According to a survey by BambooHR, a startling 31% of new hires look for a new job in the first six months and on average companies lose 1 in 6 of their new employees each month for the first three months. Businesses cannot afford to not give more thought and attention to how they introduce and welcome new team members into their business. Getting your onboarding process right is crucial for you to build the employment relationship with your new team member so they will want to stay with your business for the long term.
Here are my top 3 tips for getting the onboarding phase right and setting your new team member up for success:
Like the saying goes “You never get a second chance to make a first impression”, the onboarding phase offers an opportunity for employers to make an impression that will stay with new employees right throughout their careers.
New employees want to feel valued and supported, and taking the time to ensure they get off to a great start clearly demonstrates that they matter. Nothing says “Welcome to the team, we’re stoked to have you come onboard” like having their workstation set up and ready to go on their first day.
If they feel welcomed and looked after in those first few weeks, they’ll become comfortable in their new role and stay engaged. In contrast, if they feel disconnected or forgotten, they’ll feel ripped off and then there’s a higher risk of them jumping ship when they see a new and more exciting position elsewhere.
Something we do here at Inspire HQ is to organise a catch up with all team members via each department. This is an informal meet and greet at a coffee shop offsite so everyone can understand how they’ll interact with each other and exactly how that particular department operates within the business. It is also an opportunity to get to know the new team member on a personal level. We have also seen our clients provide a company lunch to introduce the new team member during their first week and gift welcome packages that include products from the company along with other goodies. These efforts can set the foundations for you to make a good first impression.
⇒ It begins before Day One
A common misconception is that onboarding and induction starts on day one, but the onboarding process should start well before this. It should begin as soon as your new team member says “yes” to their job offer. They shouldn’t sign the contract, send it off and then hear nothing from you until they start.
The time between them saying yes and stepping foot in the office is a great opportunity to convey key company information to get your new team member excited and committed about joining your business.
Upon receiving a signed contract, this is the perfect time to share stories about your business’s history, values, people and the big picture vision for the future, therefore, setting the scene and expectations for your business. Creating an engaging welcome video, including a message from the CEO/Director on what your new team member can expect on their first day and in the future is a great way to achieve this.
A few days before the start date a phone call from the direct manager is the perfect opportunity to express your excitement at having the employee commence and confirm first day arrangements. Knowing where to park, who they are going to meet and even what door to enter through, can help settle those first day nerves. Regular touchpoints once the new team member has signed their contract cannot be undervalued in helping to nurture the relationship in order to set them up for success.
⇒ Take a staged approach
We seem to overload new employees with mountains of new information (with no context) and expect them to remember it within a few days or weeks. Why is this? Especially, when research tells us that in order to learn something new, we need time to read, process and understand it before we can follow it.
Best practice tells us that onboarding information should be a staged approach which builds the new employee’s understanding of the business as they need it, to help them feel comfortable faster in their new role. Day one should ideally focus on providing the new starter with a host of essential information, all the need-to-know things, like where they can find the staff room, who’s who in the zoo and key HR policies and procedures around Bullying and Harassment, Equal Opportunity, Grievances, and Health and Safety. We want to avoid bombarding and overloading employees with information that isn’t directly relevant to them on their first day.
Further information can then be drip-fed to the new member, such as training on IT systems, how to apply for leave and where to find a good coffee. This approach is a lot less daunting for new employees and allows them to be able to develop an understanding of the context for the information they’re receiving. Consider what a new employee needs at every point of the onboarding journey – including before they start, on their first day, in their first week, month, and even at 3 months and 6 months – and create touch points accordingly. An onboarding process that encourages engagement and retention is a journey that recognises that it can take weeks and even months to settle an employee into a new role, and for them to become effective contributors to the team and your business.
Onboarding can make or break a new employee’s experience in a business, so don’t fall into the trap of underestimating the significance of the onboarding process. Make sure to invest the time and effort into helping your newest addition to the team feel welcome and valued. Like all good investments, if you put the time and effort in at the start, the rewards are well worth it later on.
Have you reviewed your onboarding process recently or asked employees for feedback? Does your current onboarding program set your employees up for success in their role? If you’d like help to review the onboarding your business provides, contact our HR team on 5331 1734.
