Want to prevent new employees from quitting in the first few months? You can if you implement onboarding best practices. You won’t even need a big budget.
30-Second Summary
What is employee onboarding?
Why do so many new hires leave their jobs quickly?
What are the benefits of a good onboarding process?
What are the goals and objectives of onboarding?
You’ve just hired a new employee after a lengthy recruitment process. Think the hardest part is over? Think again. Around 33 percent of employees in America leave their jobs within the first 90 days. You certainly don’t want your new hire to fall into that category. So, what can you do to increase your chances of hanging on to your latest team member? It’s all down to onboarding best practices.
This article will kick off by looking at onboarding new employees in general and why it’s so important to an organization, and then present 15 essential strategies to help you achieve onboarding success.
What is employee onboarding?
The definition of onboarding is a systematic process of integrating new employees into an organization and its culture. It gives the people you recruit all the tools and information they need to do their job well and become a productive member of the team. In other words, it means setting up your new employee for success.
The onboarding process differs in form and duration, depending on the job, organization, and industry. It can be simple and short (i.e. one week) or comprehensive and lengthy (i.e. 90 days or 6-12 months), and it involves a range of activities: from sending out first-day information and welcome messages to filling out new-hire paperwork, scheduling training, and giving feedback on performance and progress.
Unfortunately, Gallup found that only 12% of employees feel their organization does a great job of onboarding new employees. There’s clearly a lot of room for improvement.
“Onboarding offers an imprinting window when you can make an impression that stays with new employees for the duration of their careers.”
Amy Hirsh Robinson, The Interchange Group
Why do so many new hires leave their jobs quickly?
As you can probably imagine, there are myriad reasons for quitting a job after just a few weeks or months (in some cases while the ink is still drying on the employment contract). Some new hires receive a better offer from another company. Others simply didn’t research the organization properly before they accepted the job and discover too late that they’re not a good match. Here are, according to BambooHR, the top five reasons people leave their job quickly:
- They changetheir mind on the type of work they want to do
- Thework is different to what they expected
- They thought their boss was a jerk
- They didn’t receiveenough training
- They felt under–appreciated
A quick glance tells you that, with the exception of the top reason, the new hire’s manager and the organization’s HR team have tremendous influence on the outcome. It is largely within their hands to ensure candidates are fully aware of what the advertised job entails and to create an environment in which new hires receive the tools, support, and recognition they need to be enthusiastic team players.
69% of employees are more likely to stay with a company for three years if they experienced great onboarding.
SHRM, 2017
What are the benefits of a good onboarding process?
Can you remember your first day of employment? Did you go back home and think, “Wow! That company made me feel really welcome and they seem to know what they’re doing. I think I’m going to like it here.” Or did you think, “They’re so disorganized and unfriendly. I wish I hadn’t signed up for this.”
First impressions count, as they say, and new employees tend to rush to conclusions. And that’s why large organizations like Facebook, EY, Zappos, IBM and Rackspace invest in comprehensive pre-boarding and onboarding activities. A survey conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) backs them up on this: 69% of employees are more likely to stay with a company for three years if they experienced great onboarding.
Why does onboarding done right have such a large impact?
“Because today’s employees are in the driver’s seat, and they have high expectations that must be met in order for them to stay with an employer.” So says Lilith Christiansen, VP of Onboarding Solutions for SilkRoad Technology Solutions. “The war for talent is real, and they are looking for more ways to differentiate and to retain talent. Onboarding is definitely seen as one area that can help effect that.”
Onboarding new employees works because:
- Engagement levels are usually highest during the first 90 days of employment, so it’s the perfect time to get new employees immersed in the culture and purpose of the company.
- It stops a new hire from feeling awkward or like an outsider, which can increase their chances of leaving.
- Clearly defined accountabilities and access to necessary resources helps new employees get up to speed much more quickly.
- Managers can soon spot any skills gaps and work to close them. Likewise, the new hire will not be afraid to ask for help or additional training.
It’s no wonder that many companies recognize the excellent return on investment from successful onboarding programs, especially when you consider that the average cost-per-hire in the USA is $4,129 and it takes on average around 42 days to fill a position.
Fortunately, an onboarding process does not require a huge budget, a large training department, or a huge investment of time. Small and medium-sized organizations can also formulate an onboarding blueprint for their managers to follow.
Organizations with a strong onboarding process improve new hire retention by 82% and productivity by over 70%
Glassdoor, 2015
What are the goals and objectives of onboarding?
Beyond the obvious goals of improving employee retention and minimizing hiring costs, the onboarding process also aims to:
- Confirm early on in the new employee’s mind that the decision to join the organization was the right one.
- Get new employees to carry out tasks competently and efficiently in a short a timeframe as possible.
- Harness the enthusiasm that new employees bring with them and encourage them to contribute fresh ideas to the organization.
- Reduce the pressure on existing personnel to integrate a new co-worker into the team by providing a blueprint of what to do and how.
In addition to these broader aims, your organization should also set out for each new hire specific objectives for the first day, first week, first month, and so on. Many of these objectives would depend on the role of the new hire.
How do you achieve onboarding success?
You cannot onboard a new employee on by luck and instinct. It requires careful planning, the involvement of all managers and co-workers, and diligent follow up. Here are 15 strategies you can implement to ensure your onboarding program succeeds.
1. Formulate an onboarding plan and policy
To deliver a successful onboarding experience, you need a plan. Preferably one that has been developed at a high managerial level, with the aid of HR and/or an onboarding manager. A standard approach with fully fleshed-out objectives and a strict onboarding schedule will ensure that all those involved in the process know what is expected of them and why it is so important.
2. Use an onboarding process checklist
To address this problem, your onboarding plan should include a comprehensive onboarding checklist. This will ensure that all onboarding activities are carried out and that new employees receive all the information they need. Toolbox HR recommends one checklist for HR professionals and one for line managers. This is because the onboarding process usually starts with HR and continues with the line manager. In other words, they have overlapping but different responsibilities.
44% of HR managers find their biggest onboarding challenge is an inconsistent application across the organization.
Human Capital Institute (HCI) survey, 2016
3. Develop pre-onboarding activities
Some recruits quit before they even join the organization. Others get incredibly nervous or start having serious doubts. You can help prevent this by making the new person feel like a team member before they even set foot on the premises. Examples of good pre-onboarding activities include sending a personalized welcome message from the team and giving them a call shortly before their first day of work to make sure they have everything they need. These gestures don’t require a huge budget, but they do make a huge difference.
4. Prepare a friendly welcome
Don’t forget what it’s like to be a newbie. Your new employee is bound to be nervous in the beginning. Before they arrive, make sure everyone on your team knows as much as possible about them and why they’re joining the team. Explain that each individual in your team has a responsibility to extend a warm welcome.
5. Arrange peer support
Offer the new employee practical and emotional support by allocating a peer supporter. This doesn’t have to be someone on your team, but ideally it shouldn’t be a manager. You want to choose someone who knows the organization well and is available on a daily basis, willing to share knowledge and give encouragement, and explain the corporate culture (in other words, someone the new employee won’t hesitate to approach and ask questions).
6. Ensure a successful first day
Have their desk ready—it should be clean, well-stocked, and have a welcome card from the team. Business cards should be printed, email set up, and access to essential computer programs arranged. No excuses. These are the basics. Fall short here and the new team member will start to question why they accepted the job.
7. Clarify the role and job description immediately
In a BambooHR survey, 23 percent of respondents said that “receiving clear guidelines to what their responsibilities were” would have discouraged them from quitting. Remember, your new team member wants to be as productive as possible as soon as possible. The quicker you can give out real and meaningful work, the happier your new employee (and the rest of the team) will be. That means taking time to explain their role, the parameters of their responsibilities, and your performance expectations in the first day or two.
8. Set out the organization’s expectations
There are your expectations as the manager, but there’s also the organization’s expectations. Make sure your new hire is familiar with the company’s core values and its code of conduct. Knowing what is expected of them when it comes to behavior and dress code will help them fit in more quickly.
Don’t forget to give them access to all relevant employee manuals on policies such as annual leave, sick leave, harassment and safety, confidentiality, and intellectual property. Also ensure they’ve been introduced to the HR team, so they know where to go if they need advice or have a complaint.
9. Define the new employee’s goals and aspirations
Some onboarding processes become little more than a check-box exercise, which is perhaps why 9 percent of those who leave their job in the first six months say they wanted more attention from their manager and co-workers. Set aside some time to have a genuine conversation with the newest team member about their aspirations and concerns. Then help them work out several short– and medium-term goals.
Providing this opportunity early on, rather than waiting for the next round of annual appraisals, gives your new employee something tangible to work toward and ensures personal and organizational goals are aligned. It also shows you’re the kind of manager who is willing to listen and assist, which will help reassure them that they’ve joined the right company.
72% of new employees found one-on-one time with their direct managers the most important part of the onboarding process.
LinkedIn Survey, 2017
10. Provide immediate and continuous training
These days, employees focus less on company loyalty and more on learning and development. Don’t give them an excuse to walk away. Give your new hire every chance to prove their worth and enjoy their job by providing consistent, quality training from the get-go. Tasks, policies, and procedures associated with their job must be covered in the first couple of weeks of employment. But don’t stop there. Ongoing training in various forms is vital for getting and keeping new (and longer-serving) employees engaged and committed.
11. Introduce new hires to colleagues outside the immediate team
Don’t hide your new employee away from the rest of the organization or they will start to feel isolated. Extend your warm welcome by encouraging them to get acquainted with others outside their immediate scope of work. Onboarding specialists Click Boarding suggest scheduling lunch dates in the first few weeks of employment with a range of key colleagues, but you could also consider bringing them along to a few of your meetings, or arranging one or two after-work social events.
12. Extend the onboarding process far beyond the first week
Unfortunately, most organizations only focus on week 1 of onboarding. This is a shame because, according to HCI, it leaves new hires feeling confused, discouraged, and lacking resources. Nobody can acclimatize to a new environment in just a week. In fact, it can take between six and twelve months to fully understand a role and be assimilated into an organization. HCI says the best employee onboarding programs continue for at least the employee’s first 90 days and can extend for up to a year.
Only 37% of companies extend their onboarding programs beyond the first month.
Aberdeen
13. Use onboarding software tools
Onboarding tools allow you to streamline the entire process, from the moment the candidate accepts the job offer to the moment they are successfully settled into their job. By automating your workflows, you save time and don’t overlook any vital activities. Even small and medium-sized businesses with little to no budget for onboarding can get in on the act with free new employee onboarding platforms, so consider lobbying your Board or HR department for onboarding process software if you don’t already have it.
14. Follow up with your new hire regularly
It’s important to touch base with your new employee on a regular basis. Just because you have a checklist and you’re checking all the boxes, it doesn’t mean necessarily that everything is going according to plan. A one-to-one conversation in a relaxed setting (preferably away from the office) allows both of you to review how things are going and to see if any adjustments to the onboarding process need to be made. You don’t want to find out that things weren’t so great via a resignation letter.
15. Evaluate the onboarding process and plan
While it’s essential to follow up with each individual new hire, it’s also important to assess the overall onboarding process and plan. Neither are set in stone, and they are bound to need adapting from time to time. Things for the organization to consider include retention rates, sickness rates, employee satisfaction levels, training programs and costs, software usability and costs, and the success of individual onboarding activities.
Does your organization have an onboarding process? If so, does it extend beyond the first month and include all the above strategies? Let me know in the comments below. The good news is that onboarding success does not require a huge outlay, and the return on investment (in terms of both money and time) make it truly worthwhile.
If you need a hand onboarding new employees, please contact me. I offer a range of planning, process, and teamwork facilitation services for organizations including construction, manufacturing and tech.