Build a 30-day learning plan for a new employee

Build a 30-day learning plan around a few tasks the employee needs to perform, the support available and the evidence that each task is understood. Sequence demonstration, supported practice and observation. Treat the dates as review points: a month on the calendar does not prove that someone is ready to work independently.

Use this after planning the first day. It gives a small team a way to share training without making the new employee collect conflicting instructions from everyone.

Choose the tasks before choosing the dates

Take three or four essential tasks from the role description. Describe an observable result. “Understands customer service” is hard to check. “Finds the correct order, explains its recorded status and asks the supervisor about an exception” is much clearer.

Ask the employee which parts are familiar and which systems are new. Someone with years of experience may still need help with your approval rules. Business.gov.au recommends planning development with the employee and choosing suitable learning methods. Business.gov.au: staff development and training.

Give each task a route from demonstration to review

Review point	Task and learning activity	Observed evidence	Support
Week 1	Watch an order lookup; practise with training records.	Locates the right record and explains its status.	Priya demonstrates; Sam is backup.
Week 2	Draft replies to routine delivery questions.	Supervisor reviews accuracy before messages are sent.	Sam gives feedback during the shift.
Week 3	Handle a routine enquiry within agreed authority.	Records the outcome and refers an exception.	Priya is available for exceptions.
Week 4	Follow a case from enquiry to agreed next action.	Explains what remains open and who owns it.	Manager reviews gaps and the next month.

Original ASBG example. Names and situations are fictional; the table is also the accessible text version.

Keep the evidence small enough to inspect. One reviewed case is more useful than a box saying “trained on orders”. The example is a learning sequence, not a promise that every starter will progress at the same speed.

Make the support real

Check that the named trainer will be available. Put the practice session into the trainer’s working day and identify a backup. If you only have one experienced employee, reduce the number of tasks being introduced at once.

For example, a fictional owner gives Priya an hour for a demonstration but leaves her responsible for the front desk throughout it. Interruptions consume the hour, and the starter barely gets to practise. The fix is cover for the desk or a shorter, protected session, not a note that the starter is behind.

Use the buddy briefing for informal navigation questions. Keep task approval and employment decisions with the responsible manager.

Adjust the plan from what you observe

At each review, ask which part was demonstrated, what the starter attempted and what happened. Record the support you will change. WorkSafe Victoria’s training guidance recommends checking whether learning has carried through into work. WorkSafe Victoria: induction and training.

Separate “has not practised yet” from “practised and needs another explanation”. They call for different actions. If the work itself changes, update the task rather than measuring the person against an obsolete plan.

Keep learning reviews separate from probation decisions

These notes help organise instruction. They do not decide probation, change employment rights or establish competence for regulated work. Any formal performance or employment decision needs its own appropriate process.

Use the week-one and month-one check-in questions to hear what support is missing. Return to the hiring and onboarding hub when you need a different stage.

Key takeaways

• Choose observable tasks and name the person providing support.
• Record what was demonstrated and what still needs practice.
• Change the timetable when access, instruction or the work changes.

Where to get help

• Business.gov.au: staff development and training
• WorkSafe Victoria: induction and training