It is essential to ensure new employees can quickly settle into the workplace and find their feet in their new roles. Supporting recruits through the transitional process is crucial to ensure retention and enable the latest addition to your workforce to become productive as quickly as possible.
An onboarding strategy is key to enabling new employees to hit the ground running. What is an onboarding process for new employees, what should staff onboarding include, and what are the advantages of outsourcing employee onboarding to an employee engagement consultancy?
What is employee onboarding?
Onboarding an employee involves undergoing a supported induction period that lays the foundation for success in their new role. It recognises that when someone is starting a new position, particularly in a new organisation, they will need help to make the transition and integrate.
Unlike employee orientation, which focuses on basics such as company policies, colleague introductions, and office layout, the onboarding process for new employees has a broader scope. Recruits learn how aspects of the workplace operate, and gain an understanding of company culture, values, and the overall atmosphere. It ensures that new employees feel welcomed and valued within their teams and helps them reach full productivity faster.
It creates positive conditions for new employees to thrive, enhances company culture overall, and aids staff retention.
What are the key components of an employee onboarding programme?
Employee onboarding will reflect the structure and requirements of the organisation, as well as the particular needs of the new employee. Typically, employee onboarding will begin with an initial orientation that sets the tone for new colleagues, introducing them to the organisation, its culture and values.
It may include comprehensive training sessions covering role responsibilities, company policies, and procedures. It will ensure that employees have access to all of the necessary tools, resources, and technology platforms that are essential for their role. Clear goals and performance expectations will be provided, and the schedule for feedback and mentoring will be established.
Employee onboarding may also include opportunities for social integration through team-building activities or networking events, that can help new employees develop connections within the organisation and feel a sense of belonging.
At the end of the onboarding period, it can be helpful for the employee to fill in an onboarding form or employee onboarding survey to detail their impressions and feedback on the process. This can be useful in the further development of employee onboarding procedures.
Specialist employee onboarding from Engage & Prosper
By outsourcing your onboarding process for new employees to an outside employee engagement consultancy you can save time and experience better outcomes for the onboarding process.
As workplace engagement specialists, we understand some of the challenges organisations can face in developing a coherent and effective onboarding process. We assist organisations in developing a vibrant culture of proactive engagement that supports mutually beneficial relationships between employers and employees.
Our employee onboarding app can support the onboarding process, providing an effective means of communication and support across the organisation.
Email hello@engageandprosper.com or call +44 (0) 330 223 0464 to find out more about our approach.