A 6-step Guide to Building a Successful Job Shadowing Program

Your organization is on a mission to attract, nurture, and retain top talent. And with fierce competition for skilled workers, the pressure’s on to provide an excellent employee experience, from benefits to training and career development.

Job shadowing is one highly effective approach for employee growth and retention. Employees get a firsthand look at the responsibilities of another role and can even try out some of the tasks. When you integrate job shadowing into your talent development and mentorship strategy, it gives employees a direct line to learning from experienced colleagues within your organization—without adding costs. 

Job or career shadowing also enhances skills, builds connection, and strengthens your team from within. More on that below, plus our 6-step guide to starting a successful job shadowing program.

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What is job shadowing?

Job shadowing is the practice of following someone and watching as they do their job. Shadowers see how they handle their daily work, learn what skills they use, and experience their workplace culture firsthand. Employees can ask questions and get a real feel for the role. 

A shadowing program typically lasts between a few hours and several days. HR and L&D leaders use shadow training to onboard new employees, promote internal mobility, and encourage cross-departmental learning.

Participants in a shadow program are typically referred to as the job shadower or shadower, and mentor or host employee. There are three main types of job shadowing:

Observation

Imagine getting a front-row seat to the daily grind of a project manager, operations lead, or accounting controller. With this approach, the job shadower spends time watching the host employee perform their daily tasks without direct involvement. 

They may sit in on meetings, listen in on calls, or watch the screen as the mentor completes tasks. Close observation gives the shadower a clear picture of the host's job role, responsibilities, and daily workflows. 

For best results, the job shadower and host should also meet to answer questions and discuss the experience afterward.

Regular briefings

In this approach, the job shadower follows the host employee during specific tasks for a set time. Before the activity, the shadower gets a brief of what to expect. Aftwards, the participants meet to debrief and discuss what they observed. 

The briefing method works well for short bursts of targeted activity—such as jumping on a customer call or attending a quarterly business review. It’s also helpful if the host and shadow already work closely together, so they can focus on learning specific tasks or projects.

Hands-on

Here, the job shadower takes an active role in completing the tasks they’ve observed. The mentor stays nearby to supervise, answer questions, and offer immediate feedback.

While hands-on shadowing requires a greater time commitment from both the shadower and the mentor, it results in a deeper learning experience.

Job shadowing vs. internships and apprenticeships

While similar in purpose, job shadowing is distinct from internships and apprenticeships. Let’s quickly break it down:

• Job shadowing is usually short-term and exploratory. It mainly involves observing and learning about varied career paths  and roles, without committing to a lengthy engagement.
• Internships are typically longer and more structured. Interns apply to a business or educational program, then work on projects relevant to their field of study, often for an entire semester or summer.
• Apprenticeships combine on-the-job training with formal study. These programs are designed for individuals to gain specific skills over an extended period, such as a year or two. Apprenticeships often lead to a certification or hire within the company.

Benefits of a job shadowing program

Job shadowing benefits both companies and employees, making it a key strategy for developing talent.

Benefits for companies

Something special happens when employees get to pull back the curtain on other (especially more senior) team members at work. They feel valued, giving them a stronger sense of purpose and connection to their roles. 

Job shadowing helps you:

• Develop internal mobility. Identify high-performing talent and give them insights into the responsibilities of other positions.
• Maximize existing resources for growth. Avoid expensive external hiring by developing leaders in-house
• Keep your people happy. Increased engagement leads to higher productivity and overall job satisfaction.
• Remove communication barriers. Job shadowing promotes collaboration and cross-skilling. 
• Identify and nurture emerging leaders, all while promoting a culture of mentorship and teamwork.

Benefits for employees

Under the right guidance, every new skill and strategy learned increases their value to your organization: 

• They gain a deeper understanding of processes, workflows, and company culture through cross-training.
• New hires can hit the ground running seeing team or company operations up close.
• Employees can explore different career paths within the company that align with their talents and personal goals.
• Host employees can sharpen their mentoring skills and reflect on their own roles. 
• Knowledge exchange fosters a collaborative learning environment which boosts employee engagement and growth.

How to build a job shadowing program at your organization

Step 1: Outline your goals for the job shadowing program 

Ask yourself what you want to accomplish from your job shadowing program, based on your situation and objectives.

For example, you might want to help new recruits ramp up more quickly, promote internal mobility, or cross-train employees for certain tasks. 

Define your top 3 - 4 goals and how you'll measure their success. Set specific metrics, such as employee performance improvements, retention rates, and participant feedback. 

You’ll review and use these metrics later, in Step 6, to assess the program's impact and make necessary adjustments.

Step 2: Build a list of potential participants and other key stakeholders

Once you know what you want to accomplish, you need to figure out who can help you get it done. 

Create a list of professionals across multiple departments and levels who you think might be open to being shadowed. Ask them if they’re willing to share their expertise and be a positive example for other employees. 

Make sure they understand the benefits and that you’ll support them through the process. 

The same goes for members of your own team. Who do you need approval from, and who has to help with execution? Get an idea how many heads it will take to make your plan a reality, and get them on board early on. 

When seeking leadership buy-in, always emphasize how the program positively impacts the organization's bottom line.

Write down the names and departments of the employees who agree, and build a simple intake or registration form. 

Step 3: Give the program a structure

A well-thought-out structure is the key to your successful job shadowing program. Make sure your approach aligns with your organization's internal processes, values and culture. 

When thinking about the structure, consider these questions: 

• What type(s) of job shadowing will you use?
• Will there be orientation meetings, and what will they cover?
• What specific actions or projects will the shadower work on?
• What materials, special instruction, or support do you need to provide to program participants?
• Who is responsible for matching and scheduling participants?
• How will you track everything (i.e. mentoring platform, project management software, template, spreadsheets)
• How can you make it an easy ask for mentors while providing a valuable experience for shadowers?

Consider providing an internal job shadowing plan template to guide participants, including tasks to cover, questions to ask, and other relevant data. Plan out each day of work shadowing with the help of the mentors, and urge them to interact as much as possible with the shadowers.

Also keep in mind, you can still use job shadowing for remote teams. Companies in industries including healthcare, finance and accounting, technology, marketing, and the non-profit sector use virtual job shadowing to give job seekers insight into roles. In practice, a virtual job shadow could look like: 

• Joining video calls or live webinars
• Watching pre-recorded sessions
• Completing interactive online modules
• Engaging in guided screenshares or Q&A sessions 

Step 4: Educate employees on the benefits to build excitement

Now that your plan is formed, incubated, and ready to hatch, you need to get people excited about the program. To boost participation from hosts and shadowers, share the benefits early and often. 

For example, send an email promoting the program or hold a fun live learning session. You can also open a discussion forum, create a Slack channel, or host an online event.

However you spread the word, make sure to highlight the program’s advantages, include key details for participants, and answer frequently asked questions. Share success stories from other businesses that have done it.

Finally, ask team members to encourage co-workers and raise everyone’s interest in the job shadowing program. Give managers job shadowing ideas and get them excited about the benefits—which in turn, will trickle down to their teams. 

Step 5: Train participants, both shadowers and mentors

Let participants know what to expect prior to signing up.

Make sure everyone is on the same page about what is expected of them (how many hours, meetings, briefings, etc.) and what they can aim to get out of the program (e.g. cross-training, a pipeline of people prepared for management, a more efficient team).

Send shadowers a primer email before the event. Share helpful resources, like milestones along their journey or how to develop a rapport with a senior employee. Encourage them to ask questions and take notes. And don’t forget to reinforce the awesome benefits and results once more. 

This helps participants feel less stressed and more involved in the program. And, you may help them in understanding what they're hoping to get from it.

Step 6: Gather program feedback and make improvements

After your first round of shadow-host pairings is complete—congratulations! Now it’s time to evaluate how it went and make improvements. 

Getting participant input will give you fresh job shadowing ideas and improve the long-term outcome of your program. Conduct a survey or  brief interview to find out about the experiences of hosts and shadows. 

During this process, collect reviews and testimonials to share with leadership and promote the next round. Focus on feedback that can lead to concrete improvements. And be open to unexpected outcomes or insights that weren't part of the original program goals.

Consider assessing these key areas:

• Overall satisfaction with the program
• Clarity of goals and expectations
• Scope of project 
• Quality of matches between shadows and hosts
• Effectiveness of communication and training throughout the process
• Relevance of the activities and tasks observed
• What new skills were developed or new career opportunities unlocked
• Whether outcomes align with goals and objectives specified in Step 1

Build job shadowing opportunities into your mentorship program

If you want to grow your organization and make the most of your existing talent, then a job shadowing program is a smart move.

Job shadowing programs promote peer mentoring and hands-on learning, making the employee experience richer and more impactful.

If you already have a mentorship program, consider including job shadowing as a component to amplify growth and improve overall results.

Find out how Together’s mentoring software can help. Book a demo here.