Best Practice: Four Specific Tips for Better Onboarding

Onboarding is a vital part of the recruitment process, making sure the new hire feels welcome and is properly integrated into the culture and the company. Experiences and emotions are in focus when a new hire arrives on the first day. And skimping on the onboarding procedure can be a costly mistake. Devoting time and resources to employee onboarding is essential for your growing business’s ongoing success, and if done right, then both the company and new hires can reap the rewards.

Here are some onboarding tips on how to make the process as smooth and effective as possible every time. 

Tip 1: The First 90 days.

90 days may seem like a lifetime, but it goes in a finger snap. And it is so important that a new hire experiences a high level of service from colleagues and leadership within the first 90 days. This will help them have a more positive attitude towards the new role, be more engaged, and increase the work effort. 

Furthermore, if the new hire did not get the answers to their questions or did not get referred to someone they could ask, then the level of dissatisfaction can increase, and the new hire could become unproductive or, in the worst-case scenario, they leave after 3 – 4 months. So it is important to ensure that the onboarding program includes colleagues, business partners, and the leadership to ensure that everyone is aiding the process of creating a great experience for the new hire. 

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Tip 2: Structure

A structured onboarding program signals that the company has thought everything through and is ready to receive the new hire with open arms. It indicates a level of professionalism that will impact the new hire and states to them that their work ethic is important and that they are an essential hire to the team. They feel seen, heard, and responsible. 

The structure could include:

• Dedicating certain days to getting systems set up.
• Meeting teammates, key people, work processes, products.
• Customers.

This can obviously be altered to whatever business or sector. 

Tip 3: Use a mentor program

As human beings, we are programmed to perform better when we understand what we do and why we do it. So, new hires must be introduced to your company values in the onboarding program. And what better way to do that than to have a mentor program. 

A mentor is there for the new hire and can support through videos, presentation materials, and a staff handbook. There can be one mentor, or there can be different mentors from different levels of the organisation. This way, a new hire can formally meet the key people they will be working with; the mentors can offer any advice and answer any questions giving fresh perspectives and giving the new hire motivation.

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Tip 4: Get the new hire set up from home

With Covid-19, remote working is imminent, and it’s a huge part of working now. So, why not utilise it to help with the onboarding process. Get the new hire learning via a digital and personal profile as soon as the contract is signed, whether it be interactive training sessions or the opportunity to sit in team meetings virtually and to learn the new systems. 

Often a combination of digital learning and physical learning with mentor programs gives optimal outcomes, and it creates a good standing for the recruit.