You’ve avoided ineffective hiring practices and found the right candidate. All the paperwork has been drafted, human resources has been informed and the necessary background checks have been performed.
Now the real work begins. Assuring that a candidate meets company standards and can likely perform job duties is only one piece of the hiring puzzle. It’s time to determine how you’ll help transition this new hire into your company.
Since the ball is in your court, your approach to onboarding will significantly impact your new hire’s ability to embrace their work duties and adopt your organization’s protocols.
In addition to cultural conditioning, the onboarding process involves providing foundational tools and resources needed to properly carry out one’s duties. Typically, it lasts between six months and one year.
Here are some ways to make onboarding a happier process for new hires:
1. Prepare
Have an agenda in place. For example, save time and prevent boredom by electronically sending new-hire paperwork to your new employee before the first day of work.
Some companies also email a pre-onboarding welcome packet. Another great help is to have all necessary badges, access codes, workstations and supplies ready upon his or her arrival.
Preparation not only benefits your new hire, but it also communicates that the company values their employees and will support them throughout their transitional process.
2. Welcome New Hires with Warmth and Smiles
Consider who’ll greet this new employee upon arrival. In one study, 58% of participants preferred to have a mentor help them transition into their new workplace.
You might consider pairing new hires with existing employees until they’re acclimated with day-to-day duties.
A friendly work environment, effective training, and well-defined guidelines have been found to be more alluring to new hires than free meals and other perks.
3. Set Clear Expectations
Managers and seasoned employees may overlook the need to focus on the fundamentals of job performance expectations when training new hires.
When you’ve been working in a field for a long time, you view your expertise as common knowledge. But new hires, particularly those entering into a new field, should be trained in fundamental company vernacular, performance expectations, and evaluation standards.
4. Remain Approachable
Onboarding is not a waste of company resources. It can take up to eight months for a new hire to become a productive employee. To retain your new hires, view onboarding as a holistic process.
Welcome feedback about the onboarding process and maintain open dialogue throughout your employee’s tenure.
Lastly, consistently follow up with the new hire at reasonable intervals of time for the duration of your company’s pre-determined onboarding process.
What’s Your Onboarding Approach?
Onboarding doesn’t end with a new hire’s signature signed onto multiple pages of documents.
But it doesn’t begin on your new hire’s first day of work, either. Well thought out onboarding plans increases employee retention rates and levels of satisfaction. Are you clear on your company’s onboarding process?
What type of experience have you created for your new hires? How about in six months’ time? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.