How to Create a Successful Onboarding Process for New Hires
One of the most important parts of new people joining your team is their onboarding process. If the onboarding process isn't efficient and effective - it can be the reason people leave soon after.
Keep in mind that a new hire will try to impress you but also try to fit in with their team. You need to make sure that your onboarding offers them the tools to do it.
If the first few weeks at your company aren't great - that is going to leave a bad taste in their mouth.
Create an environment of inclusion and belonging
Your onboarding process should have a focus on making sure that the new hires feel like they belong there. A team isn't a team if someone doesn't feel like they belong. Even the most seasoned professional is going to need some direction when they join a new company.
So make it inclusive, ensure they know where to sit, that they feel comfortable asking for help and have your team prepared to help them.
Keep this and other factors at the core of your strategic human resource management planning process.
Use multimedia
Handing over a printed workbook isn't going to have the results that a mentor, videos, gamification, and more will have. Onboarding should make the most of all of the types of media you have access to.
The more facets of onboarding you have, the more costly it will become to you, but what’s important is that you are making sure the new hire has everything they need to get on well. Investing in your new hires is always the right thing to do.
Provide coaching to new hires
Having a coach or a mentor that is assigned to each new hire can help them get into the swing of things a little bit faster. They can learn the culture directly from people who have been with the company for a while.
Coaching can give the new hire someone who they can talk to when they need to, and someone to give them guidance like where the best coffee is from and which copier doesn't work well.
The small stuff makes people feel like they are part of a group - and that is what good onboarding is all about.
Manage expectations
Job descriptions can paint just a section of the whole picture - and sometimes that can also be pretty far removed from what the expectations really are. In almost all cases, it is important that you have some set expectations and that you allow your new hire to set some too.
They should have some expectations of your company in terms of treatment, HR, process and training. And it would be best if you had some expectations of them, but always keep in mind that, on average, most people take about six months to a year to fully relax into their new role and start performing at maximum capacity.
Don’t rush the onboarding process
Everything to do with onboarding your new hire should be at a steady pace - anything that is rushed will leave them feeling like they can't keep pace. Even the most enthusiastic and quick learner might be overwhelmed by it.
Get feedback from your team to see what type of pace is more convenient for them, but also how they felt their onboarding could be improved.
There should be a good balance between them meeting their first sets of targets and getting to know the members of their team, and learning the culture of the new office.
Ask for feedback about the process
Not everyone learns at the same pace, and even if they are highly skilled in their job, there might be some snags along the way. Have meetings scheduled regularly to see how they are getting on - and make sure that the feedback they give can be used to improve the process.
With an open line of communication from the start - your new hire will feel like they can come to you no matter what, and that is important.
The great thing about onboarding is that when you have a process, you can adapt it and make sure that it is meeting the requirements of the new hire.
Stay involved in the whole process
The end of the onboarding is not the end of the investment and resources that you should put into your new hires. After the onboarding process, the new hire is usually more comfortable in their role and their team. It is the ideal time to make sure that you have regular meetings booked to keep updated with their progress.
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