How an employer treats its new starters during the onboarding process is one of the most important parts of retaining top talent. Research by Glassdoor found that organisations with a strong onboarding process improve new hire retention by more than 80% and productivity by more than 70%.
However, many companies allow this process to focus on paperwork, neglecting proper training and with almost no thought given to how the new starter might settle in. In fact, according to HCI, most organisations’ onboarding processes end just one week after a new employee starts, which can make the employee feel confused and a little lost. So, here’s how to ensure you have an effective onboarding process.
One of the most overwhelming parts of starting a new job is getting to know all the new faces and names. Managers looking to make the onboarding process easy for their new employee should remember this when giving them a tour and introducing them to every person that crosses their path.
It’s a good idea to schedule in short meetings with those who will closely with the new employee over the first few weeks of their time there. These meetings will give their team members and colleagues a chance to introduce themselves and give an overview of the work they do and how they may be working with the new starter. Spread them out so that the new starter can properly digest each meeting. This will give them a stronger and more memorable introduction to each new colleague than simply, “This is Pamela, she works in accounts.”
It seems basic but it’s easy to forget about all the administrative bits and pieces a new starter will need. It’s important to get everything such as contracts, employee handbook, ID and computer logins at the ready for the new employee’s first day so that the process is as seamless as possible.
For this reason, most managers opt to have their new starter come in at 10am on their first day so there’s an extra hour to double-check that all passwords work, all documents are ready to go and nothing has been forgotten. It’s also a good idea to remind everyone that a new person is coming in so no one is caught unawares.
Most managers will have the start date for a new hire planned. This would include the HR elements we mentioned above ready, such as having their computer and email set up and their ID and stationery at their desk. However, once they’re all set up, have been given a tour and some introductions, it’s easy to forget that the newbie will still be quite out of sorts on day two, day three and beyond.
That’s why it’s essential for employers to have a detailed plan, not just for the first day, but for the full first week and depending on how ready the new starter is likely to be to get stuck in, this plan may need to continue into another week or two. The most important part is to ensure that the new employee is not left with nothing to do until they become comfortable fully taking on their own work.
Once the new employee is ‘fully onboarded,’ at least in the strictest sense, it’s important not to forget about them as a newbie. Even once the initial welcome and settling in phase has passed, employers should keep an onboarding programme going for the first 90 days of a new employee’s contract. This is vital when you consider the fact that some estimate it can take a year for new employees to become fully productive in their role.
With this in mind, it’s essential that training continues long after the employee may normally be considered ‘onboarded’. Their direct manager should create a schedule of systems and processes that the new hire needs to be trained up in throughout the first year and check in on a regular basis to ensure that the new employee is getting up to speed at a comfortable pace.
A buddy system is simple to implement and doesn’t cost your employees too much time but it can be extremely valuable, both to your new employee and your seasoned ones. It entails assigning a ‘buddy’ who is not the new employee’s direct manager to check in once a week for the first month and once or twice a month thereafter to make sure they’re settling in OK.
The buddy system will most likely include taking the new hire for lunch in their first week and meeting for coffee every now and again after that. Away from their manager and from official training requirements, this coupling ensures the new employee is settling in from a company culture point of view, that they feel comfortable in their new environment and helps them become familiar with their new surroundings, lunch places and coffee shops.
According to Digitate, new employees who have had a bad onboarding experience are twice as likely to look for other jobs. Therefore, it’s essential that employers tighten up their employee onboarding process and ensure it’s as smooth as possible for new hires.
Onboarding should also be considered a vital part of your employer brand. Find out more about building an effective employer branding strategy here.
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Desk photo by Dawid Liberadzki on Unsplash
