Employee onboarding is essential when introducing new staff to a company’s culture, people, values, and mission. It begins before the staff member has joined and continues with weekly regular check-ins anywhere from 6 months to a year. According to Forbes, 81% of employees said they felt overwhelmed during the onboarding process. So, if done right the process should make a new employee feel comfortable and ready to take on their new role. With clear expectations stated and support in place, both the employer and the employee will get the absolute best out of the employment.
Each company is unique so the employee onboarding process should be ever evolving and tailored to each employee. Although the basics should remain the same, it is vital to have accessibility options for new employees to meet their individual needs. If they feel valued and appreciated in their new role, they are more likely to work efficiently and stay with the company for longer. Read on to find out our top 7 tips for successful employee onboarding.
The 6 Cs of Employee Onboarding
When it comes to employee onboarding, the 6 Cs are often advised. They are the basis for a strong onboarding process and when incorporated will ensure an employer includes all the principal pillars of the employee onboarding process. Dr Talya Bauer explains that “each progressive C indicates an increasing level of effectiveness as an organization’s onboarding process progresses on the scale from Compliance to Checkback.” She describes the 6 Cs as:
Compliance- Legal rules and obligations, e.g. new starter paperwork etc.
Clarification- Roles and expectations for the new employee
Confidence- Building up an employee’s confidence in their role.
Connection- Help new hires make meaningful connections with their peers and management.
Culture- Explaining the vision and values of the company.
Checkback- Ongoing feedback from new hires to adjust your onboarding programme.
7 Top Tips for Employee Onboarding
Assign a mentor.
Assigning a mentor is an excellent way to complete the onboarding process efficiently. This gives the employee a sense of security and comfort as they have someone to whom they can easily direct questions. Choose an employee who has a positive attitude and who is excited to show the new employee the ropes. Assigning a mentor from a different team provides the employee with the opportunity to address any issues they are having with a third party and to make connections outside of their team. A mentor will also help the new employee foster a sense of belonging as they transition into the company’s cultural norms whilst supporting them in a 1 to 1 setting. Check out our blog Transforming Your Workplace Culture For Success: Fostering A Positive Workplace, to find out our top tips for creating an environment that fosters employee well-being.
Manager outreach.
Often employees don’t leave their jobs, they leave their managers. So why not try and avoid this by being a source of support and guidance for your employees, especially if they are new to the business. The manager’s role is to oversee employees and support their integration into the business. Explaining company policies, responsibilities, and conditions of employment, ensures that all bases have been covered and that the employee is aware of all company practices and expectations. Reach out to other employees, asking for feedback on their onboarding period and incorporate any relevant information into your model for employee onboarding. Encourage new hires to socialise with other team members in person or if they are working remotely through email, chat, or video calls.
Provide and allow time for adequate training.
Placing a new employee in a position and leaving them without adequate training is not only difficult for the new employee but also for you as an employer. Although it may be time-consuming at the start the more effort you put into training your new employee, the quicker they will learn and the more efficient worker they will become. An employee is more likely to stay with the company and excel in their craft if they have received adequate training and have the tools to thrive in their new position.
Set goals.
Setting goals is a fantastic way of giving employees something to work towards. Goal management is more than just a once-a-year exercise; it is an opportunity to align the focus of the entire company, clarify performance expectations, and guide employees to success. It provides a sense of reason and achievement once a task has been completed. Setting goals will also give an employer and the employee the same guidelines to access work. Why not explore emPerform’s goals and development planning tool? emPerform makes it easy for organisations to set and track SMART goals, performance objectives, and development plans so that your workforce is aligned and employees get the coaching needed for success.
Help them envision their future at the company.
Staff turnover is expensive and time-consuming. Having an efficient onboarding process will leave your employees feeling supported and capable in their ability to fulfil the needs of the job. Consequently, they are less likely to seek employment elsewhere, therefore decreasing staff turnover expenses. If employees are encouraged to envision a future within the company whilst also seeing evidence of career progression, they are more likely to stay and excel in the business. Overall, the new hire should feel enthusiastic about their new position and ready to make a positive impact in the company. emPerform makes it easy to engage talent in vital ongoing career planning & development. Incorporate talent assessments into performance reviews to gauge the potential of your talent base and see how high your employees can fly.
Have all necessary tools ready for their start date.
It can be demotivating for an employee to arrive on their first day and feel like a company wasn’t ready for their arrival. Having to wait an excessive period to get started, can prevent new employees from hitting the ground running. Ensuring that all IT services, passwords, passes etc. are ready for the first day will help the new employee succeed and feel welcomed. If a new employee is joining remotely, have screenshots or screen shares ready for training, and allow easy access to important documents. emPerform encourages companies to cultivate community. Having an onboarding Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) strategy in place will help ensure new starters feel comfortable to ask for any accommodations or adjustments.
Schedule weekly catch-ups and feedback.
According to a Gallup report, How Millennials Want to Work and Live, only 19% of millennials say they receive routine feedback. As Dr Bauers explains with the 6th C ‘Checkback’, scheduling weekly catch-ups ensures a new hire integrates into the company quickly and efficiently. It emphasises to them that their work is valued and that you are willing to support them throughout their time at the company; not just the first week. Acknowledge their successes and contributions and encourage them to persevere with any challenges they have encountered whilst offering support. If a new hire is joining remotely check in frequently and try to have video calls regularly to keep them involved and feeling a part of the company’s culture. emPerform has tools which help employers engage their workforce in timely & frequent feedback, creating a culture of instant recognition and coaching with emPerform tag easy performance journaling, feedback & check-ins.
Organising the employee onboarding process can be time-consuming. However, Garter found that a successful onboarding process can help improve employee performance by up to 15%. Further, committed employees work 57% harder and are nine times less likely to leave over the same time. Therefore, the more time you allocate to ensuring the new hire is supported and adequately trained, the more chance the employee will stay with the company, decreasing staff turnover costs and improving employee satisfaction. Overall, remember to create an onboarding process that fits your company’s and your employee’s needs.
emPerform offers a straightforward way to enhance your employee onboarding process. Find out more by booking a demo here
