Onboarding frontline leaders effectively is critical to ensuring the safe and efficient operations in the field and across industry. Feedback from Downer team members revealed that traditional onboarding methods were inconsistent, ineffective, and misaligned with the needs of frontline leaders, leading to inefficiencies, frustration and risk. In response, The Downer Way Supervisor Fundamentals program was developed as a 12-week initiative to enhance leadership capabilities and improve onboarding experiences. Drawing on insights from over 150 peer-based videos and leveraging a contemporary adult learning framework, an initial pilot version of the program has received positive feedback, demonstrating measurable improvements in participants' knowledge and real-world readiness for leadership roles.
Citation: Allred, T. and D’Arcy, L. 2024. Effective Frontline Leader Onboarding. In: Safety Innovation in Utilities. QWater’24 Conference (31 Oct – 1 Nov 2024). Australian Water Association.