Routines and standard practice are key to an organization’s productivity and time efficiency. Having standardized steps for any process is not only effective but will also ensure a thorough process, and organizations with a thorough, standardized onboarding process experience 62% greater productivity, as well as a 50% better new hire retention according to Harvard Business Review.
It’s no secret that employee turnover can be a considerable expense for any organization. The key is to make it worth the money by having standard procedures in place that can be followed immediately to speed up the process, and minimize losses.
New employee onboarding should ideally start as soon as possible after a new hire has been made. This process can be timely but is necessary to retain new hires.
Cancel confusion.
Assisting employees in navigating the basics will eliminate any confusion in their daily routine at work and in doing so, minimize or eliminate certain stressors.
This includes everything from getting their parking set up to identification cards that are required and introducing them to specific company policies.
By taking care of these things from the beginning, employees can start to focus their attention on what they are really there for, resulting in a more productive individual.
Provide clarity.
Employees are hired for their skills and expertise in specific areas but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ll know exactly how to implement this at your company. This can be discouraging for many employees and leave them feeling incompetent.
By having a standardized training and integration program, and providing clear guidelines for what is expected, new hires will be able to measure their work.
Thus, employees will form an understanding of what “a job well done” means in their new environment and experience a sense of accomplishment in the certainty that they have clearly met their goals.
Aid in their integration.
Well-planned onboarding will educate new hires on the company’s values, best organizational practices, and norms.
The aim is to provide a solid presentation of what the company stands for, and why it’s something the employee should buy into.
The more assimilated an employee is, the better. Removing their focus from how alien they may feel to a common goal that the entire company shares, will shift their mindset.
Instead of thinking about all the ways in which they differ from everyone and everything, they can now pay attention to achieving goals together and upholding the same standards as their co-workers.
Connect and communicate.
Roughly 40% of adults report experiencing loneliness. Being a new employee can amplify these feelings so it’s essential to assign a mentor to the new hire, at least for the first year.
The most engaged employees often have strong relationships within the workplace.
Sharing feedback and concerns, in the beginning, can also be hard for someone who’s new, so providing a structured setting during the onboarding process where questions can be asked and answered.
This will alleviate some of the pressure and create an open channel for communication in the future, and this, of course, is perfect because communication is key.
