An organization’s onboarding process is crucial, as it offers a new hire their first impression of the company. This is the opportunity to welcome a new member to your work team and a time to complete required tax and direct deposit paperwork. But it is also a time to communicate company values and provide the training that an employee will need to perform their new role effectively. Your new employee onboarding plan can mean the difference between an employee who stays a long time and feels well-matched to the company culture and one who leaves before their probation is up.
Contrary to popular belief, the onboarding process isn’t simply how your team relates to the new hire on day one or even during the first week. Instead, it is a lengthy process with these different phases:
- Preboarding: The time between when a job offer is made and the employee starts working
- The first day: When the employee is welcomed to the team and begins receiving early introductions and information
- The probationary period: When the employee completes onboarding experience, job shadowing, and other activities to learn about their role and the work environment
- The first six months: The new employee continues to gain valuable training and experience, and a performance evaluation is given.
- The first year (and beyond): Learning and development continue. The HR department reviews and fine-tunes the employee’s professional development plan with them.
Here is a more in-depth look at each phase of the employee onboarding process and a template of the types of activities you can incorporate into your company’s employee onboarding plan.
Disclaimer: The information below is accurate as of August 13, 2024.
Upon hiring decision
As explained by Harvard Business Review:
- More than half of new employees feel undertrained after the onboarding process.
- Eighty percent of new hires who say they didn’t receive an effective employee onboarding plan on leaving their jobs soon.
- Some of the common complaints about an organization’s onboarding include that it is confusing and disorganized. This is particularly true with small companies and among remote workers.
Through preboarding and onboarding, communication seems to be the key to increasing the comfort level of the employees and the likelihood that they will remain working for the company. Once the prospective employee has received and accepted their job offer, the preboarding phase is the first opportunity for employee engagement. This is when the organization can send the employee a welcome email that includes information such as:
- An onboarding checklist to help them understand what to expect from the process
- A job description to clarify what their role will be
- An onboarding checklist can list tasks they can complete at their own pace, such as filling out tax and direct deposit forms before starting their new job
- An FAQ page that answers common new hire questions
- A schedule of activities involved in the onboarding process
Another important feature of your onboarding template to include in the preboarding process is to send a digital copy of the employee handbook to the new hire so they can begin learning more about the expectations, rules, and requirements of the job. There is a lot of room for creativity in the welcome email. HR departments can even provide a list of tips from other employees or swag with the company logo to improve the employee experience right from the start.
Prior to the new hire’s start date
Communicating with the new employee isn’t the only aspect of preboarding. Several other activities must take place across the organization.
- HR managers must complete paperwork before the employee’s start date and create the employee’s personnel file.
- A new hire profile and other provisions, such as employee IDs, will need to be created for the LMS.
- Managers must create a schedule for the new hire and designate a workspace for them, if applicable.
- This is also a time to let other team members know about the new hire. Some companies even have team members send digital introductions or welcomes to the employee so that they begin acclimating to the company culture even before day one.
Another potential addition to your preboarding process for new hires is to create an onboarding video to send to the employee that:
- Showcases the company
- Explains the company’s missions and goals
- Provides information about day-to-day activities
- Provides staff testimonials
Will there be a lengthy period between the employee’s hire date and when they start working? Then, communication should be regular and frequent to avoid creating a vacuum where the employee can begin to have unanswered questions or doubts.
Onboarding software can help hiring managers and HR departments keep the process as organized as possible. Then, the hiring process is standardized and offers the best opportunity for a good onboarding process.
Day one: Employee orientation
Use the preboarding process to get through as much of the new hire paperwork and other formalities as possible. Then the first day is not only less intimidating for the employee but also provides time for activities such as:
- Touring the building or office
- Meeting the team
- Setting up the employee’s workspace
- Introducing the employee to the LMS and beginning their training
- Assigning new employees with an “onboarding buddy,” either someone else who is also new so the two can learn the ropes together or a more experienced employee who can help a new hire understand lunch and break schedules and training. Navigating the employees’ first day with another person generally makes the experience less overwhelming.
As noted by Indeed:
- Thirty-nine percent of job seekers who left a job within the first six months say they would have likely stayed longer if they’d been given more effective onboarding and training.
- Employees who begin training on day one and can self-pace their initial training through the first month or more typically exhibit more confidence in their new role. They also have a better familiarity with company policies and procedures.
Docebo’s platform offers a hyper-personalized training method designed to boost employee engagement, leading to higher retention rates. When learners feel that they’re understood, valued, and supported in their professional development, they are more receptive to training.
The first three months of the employee onboarding plan
For many companies, the first three to six months marks the probationary period when some benefits become available and the new hire and the organization determine if there is a good fit. However, a “good fit” isn’t so much a matter of luck in many cases but a matter of successful onboarding. Remember:
- During this time, check-ins from management and human resources are important. Ensure that the employee’s confidence is growing in their ability to understand and perform the tasks of their job. Also, you can further clarify their work responsibilities.
- The data provided by the company’s LMS can help identify and address skills gaps that the employee might have that affect job performance. The employee will be increasingly involved in more complex projects as their proficiency grows.
A learning management system with mobile capabilities, such as Docebo’s platform, can ensure that employees can obtain the training they need at their own pace and on the go. This means that workers can spend the bulk of their first three months doing the job they were hired for while they learn. This is better than spending much of that time sitting in a room learning about the job.
The first six months of the employee onboarding plan
As explained by UC Davis, the first six months are about the new employee mastering their role. Their accomplishments likely include:
- They’ve participated in numerous microlessons and other types of training through your LMS.
- They have likely engaged in job shadowing and participated in mentorship offerings.
- They’ve grown comfortable performing the job on their own.
Job performance reviews often take place at six months or before. Some of the onboarding milestones that should be achieved in the first six months include:
- Create SMART goals for the employee. This centers on specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-framed goals.
- After discussing with the employee their performance, interests, and professional goals, determine which training and development courses are most suitable.
- Identify the employee’s strengths and communicate ways to utilize those strengths in the workflow to maximize the employee’s efforts.
- Identify weaknesses in the employee’s performance or skills. Then create a plan to provide training or mentorship to bolster their skills.
If an employee is found within the first six months to be struggling with adapting to their role or seems disinterested or disengaged with the job, it can be necessary to “reboard” them. Reboarding occurs when a manager sees signs of ineffective onboarding. A manager provides guidance to the employee through many of the onboarding steps to give them another opportunity to catch on.
The first year of the employee onboarding plan
As your employee grows in training, competence, and comfort with their role, continuing to check in with them is vital to ensuring that they have the tools they need to perform to their capability and are supported in their career goals.
- Schedule a one-year follow-up performance review and short, ongoing one-on-one in-person meetings with employees. This lets them know that their management and HR team are behind them and keep the lines of communication open.
- Many companies use rewards and certifications to keep employees engaged in learning and growing within the company.
- Employees who become “power users” on your LMS app can provide important feedback on the types of courses you can offer for seasoned workers. Exploration of other opportunities, such as mentorship and upskilling, can also be provided during this time.
Feedback and participation are two important metrics for evaluating the success of your employee onboarding plan.
Need onboarding software as part of your employee onboarding plan?
Docebo’s learning management platform is more than simply a place for your workers to receive important, personalized training. It can also integrate with other software you have and use automation. Ensure that your organization has the most effective onboarding process possible to improve employee retention and engagement. For more information about how Docebo can help you onboard and train your team for better engagement and retention, book a demo.