Employee Onboarding: The Do's & Don'ts
Written by Nathan Morihovitis, HR Advisor at Melbourne HR
I think I can speak for most people when it comes to starting a new job, it can be daunting and somewhat overwhelming. Don’t get me wrong - It is a fantastic feeling going through the lengthy & tedious application process and finding out that YOU were the successful candidate.
The recruitment process from an employer’s perspective can be challenging and especially with today’s current candidate market. HR and Managers tend to spend weeks to months on trying to fill a role and there is nothing more frustrating when that new hire quits their job.
A recent study shows that employee turnover is as much as 50% in the first 18 months of employment. And the primary reason you ask? The simple answer:
A poor onboarding experience.
When starting something new (especially a new job), you are thrown into the deep end and overloaded with an abundance of information, which usually goes in through one ear and out the other. What can you as an employer do to help prevent this?
In this blog I want to show you the ropes of onboarding and to do so I will be taking a deep dive into the DO’S and the DON’T’S of an Onboarding Process.
- Have a detailed & organised process
- Put the right people in place
- Get the new starter familiar with the culture
- Overload the employee
- Expect the world of somebody on their first day
- Ignore user feedback
Firstly, let’s define ‘Onboarding’ – the process provides new hires with important information to help them transition into their new role. The main objective is to engage the new hire with their job & to help them learn about the organisation, structure, culture, values & objectives.
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DO have a detailed & organised process
The first call of action is to ensure the onboarding is clearly defined and organised. Simple yes, but you would be amazed how many small & medium businesses don’t have a process currently in place.
My suggestion – come up with a detailed and organised onboarding tool. The tool should be in the form of a 1–2-page schedule, a board/excel or even through a HRIS platform that is easily accessible. Whichever the method, liaising with senior management for their input is important, 5 heads are better than 1.
The tool must clearly layout & identify (in order), the steps and tasks associated with onboarding the new hire. Once put in place, the next phase is to distinguish which manager or managers are responsible for each task. Having this in writing and communicated with the appropriate staff is essential for a smooth employee onboarding.
This leads into my next suggestion.
DO put the right people in place
Finished implementing the onboarding process? The next step is to put the right people in place. Employee onboarding is worked through collaboratively and will have a particular person in place for each step of the process. One thing to be mindful of is that everyone in the department specialises in something different. For example:
HR know compliance, management know performance & KPI’s, colleagues know the ins and outs of the day-day and IT specialise in setting up equipment and log ins.
Lack of clarity can lead to a disruptive and frustrating process, not only for the new starter but everyone involved in the onboarding. Don’t make this mistake!
DO get the new starter familiar with the culture
As touched on in previous blogs, there is huge correlation between staff turnover and culture, especially in the first 18 months of employment. Through personal experience, getting a new starter familiar with the culture is more important than getting stuck into the work itself.
When starting something new, and this may not even be work related, it is important to understand the intricacies of the culture, how do other employees work? Who is the best person to approach for help? What are the team bonding activities throughout the week? These are just some of the key things a new employee will have on their mind.
A cultural approach makes the experience more enjoyable and memorable for the new starter, helps them feel like they are part of a collective team!
It is important to realise that with every DO, there are also DON’TS.
DON’T overload the employee
When it comes to onboarding a new employee, there is a lot that needs to be done, and as touched on previously many people are involved in this process. But it begs the question, how much is too much information?
Humans don’t have photographic memories and there is only so much information we can take in at one time. To help prevent this overload and burnout you must spread out the employee onboarding, this is essential.
Setting up phases in the onboarding process is a great way to prevent overloading, 4 phases is sufficient.
Before the first day
The first day
The first week
The first 3 months
Onboarding for a new starter can typically last up to 3 months, and it is important to spread the workload to prevent overloading.
DON’T expect the world of somebody on their first day
It is unjust to place heavy expectations on a new starter before they have the chance to settle, an important thing to consider when onboarding is to clearly set out the performance expectations for the individual. Following on from my previous point, creating phases is critical and will help set out these clear expectations.
The performance expectations should be seen as a strategic plan for the new starter and help motivate, direct, and give feedback to the individual. Don’t just assume the new starter understands these expectations, sit down, and have the conversation with them, make sure that everyone is committed to what is discussed.
Use the 4 phases previously mention as a tracker, each phase should set out what is expected of the new starter by that point of the onboarding process.
DON’T ignore user feedback
When it comes to processes, nothing will be 100% perfect, there will always be room for improvement! If I could provide you with one tip, it would be to make sure you don’t ignore user feedback.
Including a feedback/survey section at the end of the employee onboarding is worth its weight in gold! Employees and especially ones that have just gone through the onboarding process will have critical feedback on how they feel it went. Whether this is positive or negative, the feedback should always be seen as constructive.
This feedback section allows new starters to openly communicate what they think went well and what can be improved on. Not all feedback needs to be taken onboard, but it is always good to acknowledge someone’s concerns.
In the short-term, putting time in with a new starter may feel impractical and wasteful, but when you look at the bigger picture, all this effort will lead to a higher performing employee in the long run.
Following the Do’s and Don’ts of employee onboarding is just the start of expanding your workforce and developing your employees to be part of a high performing team!
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Nathan Morihovitis is a HR Advisor at Melbourne HR.
Edited by Toby Pronstroller, Digital Marketing Coordinator at Melbourne HR.