What is Onboarding?
Onboarding is a process by which new employees gain knowledge and skills for their job positions to become effective employees. But how does the onboarding process work?
This article provides a detailed guide on onboarding and how it works. We’ve also included some tips for each step, so don’t forget to check them out below.
What is Employee Onboarding?
The employee onboarding process is the intentional and systematic way through which talented candidates are converted into productive employees. It includes employee orientation, which aligns employees to the organization’s goals. Companies provide new employees with the tools, relationships, and information. They must have the courage to do satisfactory work by planning onboarding steps.
The change starts at the recruitment level as applicants envision becoming employees in your company. It speeds up after the candidate accepts the offer and becomes an employee for the first time. It reaches its climax when the employees are in their crucial initial days in employment when they are creating solid relationships with their new colleagues.
The onboarding experience determines how the employee will behave during their entire stay at your company, and in some instances, it can influence their whole career. If they have a terrible experience, they might quit their work soon, and thus, you’ll have to hire employees again. On the other hand, a good experience can result in prolonged joy and employee satisfaction.
What are the Seven Steps of the Employee Onboarding Process?
To succeed with the onboarding strategy, use the steps outlined below as the basis for the process. Combine it with measures tailored to your company’s culture to create an effective onboarding process that represents your company’s unique personality.
To learn the process via video, watch the video below. Otherwise, skip ahead.
Step 1: Recruitment of New Employee
Goal: Your hiring methods should help employees deduce the qualities your company wants in an employee holding a specific position and also what the company is all about—its people, culture, values, and missions.
Tips For New Employee Recruitment
Evaluate your interview questions, job descriptions, and website. Review any information that potential employees can come across to ensure that it has the right tone and is clear and accurate for employees.
- Assign potential employees a task or give them a test to assess their abilities, and they can learn what you expect from them.
- Become more open about company regulations that affect employees, such as vacation, remote work, and scheduling policies.
- Analyze your recruitment procedures, processes, and company policies with your in-house HR team or outsource the work to Bamboo HR.
Step 2: Initial Office Visit
Goal: Offer an honest peek into a typical day at your office.
The work compatibility settings affect employees. The cohesiveness of a workplace is a sign that candidates will become consistent with the culture and way of working in the company.
Tips for Initial Office Visit
- Orientate candidates and make them aware of where they will work (plus which tools they will use to perform their duties)
- Show candidates the kitchen area (as well as the cleaning timetable if it is there)
- Take your time showing them all the parts of the office. Allow them to take in the office and ask queries about anything to show them that you are transparent
- Do introductions to every employee you come into contact with
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Step 3: Offer Letter
Goal: Communicate your gratitude and happiness that your top candidate chose you from many other possible employers.
Hiring an employee is already an indication that you find the person and their expertise valuable. Nevertheless, it would help if you went the extra mile to create enthusiasm and warmth. A carefully written message is the perfect way to let hired employees know that you are eager to work with them.
Tips to Send the Offer Letter
Ensure you write a message to your new employee informing them that you are happy they agreed to work with you and send it.
Explain in detail the expectations, requirements, and duties of the job position. This step will help the new employee become familiar with their job before they become part of the team and avoid shock.
Step 4: Early Onboarding
Goal: Reassure the candidate that they have made the right decision to start new employment.
The moment your candidate signs the offer letter, onboarding starts. There is a 2—to 3-week period between the time the candidate accepts the offer and the start date, which offers you a perfect time to engage with them. Take advantage of that duration.
Tips for the Early Onboarding Process
Motivating managers in charge of hiring to care about the candidate’s experience makes the new employee enthusiastic to work.
Send them information and documents related to their job, such as the background facts about specific tasks the applicant might work on when they begin working. (Make it clear that your candidate does not have to read the shared information if they have limited time. Instead, you want to give them information for visibility and transparency). Some of the information that you might think of sending the candidate includes:
- A schedule for the first week
- The company phone number or email address that they will use and essential information for the communication tools your company uses
- A list of tasks for the initial week or more
- Passwords for work management hubs like monday.com or communication tools
- Details, such as videos and photos, show your organization’s anniversary ceremonies and other occasions that you celebrate as a company
- Request the team that the new staff joins to create a welcome email containing quotes on why they enjoy working at the firm or why they are happy to have the new hire as a member of their team
- Invite questions from the new staff and address them. Address their worries as well
- Ask the team to create a welcome video. Vidyard is an excellent resource for creating and generating ideas for welcome videos
Step 5: Receiving New Hires
Important goal: Give a personal account that will make the recruit feel valued and welcomed. Organizing numerous one-on-one meetings with new employees makes the first day appear less over-planned and more personalized.
Tips to Receive New Hires
- Plan “catching up” meetings to keep up with the recruit. If your team is remote, you should do this since interpersonal relations are almost impossible. Making a meticulous schedule is the most effective way to achieve high-quality connections.
- Allocate half an hour every morning for a welcome
- Set aside half an hour at the end of every day for debriefing
- Plan a physical or virtual team lunch with the team the new staff has joined. Only have informal conversations at lunch and desist from talking about work (Use the opportunity to help the team members know the new hire using a quiz from Water Cooler Trivia or Quizbreaker)
- Provide the new employee with a welcome kit packed with branded items, including office supplies that have been personalized using the company’s logos, colors, and brand
- Ensure that their first team meeting is remarkable by beginning an icebreaker to help the participants know each other better. You can make it easier to play by giving the conference staff the customized Icebreaker Box full of greeting cards
- Provide documentation, web pages, and videos that contain your company’s history, mission, leadership presentations, and other stories that make the company culture-rich and appealing
Step 6: Onboarding and Familiarizing With New Employees
Important goal: Assist new hires in comprehending what they must do in their new position, including outlining job responsibilities and envisaging future opportunities.
All employees tend to think about the future. We enjoy planning, looking forward to, and dreaming about what will happen in times to come. Suppose you can make it possible for your new employee to become happy about envisioning their future job at your company. In that case, it means that you can have excellent employee retention. Suppose you spend more time reviewing the employee onboarding program in the initial weeks. In that case, the chances of the employees achieving the future they want and developing company culture are high.
Tips for Onboarding and Familiarizing with New Employees
- Make a grand new hire announcement before commencing the onboarding program
- Arrange to have “meet and greets” with teams and collaborators and teams throughout the company
- Plan “meet and greets” with best performers and company leaders (Such as the current employee of the month) for newly hired employees to hear their experiences and emulate them
- Set several regular jobs, targets for the initial year, stretch targets, as well as key performance indicators
- Supply information about the advancement potential for their role in the company or the general upward mobility of the organization. If a person was working in the recruit’s position before and promoted, let them talk about their expertise
Step 7: Continuing Employee Engagement
Important goal: Create opportunities whereby new hires can foster essential relationships. You can’t join networking and socializing on behalf of your new employer. However, you can ensure that your onboarding experience has good chances for new staff to make meaningful connections with the other employees in the office.
Tips to Achieve Good Employee Engagement
Use Let’s Roam or Go Game to plan for team-building events.
Check on the new hires after one week, 30 days, and 60 days to learn how the new employees are feeling discover if they have the right equipment and resources, and help them do their work correctly and quickly.
Direct managers should create a check-in timetable for regular use, which all employees should follow in the long term.
Group new employees with a different person in the company for computer-generated coffee meetings from time to time. (If Slack is the platform your firm uses Slack, then take advantage of Donut intros to set up such arrangements with other colleagues on Slack).
Provide a lot of recognition through a platform such as Bonusly, which is great for rewarding employees after completing tasks or attaining goals.
Make and send a survey of candidate experience to help you know how the program is doing.
Conclusion
Employee onboarding is a strategic technique that sharpens your employees’ skills and knowledge so that they become effective employees who bring more value to the organization. The above-provided guide provides perfect syntax for onboarding new employees in your organization.
FAQs
Here are the most frequently asked questions about onboarding.
What is an effective employee onboarding process?
An effective employee onboarding process is a structured approach to integrating new hires into a company, ensuring they have the resources, support, and guidance needed to succeed. This process often includes orientation sessions, training, and setting clear expectations, helping new employees quickly feel comfortable and productive in their new positions.
How does onboarding software improve the onboarding experience?
Onboarding software streamlines and enhances the onboarding experience by automating repetitive tasks, centralizing important documents, and enabling clear communication between new hires and their teams. By utilizing onboarding software, companies can efficiently manage paperwork, track progress, and provide consistent and timely information to new employees, leading to a more seamless and positive onboarding journey.
What are employee onboarding solutions, and why are they essential?
Employee onboarding solutions encompass various tools, platforms, and practices designed to support new hires as they transition into a company. These solutions typically include software and resources that assist HR teams in managing the onboarding process. By adopting comprehensive employee onboarding solutions, organizations can ensure new employees feel supported, engaged, and better prepared for their roles, fostering higher job satisfaction and retention.
Which employee onboarding tools are most commonly used?
Commonly used employee onboarding tools include digital platforms for managing documentation, task management systems, learning management systems (LMS), and communication tools. These tools facilitate a smooth onboarding experience by automating administrative tasks, tracking progress, and providing a structured training experience that aligns with the company’s onboarding goals. Many tools also include analytics to assess and improve onboarding effectiveness.
How can companies create successful onboarding processes?
To create successful onboarding processes, companies should focus on clear communication, structured training, and providing new hires with the necessary resources to understand their role and the company culture. Using a combination of employee onboarding software and a well-defined approach, businesses can ensure that the onboarding experience is consistent and beneficial for every new hire, impacting productivity and retention.
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