The recruiting process is not complete when you hire someone. The next step is to have them go through an onboarding process. This helps people transition into their new role in your company. You can teach them about company policies, culture, values, and inner workings. They can also learn about how to best perform in their new role. Follow this complete guide to having a successful onboarding experience.
Prepare in Advance
Set yourself and your company up for success by preparing for onboarding in advance. The onboarding is the first impression that new team members have. If you come in unprepared with technology malfunctioning and lack a schedule or topic plan, your new hires will question the company’s professionalism.
Make a Powerful First Impression
Start your onboarding process by making a strong, positive first impression. Give a gift bag with company swag. Host a get-together or social hour where people can get to know each other. That way, you can begin building culture and establishing familiarity.
Set Expectations
Let your new hires know what is expected of them. Outline the onboarding process timeline, training modules, and progress evaluations. Tell your trainees what is expected of them and what level they should be performing at post-onboarding. That way, there is no confusion about what you expect from your employees.
Involve Current Employees and Leadership
While you don’t want to hinder current employee productivity, you also want to reduce the ramp-up time for new hires. Including leadership and current employees in onboarding can facilitate connections and communication. This helps individuals going through onboarding establish connections with their current team. That way, they can feel like a part of the team quicker.
Transition to Job Shadowing
At some point, your onboarding process should transition from classroom to practical. Place people in the working environment where they can shadow someone currently performing the role. This lets people see how to implement their learned skills and tools.
Perform Regular Check-Ins
Schedule regular check-ins with your new employees who are going through the onboarding process. These should be one-on-one meetings where you sit down in a quiet space. That way, you can get honest feedback on how new hires feel. You can answer questions and address concerns.
Evaluate and Adapt
After the onboarding process is completed, do an evaluation where you look at the positives and negatives. Ask the employees who went through the onboarding for their feedback. It can even help to return a week or month later and ask for their feedback. That way, you can improve your onboarding process to set people up for success.
Have a Successful Onboarding Process
If you want your onboarding process to be successful, start early. Preparation ensures everything runs smoothly, the technology works, and you cover all necessary topics. Start by making a strong first impression and setting expectations. Then, feed information slowly while regularly checking in with trainees. Finally, transition them from training to their new role by having them shadow current employees.
Work with BOS Staffing to optimize your recruiting, hiring, and onboarding processes.
