Written by Anna Park
In today’s unpredictable job market, keeping top talent is more important than ever. Once you’ve found a standout candidate, how can you ensure they stay and flourish within your organization? Effective onboarding is the key to achieving this goal.
Effective onboarding has long-term benefits for both the organization and the employee. Organizations that invest in onboarding see improvements in retention rates, time to productivity, and overall customer satisfaction. For employees, good onboarding leads to higher job satisfaction and organizational commitment.
Proactive Onboarding: Before and After the First Day
Proactive onboarding starts even before the new hire’s first day. This can include sending a welcome email and an onboarding schedule, providing access to necessary resources, and setting up their workspace. On the first day it’s helpful to know what to expect! Creating a comprehensive welcome packet with all the FAQs like parking, lunch break times, appropriate dress code information, and more, can help to facilitate a worry-free first day. By doing this, you create a positive first impression and help to form those initial connections with your new team members.
After the first day, proactive onboarding involves regular check-ins, feedback sessions, and continuous support. This helps new hires feel valued and supported, which can significantly impact their decision to stay with the company. Regular interactions with managers and teams can make or break an employee’s onboarding experience.
With many companies integrating hybrid or remote work, thoughtful consideration is a must while developing or updating onboarding programs. Ensure your new hire has face time with their team, whether that looks like a virtual lunch or coffee hour, joining a weekly team huddle, or 1:1 time with their training partner. It’s essential that they can form those connections early and often! Creating benefits that help ease the transition from in office to remote work is a great way to attract top talent and create a smooth transition to your remote organization. Consider a “set up your office” sign-on bonus, or sending a “welcome kit” to help reinforce excitement about the new opportunity.
Turnover Risk: The First 90 Days
The first 90 days are crucial for new employees. The risk of turnover is especially high during this time, unfortunately; many new hires do not make it past this initial period. Even after securing a new job, many employees continue to search for other opportunities during their first 90 days. This can be driven by a lack of engagement or connection with the new organization.
Effective onboarding can help mitigate this by fostering a sense of belonging and commitment from day one. Gallup finds that only 12% of employees strongly agree that their organization does a great job onboarding new employees. This failure can hinder the formation of an emotional bond between the new hire and the company—a connection that is crucial for retention. The transition from candidate to employee should feel like a natural handoff that continues the momentum and excitement for the new job.
Continued Onboarding
Unfortunately, only 15% of companies continue onboarding after six months. Yet nearly 90% of employees decide whether to stay or go within those first six months. This statistic underscores the impact of continued onboarding on employee retention. Showing new hires that you sincerely care about their success makes a significant difference.
By investing in comprehensive onboarding, companies can improve retention rates, boost productivity, and foster a positive work environment. At Purple Ink we use products like 15Five to help guide us through onboarding a new team member. Tools like 15Five ensure that 1:1s, 30/60/90-day check ins, and performance reviews are always top of mind, both for the team member and their new supervisor.
Finding the right system for your organization can be daunting. We would love to partner with you in evaluating your onboarding program! Reach out here.