered questionnaire,
since all UNHCR Lebanon staff have hundred percent access to the internet and all have
professional emails. The questionnaire was designed in English and in Arabic as well. Since
some staff felt more comfortable with the Arabic language and thus this ensured a higher
response rate.
The Country-level HR unit has given this study access to the study population and has
also urged staff to fill the survey, however participation remained completely voluntary. No
consequences would entail employees choosing not to fill the survey. Thus we can say that a
voluntary sampling method was followed. According to De Pedraza, Tijdens and De Bustillo
(2007), a continuous voluntary web survey aims to collect data from a population, where
every individual has the same probability of being selected. This makes it then very easy to
the researcher to analyze and conclude on the expanded population using the standard
inference procedures.
The total respondents comprise the sample of the study, which is a sample
representing 6 different offices, different hierarchical levels and different units: logistics unit,
protection unit, shelter unit, registration unit, program unit, project control unit,
administrative unit…etc. Thus we can say the sample results can be generalized over the
whole UNHCR Lebanon, since it is inclusive and representative.
40
5. STUDY LIMITATIONS
- Research on new employee orientation is a wide topic, with many several components
and different styles. Thus it was somewhat difficult to decide which components to
measure, especially that there’s no sole official checklist for orientation, since different
organizations have their different ways of doing it.
- There was a probability of participants answering the satisfaction-related questions with
some biases. We are measuring early stage entry level satisfaction, for some staff this
has happened a while ago. This periodic gap will leave room for other different factors to
affect a respondents’ answer, especially their current general satisfaction level.
- The method of self-selection brings in another probability of bias as well. Thus the
decision to participate can hold within some bias regarding the characteristics or traits of
the participants.
- Web based surveys usually have high rates of non-response. In this study, we followed
the process of non-controlled self-selection, were some persons have completed the
questionnaire, and some other weren’t interested to complete it.
41
CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND RESULTS
1. DATA ANALYSIS METHOD
This part of the project explains the study’s data analysis methodology. Various
statistical analyses were used in this study. First the data collected by Survey monkey was
exported to Windows excel. The text responses of the participants were then given a
numerical code. This data was again exported to Statistical Program for Social Science
(SPSS). SPSS was used to obtain the frequency, percent, and valid percent of each survey
item, as well as mean of means of selected variables. In addition SPSS was used to conduct
the Pearson correlational test which is the tool that has allowed to test the hypothesis
proposed for this study. In this test, the significance threshold was set at 0.05, i.e. only an
error range less than 5% would be accepted, and otherwise the research will be considered
non-significant.
This part will look at the appearance, analysis and interpretation of data collected.
Using the data collection methods mentioned earlier, the data will be synthesized and edited
to reach comprehensive reading, in order to reach reliable conclusions.
2. FACT FINDING RESULTS
This study was concerned with examining the relationship between new employee orientation
and employee satisfaction in UNHCR Lebanon. This was done by developing a 12 question
web based survey that was sent to 594 staff of UNHCR Lebanon.
Of the 594 subjects who were asked to participate in this survey, 121 chose to
participate. This resulted in a response rate of 20.4 % and a non-response rate of 79.6 %.
42
111 respondents chose to fill the English version of the questionnaire, while 10 chose to fill
the Arabic version of the questionnaire.
The purpose of this section is to examine the objective of the study by providing the
statistical results of the survey.
It is worth mentioning again that the main objective of the study was to study the correlation
between new employee orientation and employee satisfaction. Thus, in order to tackle this
objective, the statistical figures from the survey were thoroughly processed and analyzed. In
the survey there were a total of 24 variables. 7 variables were on bio-data information (age,
gender, etc.), 15 variables were related to new employee orientation components, and 2
variables measured employee’s overall satisfaction with the new employee orientation. Also,
out of the 24 variables, 7 were nominal and 16 were scale measurements, while one was not
included on SPSS.
Using SPSS several tests were conducted including the Pearson correlation test, mean of
means of variables and level of significance. Results will be demonstrated in the below
sections along with their comprehensive meanings.
2.1 Personal Profile of Respondents
Respondents were asked to provide data on 7 personal variables. These variables included
Gender, Age, Education, Employment Category, Type of Contract, Duty Station, and years of
experience with UNHCR Lebanon.
2.1.1 Gender of Respondents
The Distribution of the respondents’ age is demonstrated below in table 1 and figure 1
43
Table 11 Breakdown of Respondents by Gender
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent
Male 47 38.5 38.8 38.8
Valid Female 74 60.7 61.2 100.0
Total 121 99.2 100.0

Missing System 1 .8
Total 122 100.0
Figure 9 Breakdown of Repsondents by Gender
As illustrated in table1 and figure 1, the majority of survey respondents were females
reaching to 61.2%, met by 38.8% of male participants. However, 1 respondent didn’t
complete this question and thus we have missing value of 0.8%. Therefore, it was important
to look into the valid percent row and not the percent row, since the former excludes the
missing values and take only the valid ones.
2.1.2 Duty Station of Respondents
The Distribution of the respondents’ duty stations is demonstrated below in table 2 and figure
2.
44
Table 12 Breakdown of Respondents by Duty Station
Beirut 41 33.6 33.9 33.9
Mount Lebanon 24 19.7 19.8 53.7
Tripoli 15 12.3 12.4 66.1
Valid Tyre 25 20.5 20.7 86.8
Bekaa 13 10.7 10.7 97.5
Qobayat 3 2.5 2.5 100.0
Total 121 99.2 100.0

Missing System 1 .8
Total 122 100.0
Figure 10 Breakdown of Respondents by Duty Station
As presented in table 2 and figure 2, the majority of respondents were those working in
Beirut Office (33.9%), with a frequency of 41 respondents. The second rank were
respondents working in Tyre (20.7%, 25 respondents), followed by Mount Lebanon (19.8%,
24 respondents), then Tripoli (12.4%, 15 respondents) and then Bekaa (10.7%, 13
respondents). The minority group was respondents working in Qobayat office with only 2.5%
(3 respondents).
2.1.3 Years of Experience at UNHCR
The Distribution of the respondents’ years of experience at UNHCR is demonstrated below in
table 3 and figure 3.

45
Table 13 -Breakdown of Respondents by Years of Experience
Less than 1 year 5 4.1 4.1 4.1
1 - 5 years 87 71.3 71.9 76.0
Valid 6 - 10 years 22 18.0 18.2 94.2
More than 10 years 7 5.7 5.8 100.0
Total 121 99.2 100.0

Missing System 1 .8
Total 122 100.0
Figure 11-Breakdown of Respondents by Years of Experience
The data presented in table 3 shows that the majority of respondents held between 1-5 years
of experience with UNHCR (71.9%) with a frequency of 87. The second category was ranked
by 6-10 years of experience (18.2%, 22 respondents). While the third and the forth categories
were ranked by more than 10 years (5.8%) and less than one year (4.1%, 5 respondents).
2.1.4 Employment Category
The Distribution of the respondents’ employment category is listed below in table 4 and
figure 4.
46
Table 14 Breakdown of Respondents by Employment Category
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent
National 108 88.5 89.3 89.3
Valid International 13 10.7 10.7 100.0
Total 121 99.2 100.0

Missing System 1 .8
Total 122 100.0
Figure 12Breakdown of Respondents by Employment Category
By looking into the data presented in table 4, it is noticed that majority of the respondents
were nationally recruited staff (89.3%) with a frequency of 108. While minority of
respondents were internationally recruited staff (10.7%, 13 respondents) only.
2.1.5 Type of Contract
Detailed figures are presented on type of respondents contracts in table and figure 5.
Table 15 Breakdown of Respondents' Type of Contract

Percent
Valid Indefinite Appointment 7 5.7 5.8 5.8
Fixed Term Appointment 45 36.9 37.2 43.0
Temporary Assignment 8 6.6 6.6 49.6
47
Affiliated workforce such as
61 50.0 50.4 100.0
UNOPS
Total 121 99.2 100.0

Missing System 1 .8
Total 122 100.0
Figure 13 Breakdown of Respondents' type of contract
The table and figure above demonstrates that around half of respondents of the survey were
affiliated work force, holding UNOPS contracts with a percentage of 50.4% (61 respondents).
The remaining half was distributed between 37.2% for respondents holding fixed term
contracts (37.2%, 45 respondents), followed by fixed term appointment contract-holders
(6.6%, 8 respondents), and finally the Indefinite Appointment group (5.8%, 7 respondents).
2.1.6- Age of Respondents
The distribution of respondents’ age is listed below.

Table 16 Breakdown of respondents' ages

Percent
20 - 29 years 41 33.6 33.9 33.9
30 - 39 years 62 50.8 51.2 85.1
Valid 40 - 49 years 17 13.9 14.0 99.2
60 years and above 1 .8 .8 100.0
Total 121 99.2 100.0

Missing System 1 .8
Total 122 100.0
48
Figure 14 Breakdown of responents' Age
According to the data presented in table and figure 6, the lead age group of respondents was
found to be 30 – 39 years (51.2%), a frequency of 62. The age-group 20-29 years was the
second ranking group with a percentage of (33.9 %), followed by the age group 40-49 years
old age group with a percentage of (14 %). The smallest age-group was those who are 60
years and above with only 1 respondent (0.8 %).
2.1.7. Educational Level
The distribution of the highest educational level attained by the respondents is presented in
table and figure 7.
Table 17 Breakdown of respondents' Educational Level

Percent
Valid High School 6 4.9 5.0 5.0
49
Bachelor 50 41.0 41.3 46.3
Master 65 53.3 53.7 100.0
Total 121 99.2 100.0

Missing System 1 .8
Total 122 100.0
It was revealed by the data presented in table 4.2 that the dominant highest formal education
level is the Master’s Degree Level (53.7%, 65 respondents). Respondents with a Bachelor
Degree followed directly with a percentage of (41.3%) a frequency of 50. The third most
dominant educational level was the high school degree level (5%). Finally none of the
respondents held elementary, intermediary nor PHD degrees which were also among the
listed options for this variable.
2.2 Testing the Hypothesis
The study survey included 15 components of orientation that are conducted at UNHCR
Lebanon. Out of these 15 components, 9 were being conducted at an office level and 6 were
conducted at a unit/department level, however they all formed one group of orientation
components. Respondents were requested to specify satisfaction level with these procedures,
however they also had the option to choose N/A if that procedure didn’t occur in their case.
The following parts will include an analysis of the general satisfaction levels with the
orientation procedures and then we will compare these satisfaction levels taking different
variables separately.
50
Since the research studies the relationship between two groups of continuous variables, i.e the
relationship between new employee orientation and employee satisfaction, the Pearson linear
correlation test was chosen to measure this relation.
Pearson's linear correlation coefficient is used to measure the change in the dependent
variable when the values of the independent variables have changed or vice versa. It is
usually used in the case of large samples and quantitative data and it has the following
characteristics:
• Its value is zero, when the two phenomena are completely independent.
• It has a positive value, when there’s a direct relationship between the two variables.
As the value moves towards +1, it signals a stronger correlation, while it gets weaker as it
moves towards zero.
• It has a negative value when the correlation is inverse, and the correlation gets stronger as it
moves towards -1 and weaker as it moves towards zero.
This is illustrated in the figure below.
Figure 16 - Pearson's Correlation Line
The table below illustrates the results of the Person Correlation Test between the orientation
variables and satisfaction variables, in addition to the statistical significance.
Table 18- Pearson Correlations Test Results
51
satisfaction orientation
Pearson Correlation 1 .702**
satisfaction Sig. (2-tailed) .000
N 96 96
Pearson Correlation .702 **
1
orientation Sig. (2-tailed) .000
N 96 96
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed).
The Pearson Correlation test result on SPSS also known as Pearson’s r was 0.702, which is a
positive result that signals a strong direct correlation between UNHCR’s new employee
orientation procedures and general employee satisfaction. The table also shows that the
statistical significance level was found to be is 0.000, i.e. p<0.05. This explains that in our
study we found a significant relationship between new employee orientation and employee
satisfaction.
As mentioned earlier in the data analysis method part: the significance threshold for this
study was set at 0.05. This means that only a statistical significance of less than 0.05 would
be accepted. And usually a p of 0.05 means that there’s a 95% chance that the results reached
are true, and only a 5% chance that the result might not be true. A positive statistical
significance means that the results are likely not due to random chance.
In a nutshell, the above proves the fact that there’s a strong, direct and significant correlation
between new employee orientation and employee satisfaction. This strongly ascertains the
hypothesis H1: The new employee orientation program affects employee satisfaction in
UNHCR Lebanon and rejects the null hypothesis.
2.3- Mean of Orientation Variables
The table below shows the general mean of responses to each of the 15 orientation
procedures included in the survey. This will help us read the average result for each
orientation component asked in the survey.
52
In the section of the means analysis, all the values of didn’t occur (N/A) were turned into
Neutral values, so that we can calculate the mean, since within Likert scale we can consider
the non-occurrence of a variable as a neutral value.
The analysis was done based on 4 degrees; 1 – 2, 2 – 3, 3 – 4, and 4 – 5, which means that we
have 5 choices 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5.
Table 19- Means of Orientation Variables

Frequency 1 5
2 3 4
variables and valid Strongly Strongly mean result
dissatisfied Neutral Satisfied
percent dissatisfied Satisfied
I received a Frequency 5 9 44 25 13
scheduled
3.33 Neutral
orientation percent 5.2% 9.4% 45.8% 26% 13.5%
session
useful
2.93 Neutral
orientation percent 9.4% 20.8% 46.9% 13.5% 9.4%
handbook
tour around
3.68 Satisfied
the duty station percent 7.3% 5.2% 24% 39.6% 24%
and/or unit
I was Frequency 4 1 13 47 31
Introduced to
4.04 Satisfied
fellow team percent 4.2% 1% 13.5% 49% 32.3%
members
I was Frequency 4 10 30 27 25
Introduced to
organization 3.61 Satisfied
percent 4.2% 10.4% 31.3% 28.1% 26%
goals and
mission
I received Frequency 4 9 23 29 31
support while
completing HR 3.77 Satisfied
percent 4.2% 9.4% 24% 30.2% 32.3%
paperwork and
forms
session on
3.97 Satisfied
safety percent 4.2% 3.1% 19.8% 37.5% 35.4%
procedures
clear and
understandable
3.27 Neutral
presentation of percent 9.4% 14.6% 33.3% 25% 17.7%
benefits
package
I used the Frequency 14 7 56 8 11
optional Staff
Welfare 2.95 Neutral
percent 14.6% 7.3% 58.3% 8.3% 11.5%
briefing upon
arrival
I was nicely Frequency 2 7 11 25 51
welcomed by Strongly
4.21
my immediate percent 2.1% 7.3% 11.5% 26% 53.1% Satisfied
supervisor
My team Frequency 2 5 11 31 47 4.21 Strongly
53
members were
kind and percent 2.1% 5.2% 11.5% 32.3% 49% Satisfied
welcoming
proper
explanation of
3.68 Satisfied
department percent 3.1% 11.5% 26% 33.3% 26%
policies and
procedures
proper
explanation of 3.78 Satisfied
percent 6.3% 8.3% 18.8% 34.4% 32.3%
my role and
responsibilities
I was provided Frequency 4 4 13 36 39
with the tools
and resources
needed to do 4.06 Satisfied
percent 4.2% 4.2% 13.5% 37.5% 40.6%
my job well
(phone, desk,
PC, etc)
proper on-the- 3.48 Satisfied
percent 6.3% 11.5% 32.3% 28.1% 21.9%
job training
Total mean 3.66 Satisfied
By looking in general at the above table, we can realize that the 15 orientation responses
received mean results as follows: 4 procedures received a neutral answer, and 2 procedures
received strongly satisfied and all the remaining 9 orientation procedures received a satisfied
average result. In addition we can also look at the final mean of responses to all the 15
orientation procedures and the result was 3.48, i.e. satisfied. This clearly shows that in
general employees at UNHCR Lebanon are perceiving the new employee orientation process
quite positively, with the chance of some enhancements in a few areas to reach maximum
satisfaction.
By Looking at variable 1, when employees were asked whether they received a scheduled
orientation session majority of the respondents remained neutral (45.8%) followed by 26%
respondents mentioning that they were satisfied, and 13.5% extremely satisfied.
The mean of the responses was neutral, which shows that employees were neither satisfied
nor dissatisfied regarding the ‘scheduled orientation session’. Thus UNHCR Lebanon is
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recommended to put more efforts to assure that a schedule orientation session always takes
place, in a standardized manner.
Looking at the variable 2, when participants were asked whether they received a useful
handbook during the orientation process, 46.9% of the total participants remained neutral,
while 20.8% were dissatisfied, followed by 13.5% who mentioned that they were satisfied.
The mean of responses to this variable was 2.93, which corresponds to Neutral. Thus
UNHCR Lebanon can enhance these results by ensuring that every single new employee
arriving to UNHCR receives a standardized orientation handbook.
As for variable 3, participants were asked whether they received a tour around the duty
station, and here the answers came as follows: 39.6% were satisfied with the matter, while
24% were strongly satisfied and another 24% remained neutral. The total mean of the
responses was 3.68 which means that in general staff are satisfied with this component.
When staff were asked whether they were introduced to team members in variable 4, the
mean of the responses was 4.04, which means that in general employees were also relatively
satisfied with this component.
In variable 5, participants were asked whether they were introduced to organizational goals
and mission upon recruitment and how satisfied they were with that. The mean of responses
reached 3.61, which corresponds to staff being satisfied in average.
Looking at the variable 6 of the orientation components, participants were asked whether they
received proper support while completing the HR paperwork and forms, the majority of
respondents mentioned that they were strongly satisfied (32.3%), while 29 respondents chose
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that they were satisfied (30.2%), while 23 respondents remained neutral (24%). Yet minority
of respondents (9.4%) and (4.2%) were dissatisfied and strongly dissatisfied.
Also, looking at the variable 7 which asks participants if they have received a session on
safety procedures, and again the mean of responses was also pertaining to level of satisfaction
(3.97).
However in procedures 8 and 9, related to presentation of benefits package and using the
optional staff welfare, the means for both variables indicated neither satisfied nor dissatisfied.
This means that UNHCR can do some changes to enhance the perception towards these two
components. Probably a more detailed explanation is needed on entitlements package, in
addition to a thorough explanation on the importance of staff welfare’s optional session.
Looking at variables 10 and 11, which pertain to nice welcome by supervisor and kind
welcome by colleagues, the mean responses for these two hit a very high score 4.21. This
number indicates that average of responses were distributed more towards strongly satisfied.
This also reflects that there’s a positive and warm working environment among different
working team units at UNHCR Lebanon.
The final four orientation variables were related to receiving proper explanation of
department policies, receiving proper explanation of roles and responsibilities, providing
tools and resources, and receiving a proper on-the-job training. All these variables received
high scores, which was interpreted as employees being satisfied with these components.
2.4 Means of Satisfaction Variables
Table 20- Means of Satisfaction variables

Frequency 1 5
2 3 4
Variables and valid Strongly Strongly Mean Result
Dissatisfied Neutral Satisfied
percent Dissatisfied Satisfied
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the orientation
process has
helped me to Frequency 6 18 31 32 9
integrate into the 3.21 Neutral
organization and
to begin building percent 6.3% 18.8% 32.3% 33.3% 9.4%
relationships
How would you Frequency 8 21 27 35 5
rate your overall
experience in the 3.08
percent 8.3% 21.9% 28.1% 36.5% 5.2% Neutral
orientation
process?
Total mean 3.14 Neutral
Two main questions were asked to measure satisfaction: the first was whether the orientation
process has helped the staff to integrate and begin building relationships, which helps
measure the employee satisfaction at entry level. The other question was to rate the overall
experience in the orientation process which also helps give insights about how satisfied the
employee was when he/she finished orientation process and was heading towards starting his
job officially.
Looking at the table above, when asked whether the orientation process has helped the
employee to integrate and build relationships in the organization, 32 (33.3 %) respondents
mentioned that they were satisfied, and 9 respondents mentioned that they were extremely
satisfied (9.4%), while 31 respondents (32.3%) remained neutral. In addition 18 respondents
mentioned that they were dissatisfied (18.8%), while a minority of 6.3% answered that they
were strongly dissatisfied.
The mean result for the responses on this variable, are 3.21 which corresponds to a neutral
answer. Thus in general, employees were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied regarding how the
orientation process helped them integrate and build relationships. This shows that UNHCR
needs to put some more efforts in making the general orientation procedures more
personalized and more employee-focused than being organizational focused. This issue will
be tackled in details in the recommendations part.
57
Moving to the second variable on satisfaction, when respondents were asked about their
general experience with the orientation process answers came as follows: 35 respondents
(36.5%) mentioned that they were satisfied while 5 respondents (5.2%) mentioned that they
were strongly satisfied. These were followed by 27 respondents (28.1%) who remained
neutral, and 21 respondents (21.9%) were dissatisfied, while 8 respondent (8.2%) have
clearly mentioned that they were strongly dissatisfied.
Again when computing the mean of the responses to this satisfaction variable, we find that it
is 3.08 which corresponds again to a neutral level. This shows that participating employees
are in general neither satisfied nor dissatisfied in their overall experience with the orientation
process. This indicates that UNHCR Lebanon have a lot of room for boosting employee
satisfaction, at entry level, by enhancing their new employee orientation process in general.
2.5 Analysis of Respondents’ Suggestions
The last question of the survey, asked respondents to give their suggestions to UNHCR to
enhance the new employee orientation process. And since this question is qualitative in type,
it was not inserted and analyzed on SPSS. However, suggestions were grouped per topic and
mentioned below. The suggestions were also incorporated in the recommendations part
whenever possible.
In the suggestions section, a total of 90 responses were received, out of which 52 included
valid responses. While 38 responses included N/A or none responses.
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- Two suggestions address the orientation process in general. One simply advised to
assure that all the mentioned orientation procedures of the survey are applied.
Two other suggestions were that orientation has to be done in a standardized
manner and formalized manner. In addition, to having an orientation plan or
schedule.
- Some suggestions were related to the orientation handbook, where it mentioned
that it should include content on HR rules and policies. However the orientation
still needs to be concise and readable. One respondent even suggested a
comprehensive manual or website.
- Six respondents stressed on the importance of including good explanations of
other units’ roles and responsibilities, through briefings and shadowing.
- Four respondents addressed the issue of quality of orientation done when
employees are recruited within an emergency situation. Thus the suggestion was
that HR to ensure a proper orientation and training despite the emergency
situation.
- Three respondents suggested that explanations in regards to staff entitlements,
insurance, types of contracts and career management should be done as a
requisite, and should not be done only upon request.
- One suggestion mentioned that the supervisors can be trained further on the
concept of new employee orientation, so that they are better able to apply its
procedures. Another suggestion recommended that HR monitor the quality of
orientation sessions done by the supervisors.
- Two respondents suggested that more support can be given to international staff
on housing arrangements, rent and lease agreements, and living conditions
especially that Lebanon is considered as family duty station.
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- Three suggestions tackled the point of receiving a structured discussion of tasks,
roles and responsibilities within the unit, and its relationship to the whole
organization’s role.
- Two suggestions focused on the importance of the tour around the office and
across different units.
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PART III
GRADUATE PROJECT CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
61
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS & RECOMMENDATION
1. CONCLUSIONS
The objective of this study was very much straight-forward, which entailed proving
whether new employee orientation affects employee satisfaction or not. This objective was
studied and detected through a web-based survey. Thus, the survey measured a set of
variables related to general orientation programs, in addition to another set of variables
related to employee entry level satisfaction. This was done with the aim of testing the
correlation between the two sets of variables.
The quantitative analysis revealed several conclusions. In general the sample
interviewed expressed an average level of neutral-to-satisfied when asked about the
orientation elements they received upon recruitment. The analysis also revealed that in
general most of the orientation variables are already taking place at UNHCR Lebanon,
however there’s room for improvement in some variables, while few orientation variables are
not taking place at all and thus have to be included.
The qualitative analysis also proved that there is a correlation between the employee
orientation and employee satisfaction. A strong significance was also revealed between the
15 employee orientation variables and employee satisfaction levels. Thus in order for
UNHCR Lebanon to enhance their employee satisfaction levels at least at entry level, it is
highly recommended that they can look into standardizing and strengthening its new
employee orientation in many different ways that will be proposed in the next section.
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2. RECOMMENDATIONS
From this project, two main recommendations have been derived. One is with the
focus of helping UNHCR Lebanon enhance the current employee orientation procedures,
while the other was a recommendation developed for future research undertakings.
2.1 Recommendations for UNHCR
This recommendation is addressed to the Human Resources unit at UNHCR Lebanon
and it entails establishing and standardizing the new employee orientation toolbox/ checklist
among all offices. This will ensure that any staff joining any of the UNHCR offices in
Lebanon, will be receiving a similar welcome kit and thus equal orientation.
It is highly recommended that the toolkit encompasses the below mentioned steps /
procedures:
1- Prepare existing staff about their new colleague’s arrival
Before the new staff’s first day, an announcement could be sent out to the existing
staff to inform them about the arrival of the new personnel, what his/her role will be in the
organization and what his/her background and experience is. This preparation helps the
working staff to be more prepared to welcome their new colleague. The worst thing that can
ever happen is when employees suddenly see that a new staff has arrived into their
organization/unit, because usually this gives a perception that there was something
mysterious and non-transparent with the recruitment process.
2- Prepare the new staff’s desk and/or office
It is also highly recommended that the supervisor of the new staff holds the
responsibility of assuring that there’s an appropriate desk for the new staff, along with the
needed resources such as computer, email, drawers, telephone…etc. It isn’t a very nice
63
welcome when a new hire arrives at his/her first day, and he/she actually doesn’t have a
desk / office assigned to him/her. This gives a hint to the new hires that either their arrival
was not expected at that time, or people are too busy to deal with them, or their position at the
organization isn’t of importance.
3- Prepare a checklist
This list will help the employee get an overview of what he/she will be doing in the
first week (meetings, schedule, training, paper work) and who he/she will be meeting with.
This will help reduce the have-no-idea phase, and will give the new hire a traceable plan in
hands.
4- Plan a scheduled orientation session
Even though this is already taking place at UNHCR Lebanon, however the
recommendation is that it should take place in a standardized manner across offices, ensuring
that there’s a formal standardized orientation part for everyone, and another part that can be
tailored based on position, contract, type of work, employment category…etc.
Suggestions from respondents on this was to include an explanation of the
organizations role in general, units’ interlink, the new hire’s position in the organization,
because that’s rarely done at the unit level or buddy level orientation. Suggestions also
mentioned that the session should include a thorough explanation on entitlements, types of
contracts, career management and insurance policy, as fundamentals and not to be provided
upon request.
5- Provide a useful Orientation Handbook
This component is also relatively taking place at UNHCR, however suggestions were
that the hand book should be concise in content and readable. Thus the recommendation is to
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avoid providing staff with excessively large brochures that are unreadable, but with a concise
brochure. Similar to the orientation session, the handbook can be of two parts: one that is
standardized for all new staff, and the second varies according to position, type of work, type
of contract etc.
6- Give the new hire access to necessary programs
Working at UNHCR means dealing with many technological tools and programs that
vary depending on the unit of work. These might be programs such as Progres and Scheduler
for registration and reception unit, Project X and RAIS for field unit, Focus for program unit,
etc. It is thus highly recommended that the supervisor prepares for access for the new hire on
his first day, without the staff having to discover the existence of these programs and then ask
for access later on.
7- Conduct a Tour and make introductions
It is very important to schedule some time during the first day to take the new staff in
a tour around the duty station and make some introductions with employees in other working
units. Even though the new hire won’t remember the names of every one he/she met, the tour
will still give him/her a chance to understand how the organization works in addition to the
organizational division of labor. This was also suggested by several respondents to the
survey.
8- Plan a team lunch
After getting to know other units in a broader manner, it is also important to get to
know the direct colleagues in a more closely and relaxed manner. A good idea for that is to
plan for a team lunch where staff can bring their lunch and gather in a conference room. This
will help all the team to get to know each other in a very pleasant way. In addition when the
65
new hire feels such care and value he will most probably do his best to stay with the unit and
organization, i.e. employee retention.
9- Peer Buddy System
It would be a very smart idea to activate the peer buddy system for new hires at
UNHCR. The role of a peer buddy is to provide the necessary support to the new staff while
he’s navigating through the new culture. A specified duration can be one month, after which
HR can have another session with the new staff to make sure that all went well. Providing a
new staff with a peer or mentor helps him discover the unwritten rules and answer questions
such as: “where to park my car? Where’s the smoking area? What’s the nearest restaurant?”
in a timely and comfortable manner. It will help avoid waiting some time before he gets an
answer to the simplest day-to-day questions.
10- Allow for sufficient time for training
The first week of the new hire should focus on training. This again emphasizes the
importance of the presence of the new hire’s supervisor during this period. Even if the
employee was doing a similar job before, doing the job in a different organization means that
there are some new processes and routes that have to be learnt. Never rush the new hire to
begin doing the job before being properly capacitated, otherwise we cannot blame him/her
later on for any occurring mistake. Also never rush the new hire, even if the organization was
dealing with an emergency situation. The training should include all the organizations must-
knows, rules, procedures of work, and also what’s expected from the new employee. Again
the presence of a peer, will help a lot when the new staff has any question while trying to
learn and adapt.
11- Schedule a feedback session
66
It would be very beneficial for both UNHCR and the new staff to have a second
session. Some organizations schedule these sessions 60 days from the first session and some
90 days after. It is up to the HR unit to set up the feedback session exact timing, however
what’s important is that it should be done! The session can give the HR rich response about
the new staff’s satisfaction with the orientation he received, and can also identify possible
gaps in information that yet needs to be addressed.
12- Additional Support for International Staff
New Employee orientation can be especially critical for international employees.
Thus special types of support is needed for them especially when it comes to settling down
outside the office. Consequently, support with issues related to accommodation and having
culturally tailored orientation sessions would be a smart idea. Many resources would be
found on the global forum of SHRM of international assignments. Several respondents to the
survey mentioned that more support in housing and living conditions to International staff is
needed, example: lease/ rent agreements, facilitation of translation services…etc., especially
that UNHCR Lebanon is considered a family duty station.
2.2 Recommendation for further studies
The second main recommendation is for future studies that can be conducted to study
further the relationship between new employee orientation and employee satisfaction.
Future studies can look at this correlation from some another perspectives, i.e.:
- Does the orientation done at organizational level affect employee satisfaction
differently from the orientation level done at the unit level?
Other researches can also be done with the same hypothesis question: Does new
employee orientation impact employee satisfaction and can be conducted with several other
67
organizations. It would be interesting to see if a similar study is done elsewhere, whether the
conclusion will prove the correlation between orientation and satisfaction or will reject it.
In addition the same study can be done with a sample limited to new hires only, which
can enable measuring the satisfaction level in a more timely and accurate manner.
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79
APPENDIXES
80
APPENDIX A
QUESTIONNAIRE - New Employee Orientation
We are currently revising our new employee orientation procedures, and would appreciate
your honest feedback regarding your first month integration into your job at UNHCR
(Lebanon). Please take a few minutes and answer the questions on survey monkey, following
these links:
(English version): https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WSJHV86
(Arabic version): https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WT92QD8
Section A: Demographic Data

For each question, please check the item that applies to your case
1. My Gender: Male Female
2. My Duty station:
1) Beirut office
2) Mount Lebanon Field Office
3) Tripoli Field Office
4) Tyre Field Office
5) Beqaa Field Office
6) Qobayat Field Office
3. Years of Experience with UNHCR (Lebanon):

Less than 1 year
1 – 5 years
6 -10 years
More than 10 years
4. My Employment category is: International National
5. Type of Contract:
Indefinite Appointment
Fixed Term Appointment
Temporary Appointment
Affiliated, e.g, UNOPS, UNV, JPO, Consultation
6. My Age is: 20 – 29 30-39 40-49 50-59 above 60
Section B: Orientation Components
81
Please indicate whether the below statements occurred or not, and in case they occurred
please indicate the extent to which you were satisfied or dissatisfied. Use the scales as
shown below for sections B and C.
1 2 3 4 5 N/A
Strongly Dissatisfied Dissatisfied Neutral Satisfied Strongly Satisfied Didn’t Occur
8. During my first month at UNHCR (Lebanon), I received the following orientation

procedures:
1 2 3 4 5 N/A
I received a scheduled orientation
session
I received a useful orientation
handbook
I received a tour around the duty
station and/or unit
I was Introduced to fellow team
members
I was Introduced to organization
goals and mission
I received support while completing
HR paperwork and forms
I received a session on safety
procedures
I received a clear and understandable
presentation of benefits package
I used the optional Staff Welfare
briefing upon arrival
9. During my first month at UNHCR Lebanon, I received the following orientation

procedures within my unit:
1 2 3 4 5 N/A
I was nicely welcomed by my
immediate supervisor
My team members were kind and
welcoming
I received a proper explanation of
department policies and procedures
I received a proper explanation of my
role and responsibilities
I was provided with the tools and
resources needed to do my job well
(phone, desk, PC, etc)
I received a proper on-the-job
training
Section C: Orientation and Employee Satisfaction
82
10. In general the orientation process has helped me to integrate into the organization and to
begin building relationships
1 2 3 4 5
Strongly Dissatisfie Neutral Satisfied Strongly Satisfied
Dissatisfied d
11. How would you rate your overall experience in the orientation process?
1 2 3 4 5
Strongly Dissatisfie Neutral Satisfied Strongly Satisfied
Dissatisfied d
12. I have the following suggestions to help the organization enhance the new employee
orientation procedures?
___________________________________________________________________________
83
APPENDIX B
GRADUATE PROJECT INTERVIEW FORM
Graduate Project Interview Form

(Code 695 Courses)
Course Code & Title:
Campus: Saida Semester: Spring 2018 Date: 16-03-2018
Required Information
Student Name ID # Phone #
Safaa Hanjoul 40830277 71556574
Title of Graduate Project
NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION AT THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH
COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES (LEBANON) AND ITS IMPACT ON EMPLOYEE
SATISFACTION
Interview(s) Details
Name of Organization United Nations High Commissioner for Refugee
(UNHCR)
Address & Phone # of Organization Nicolas Ibrahim Sursock St.Jnah, UNHCR S&K
building, BEIRUT, Lebanon - 961 1 849 201
(Name (Title)
Name & Title of Interviewed (1) (1) Sandrine Zuker – Regional Staff Welfare
Officer
Name & Title of Interviewed (2) (2)
Name & Title of Interviewed (3) (3)
(Day) (Month) (Year)

Date of Interview (1) (1) 16th March 2018
Date of Interview (2) (2)
Date of Interview (3) (3)

Signature of Interviewed Official Stamp of Organization
(Signature)
Interviewed (1): S.Z.
Stamp
Interviewed (2):
Interviewed (3):
Submission Date of Form (Day) (Month) (Year)
Supervisor Signature
84

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GRADUATE PROJECT

BHRM695 - Graduate Project in Human Resources

NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION AT THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH

COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES (LEBANON) AND ITS IMPACT ON

Submitted to the Lebanese International University

The School of Business

Requirements for the Degree of

MBA in Human Resource Management

Supervised by Dr. Mohammad Mteirek

This paper is dedicated to my family: my husband, son and my parents. To my

perseverance, patience and sense of humor.

that he has provided.

endeavors into a real achievement.

impact on employee satisfaction.

distributed to employees working at UNHCR Lebanon offices.

the employee orientation and employee satisfaction.

new employee orientation has an impact on employee satisfaction.

PART I: THE THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK9

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW………………………………………………………………….14

PART II: THE PRACTICAL FRAMEWORK 36

CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND RESULTS 41

Table 1: Breakdown of Respondents by Gender…………………….………………….....…43

Table 2: Breakdown of Respondents by Duty Station…………………………………....….44

Table 3: Breakdown of Respondents by Years of Experience…….……………………..…..45

Table 4: Breakdown of Respondents by Employment Category……………………….……46

Table 5: Breakdown of Respondents' Type of Contract…………………………….…....….46

Table 6: Breakdown of Respondents' ages………………………………………………..…47

Table 7: Breakdown of Respondents' Educational Level…………………………………...49

Table 8: Pearson Correlations Test Results………………………………………………….51

Table 9: Means of Orientation Variables……………………………………………………52

Table 10: Means of Satisfaction variables…………………………………………………..56

Figure 1: Breakdown of Repsondents by Gender……………………………………...…43

Figure 7: Breakdown of Respondents' Educational Level…………………...…….……..49

THE THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

thereafter. It is in an HR manager’s basic foundation that he has to support employees to

integrate into a new company until he/she completely reaches socialization.

improve and develop them”.

pay dividends for years to come (Wallace, 2009, pp.168).

the research assumption (hypothesis).

1.1. Research Problem

Competition among large companies and organizations over talented employees is

Lebanon as one of the most important humanitarian international organizations, to review

Procedures at UNHCR (Lebanon) impact employee satisfaction? This research question

belongs to the correlational/predictive type of research questions since it is testing the

1.2. Objectives of the Graduate Project

1.3. Research Hypothesis

that a researcher is best guided by a hypothesis concerning the interrelations of the

will be tested and answered.

2. OVERVIEW OF THE SECTOR/DOMAIN/ORGANIZATIONS

The United Nations High commissioner for Refugees is an International Non-

assisting refugees around the world.

another country, as it also strives to secure lasting solutions.

the needs of some 10,000 mostly Iraqi refugees.

the operations of Lebanon office to grow drastically.

stateless persons, as well as to Lebanese communities affected by the crisis.

In 2015, the Executive Committee at the High Commissioner’s Programme issued a

(UNHCR, 2015, pp. 3-5).

1. NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION: CONCEPT, TYPES AND INFLUENCE

sometimes even define whether an employee will stay or not.