The three most effective onboarding practices 

Marlies Pellikaan

In this article we will introduce you to the best practices for a better onboarding experience. We are going to talk about what is an onboarding program and which elements are essential to make your new employee to stay longer.

The three most effective onboarding practices – Effectory

What is an onboarding program?

Onboarding is the process in which new employees get acquainted with their role, their team and the organization. Effective onboarding practices help employees become part of the organisation and makes an active shift towards the contribution to organizational goals.

All you need to know about the onboarding process of new employees

In other words, it influences the process of integrating newcomers to the company, turning them into inspired and productive employees. It starts when the organization says “yes” to a candidate and stops when the new employee is fully up to speed. This process may take up to 8 months.

The 3 most important elements of successful onboarding

There is no clear-cut process for successful onboarding. Onboarding programs may vary by organization, for example depending on size and culture. However, we want to outline three main elements that are shared amongst the most successful onboarding processes:

  1. Operational: make sure that new employees have the right materials and knowledge (such as clarity and business jargon) to do their job well

  2. Social: make new employees feel welcome, build and promote valuable relationships with colleagues and managers, and feel part of the organization

  3. Strategic: ensure that newcomers know the organization (structure, vision, mission, goals, key developments, culture) and identify with it

What does a good streamlined onboarding process look like?

A better onboarding experience has a positive effect on the satisfaction, engagement and performance of new employees. Without proper onboarding, negative effects can arise:

  • 5% of new employees quit immediately after a disastrous first day
  • 20% of new employees will leave within the first 45 days of employment
  • Almost one in every three new employees will leave the company (voluntarily or involuntarily) before the end of their first year

A good onboarding process leads to faster integration of new employees while decreasing costs. Replacing an employee costs on average an organization between 50% to 150% of the departing employee’s annual salary!

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Effective onboarding practices: make sure that new employees are properly integrated

Effective onboarding practices are essential for a better onboarding experience in a world where talent has their choice of jobs and are regularly switching employers. It is also the first stage in beginning the employee journey at a new company. As an organization, you want to kick-start a successful employee experience right away, and the best way to do that is with a solid onboarding program.

What is employee onboarding? The definitive Effectory guide

Effective onboarding practices also have a positive effect on employer branding. In the first weeks of starting a new job, friends, family and former colleagues will ask who the new employer is. As an organisation, you want this first impression to be the best. With proper onboarding, new employees will immediately share a positive impression of the company, within their direct network.

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The result

make your employees brand ambassadors!

  • As an organization, you are more attractive to talent
  • You help new employees quickly contribute to organizational success
  • Organizations recognise the signals of premature development, on time
  • Insight into the effectiveness of your onboarding policy

Measure the success of your onboarding process

An onboarding survey helps organizations to test the effectiveness of their onboarding processes. Effectory’s onboarding survey measures onboarding success of by monitoring after 10-25 days of the employment start date. This way, early signals can be monitored during the onboarding process. 

Onboarding

Onboarding surveys of Effectory are the ultimate ways to gather relevant feedback from your newest employees, and learn from them! Discover more.

Onboarding survey solution