Training new hire

Candy Sangster
Candy Sangster
Eighth Anniversary Kudos 2 Name Dropper Participant
in Organizational Best Practices General Discussions
Would anyone have any information they'd be willing to share on how they train new hires for data entry positions? 


Thanks!

Comments

  • Crystal Bruce
    Crystal Bruce admin
    Tenth Anniversary Kudos 5 Commented in Discussion First Reply
    This is a GREAT best practice question and we will be featuring it in our slider and in the Buzz next week!
  • Aldera Chisholm
    Aldera Chisholm Community All-Star
    Sixth Anniversary Kudos 5 PowerUp Challenge: Data Health #3 First Reply
    Hi Candy,

    I always start with a checklist which is a list of the final goals or tasks they will be doing. I do this so that the trainee can see the items get "checked" off as we go and it can make it seem less daunting. Depending on the position, those items might be "Set up password access" all the way to "Enter x type of gift", or "Import xyz." 


    When doing the actual training, I try to follow a methodology of first watch me do it, then I walk them through it while they "drive",  then they do it on their own with supervision. 


    I really love training, it's one of my favourite things to do!


    Cheers


     
  • Heather Pauli
    Heather Pauli
    Ninth Anniversary Kudos 5 January 2026 Monthly Challenge Name Dropper
    We have all data entry procedures captured with screenshots in case someone is out for an extended period and has to have their work covered by someone else unfamiliar with their process, so these procedures are a good framework to train new hires along with formal Raiser's Edge classes.
  • AnnMarie Schell
    AnnMarie Schell
    Fifth Anniversary Kudos 2 Participant Facilitator 1
    I felt like I'd struck gold when I found the "How-to-Documentation" that's right there on the Training and Support tab . . . duh! Here's the direct link, but again, it's right there on the Training and Support tab of Blackbaud's home page . . .  https://www.blackbaud.com/training-support/support/howto. Just choose your product, Raiser's Edge, RE NXT, ResearchPoint, etc. and click on that link. There's all kinds of resources, but I have the User guides book marked for Raiser's Edge. Voila! It's broken down into sections for you to choose from. Let me suggest, the first link Which Guide Should I Read? under the "Get started" section. It provides a handy chart to choose which guides you should provide new employees specific to their positions and job requirements. The beauty of Blackbaud's user guides is that you can be confident in their applicable content, and you can always perform a document search to find things.? 

     
  • Laura Easterly
    Laura Easterly
    Fifth Anniversary Kudos 2 Name Dropper Participant
    Here's how I train folks for data entry, it can feel a bit excessive sometimes because there's so much checking, but it helps to prevent people from building bad habits because you check so often in the beginning.  And bad habits are super hard to break, so better to stop them before they start.
    1. Give them procedures for the task.
    2. Show them where to find each required data point in the database that they'll need for the particular data entry task.
    3. Have them reverse-fill several copies of the form that they will be entering (ie: they start with a blank data entry form/info and fill it in with data from the database).  Depending on the amount of data included on the form, 5-10 is usually plenty. 
      • I know this seems a bit counter intuitive to have them pull data out of the system when their job is to put it into the system, but forcing them to find where each data point is located helps them to remember where those fields are when they start putting the data back into the system.
    4. Check their work.
    5. Have them complete data entry for 5-10 entries.
    6. Check their work, explain anything that is incorrect and have them fix any mistakes they've made.
    7. Repeat steps 4 & 5 until you're comfortable that they're entering everything correctly.  You can increase the number of entries they complete in between checks as you feel that they're catching on.
    8. Once they're mostly up to speed, let them complete all the necessary data entry each day, but set up QC queries to review all their work and catch any issues.  If there are any issues with their data entry, explain and have them fix.  
    9. Depending on data entry volume and the mistakes being made (or, hopefully, not made), I usually keep up the daily checking for 1-2 weeks.  
    QC Queries are one of my favorite things.  They allow you to work more quickly and trust that you won't end up with a bunch of mistakes because you know those queries will catch any issues that happen.  They give me a lot of peace of mind.  

Categories