Mastering Onboarding Part 1: What is Onboarding
Onboarding, often disregarded as a mere formality, is a necessary process that sets the stage for an employee's journey within an organisation. It's more than just paperwork and orientation; it's about creating a seamless transition, encouraging a sense of belongingness, and preparing new hires with the tools to excel.
What is Onboarding and When Do We Onboard People?
Onboarding is a process for new staff members welcoming them into the organisational setup, being familiarised with the culture and values, operation, and providing the necessary knowledge and competencies to inform the job responsibilities to succeed in their roles in a manner consistent with the corporate culture, values, policies, and norms. It consists of a range of activities and pieces of training, from pre-employment communication to ongoing development.
Effective onboarding can boost employee retention by 82% and productivity by over 70%. Proper onboarding ensures that new hires feel welcomed and valued, which is crucial for their long-term success within the company. (Aberdeen Research)
Though onboarding is a critical process, only 32% of companies appear to have a structured process according to Aberdeen. As imperfect as it is, the benefits of onboarding in attracting and retaining staff are huge:
“What's at stake are outcomes like performance and new-hire turnover. For example, 70% of employees who had exceptional onboarding experiences say they have "the best possible job." These employees are also 2.6 times as likely to be extremely satisfied with their workplace -- and consequently, far more likely to stay. Simply put, to get exceptional employee outcomes, you need exceptional onboarding.” (Wetherell and Nelson, 2021).
The effective onboarding strategy involves preboarding, orientation sessions, and some amount of ongoing training. Glassdoor goes further to add that consistent check-ins and feedback within those first 90 days will ensure the new hire feels supported and engaged. Timing and methodology are key in onboarding. The best practice dictates beginning the onboarding process before the employee's first day; Organisations that have some type of structured onboarding process experience have 54% greater new hire productivity and 50% higher new hire retention according to Glassdoor's survey.
The importance of onboarding cannot be ignored. It would enhance satisfaction, better engagement, and reduce turnover if the onboarding procedure is effective and organised. Gallup suggests that organisations that have a strong onboarding approach increase the retention of new hires by 82% and productivity by more than 70%.
The most useful onboarding strategies will always be a combination of preboarding, orientation sessions, and some amount of ongoing training. Frequent check-ins and feedback within the first 90 days are important to making the new hire feel supported and engaged.
Onboarding for All: New Hires vs. Internal Transfers
Onboarding is not only for new hires, but is equally applicable in the case of internal transfers, whether it be movement to another role, department, or location. Having an onboarding process at this time will help in the easier transition and adaptability to a new environment. The focus is then more on the potential values and organisational differences. International mobility - transfer to a new country - will make cultural alignment a priority, for example.
Employees whose onboarding has gone well for internal transfers are 60% more likely to be with that company in three or more years. Consistent precise onboarding among new hires and those with internal transfers generate effective assistance in boosting fulfilment and retention.
Navigating Changes: Onboarding in Mobility and Mergers & Acquisitions
Onboarding plays a critical role during mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Effective onboarding can help retain employees and maintain productivity amidst organisational changes. Deloitte’s research on workforce mobility and M&A reveals that companies with robust onboarding processes during M&A are 70% more likely to retain employees post-merger.
It was also brought out that, besides all the changes affected by M&As, great drivers of success include clear communication, cultural integration, and consistent onboarding. This will make the employees feel safe and appreciated, lowering the risk of leaving during such transitions.
Difference between roles and industries
The onboarding process will often depend on the worker's category and position complexity, both from a technical and organisational point of view.
Some positions can be very technical and require more thorough onboarding and competence; hiring a specialist, an assistant, or team leads implies checking their level of knowledge and experience but most parts of their onboarding will be similar like learning industry regulations, company history, product knowledge, and market overview. It should be specific to the role, tailored to the tasks and duties of the position. Effective onboarding requires a combination of role-specific and industry-specific elements.
Then some sectors have more regulatory constraints like medical allied professionals will have more intensive and precise onboarding specific to their specialisations, also considering their legalities and policies such as HIPAA.
While roles and industries are distinct, they often intersect. For instance, a software engineer in the healthcare industry will need onboarding that covers both software development skills (role-specific) and HIPAA compliance (industry-specific).
Onboarding is an elaborate process that has a huge effect on employee engagement, retention, and eventually organisational success. It is only through the realisation of the importance of onboarding, putting ineffective strategies, and meeting the individual needs of new hires and internal transfers that a company can build a positive and productive work environment. This means that investment in full onboarding strategies, particularly during times of organisational change such as mergers and acquisitions, will help a system to maintain a workforce with a motivated and committed workforce.
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Sources:
[https://www.gallup.com/workplace/246242/essential-ingredients-effective-onboarding-program.aspx]
Wetherell and Nelson, 2021 [https://www.gallup.com/workplace/353096/practical-tips-leaders-better-onboarding-process.aspx]
[Aberdeen Strategy and Research] (https://www.aberdeen.com/blogposts/perfecting-onboarding-funnel/)
[ELM]
(https://elmlearning.com/blog/onboarding-best-practices/)
Gotham
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=13356&context=dissertations