Seven Steps to Successfully Onboard New Employees
Onboarding new employees into an organization goes beyond pointing people to their desks or showing people how to navigate daily operations.
It is an extensive process of bathing workers in an organization’s culture. Of immersing people in the rudiments of an organization so much so that it feels like they’ve been a part for years.
According to BambooHR, workers who’re lucky to enjoy a smooth onboarding experience are 29 times more likely to feel satisfied at work.
If you haven’t been doing it right before now, here are some steps to improve your employee onboarding experience.
- Reach out to employees before their first day
A new employee coming into an organization is likely pumped full of anxiety. He’s wondering what the experience will be like, what the people will look like, how long his integration will take, blah blah blah.
You can help him feel more comfortable by sending a welcome-to-the-family message before their arrival. On the employee’s part, that’s a great gesture that clearly shows they’re coming into a loving environment. And on your own part, that’s the first display of your organization’s culture.
- Create an employee playbook
One of the mistakes managers make during the employee onboarding process is communicating verbally only. If that’s the practice at your workplace, you should consider changing it soon.
You can speak with someone for hours, and shortly after leaving your presence, they would forget everything you said.
A better approach is the use of written words and visuals. When you onboard employees using visual aids and textual content, it is easier for them to retain the message. Even if they do, they have a reference they can go back to.
You don’t have to invest too much in an employee playbook. A simple pamphlet detailing the following information will do just fine.
- Directional information within the organization’s premises
- Company Mission, Vision, Values, and Policies
- Who your customers/stakeholders are
- What success looks like for your organization
- Who the workers and managers are? (Pro Tip: use a flow chart creator to make an organogram for this purpose)
- A clear description of role and expectations
Once the new hire understands the company in and out, take them through the job description and job expectations. It is a very crucial phase of the process that must be ironed out quickly.
You should spell out the job role and expected responsibilities clearly. Do not speculate or assume the new hire should understand certain things. No, please don’t do that. Even though the employee has experience in the field, it’s still advisable to spell out your company’s mode of operations. Remember, every company is unique in its own rights.
If possible, you can even be as detailed as drawing a step-by-step chart showing them how to do things. Of course, you don’t have to draw with your hands. That’s what tools like Zen flowchart are there for.
I know all these may sound rather basic, but better you sound basic than have employees making costly mistakes. You need your workers to feel satisfied if you want 100% deliveries from them. And remember, BambooHR says workers who had a good onboarding experience are 29 times more likely to feel satisfied at work.
- Create an orientation program
Full employee integration isn’t something you achieve in one day. Yes, the playbook helps get some of the company’s information and expectations across. But you need to do more to imbibe the company’s culture in a new hire.
This is where most companies adopt the orientation program approach. An orientation program will teach the dos and don’ts involved in the day-to-day operations. It will further immerse the employee in their newfound reality. Where employees have no previous experience, the session will help them quickly grasp the rudiments of their role and the challenges they might face.
As far as delivery goes, you can create an orientation program in the form of physical classes, expert training, or a learning manual.
To ensure the program hits the right buttons:
- Have a senior staff handle do the orientation
- Try to make employees feel as comfortable as they need to be
- As much as you want to complete the program within a set period of time, do not rush the employee
- Use technology and learning aids (e.g., flowcharts) to make the session enjoyable and effective
- Use the right training software
Instead of hiring expert trainers or removing people from their roles to train new workers, it is better to use employee training software.
Employee training software are tools designed to instill organizational culture and job operation procedures in new hires. As you can imagine, these tools are built for different job roles and industries. And they can be custom-made to fit the exact requirements of a company.
When onboarding new staff members, it is advisable to use these tools because:
- They make the process a lot more seamless, automated, and professional
- It saves time: Many employee training software are pre-built with training guides and instructions. Thus eliminating the need to create new training materials every time
- Helps to tailor onboarding to individual staff members: Every worker is different, and so should their onboarding experience. Based on the background information gathered about a new hire, a company can use an employee training software to deliver a fitting training program.
- Removes the need to have a physical trainer: With employee training software, training is delivered online, which means a physical trainer doesn’t have to be on the ground. This eliminates the need to hire an expert trainer or remove another worker from their role to train new workers.
- Make acclimatization a big deal
Most companies don’t concern themselves with whether or not their new hires blend with the old ones. Once they’ve taken a new employee through the ropes of their role, they back out, forgetting the human side of things.
Employers need to understand that workers are humans. And as humans, we need to interact with one another to work together. Without good interactions, it will be impossible to get familiar with one another, let alone build a lasting working relationship.
As a manager, if you hope to have a smooth sailing within your organization, you have to see to it that your old workers welcome the new ones into the fold.
By that, I don’t mean with hugs and smiles only. I’m talking about older employees holding the new ones by the hand and showing them how things are done.
- Allow one-on-one meetings for feedback
At least for the first two to three months, encourage a new employee to report back to you or appoint someone they can talk to. It will go a long way if a new hire knows there’s someone on the other end of the room waiting to appraise their work.
Additionally, this will also help them feel supported, knowing that they have someone who’s got their back if they ever run into challenges.
It does not have to be lengthy conversations. A short 15-minute dialogue should do the trick once every week. Fridays are great, being the last working day of the week.
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About the Author
Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.
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