A company’s onboarding process should help new hires become familiar with the company and its vision, missions, structure, and policies. It should also help new employees settle into the company and their roles and become productive as soon as possible. A poor onboarding process can lead to disengaged employees, while a great one ensures employees start their employment correctly. A good one can also lead to a fruitful career while ensuring the company a return on investment in its recruitment process. So, what can you do to ensure a successful process?
The first few days of work at a new company are terrifying for many people. They might not know anyone at the office, not understand the culture, or know if the work will be what they expected when they applied for the position.
However, things do not have to be this way because employees can come into the office ready to get to work. Managers can ensure this by sending them information on everything they need to know to get up to speed quickly.
In addition to creating and sending documents detailing their duties, managers can use a meet the team template to let them know who their colleagues are, their positions, and the hierarchy within their team or department. This template will also remove awkward interactions because the new employees will already know something about their coworkers.
Prepare Managers and Teams
The onboarding process should not only target the new employee but also their immediate boss and team. Managers can then set an appointment to talk to them about their new role and everything else required of them. The team can also learn their roles and responsibilities and where they fit within it before they arrive.
The result is a smooth onboarding process where everyone understands what they are supposed to do, how team or department dynamics will change, and the new employee is set up for success from the first day.
Outline Expectations Early and Clearly
Ambiguity can kill morale and productivity because the new hires will not know what is expected of them and have to figure things out themselves if no one tells them what is expected of them. It also makes the onboarding process last longer than it is supposed to.
Managers should create documents that include guidelines and expectations instead of relying on job descriptions and employee handbooks. These should contain company goals, responsibilities, and guidelines, as well as how to present deliverables, contribute to teams, collaborate with team members, and everything else the employee needs to know.
Managers should ensure these documents are as detailed as possible and can be edited as required for specific employees.
Provide All Necessary Tools and Resources from the First Day
Does the employee need a workstation or computer? Do they need credentials to log into company servers? Managers should consider these and other questions that could hinder them from having access to the tools and resources they need to get to work. Also, they should schedule additional training if the employee needs to learn to use some of the company’s resources, such as custom software.
A good onboarding process is a lot more important than many people think. It helps employees get up to speed and settle quickly, integrate into teams easily, and get to work faster. Managers and team leaders should create robust onboarding procedures to make them positive for everyone involved.
