Congratulations, you've landed your top choice candidate! They're a good fit for the department and they're excited to join the team. Now it's time to prepare for their upcoming arrival date so the transition into their role goes smoothly and they can help the company meet its bottom line—as they also continue to grow, learn and become a valuable asset.
But to create a good first impression for your new employee and set them up for success from day one, it goes beyond a few weeks of orientation—if you want them to stick around. So, take a closer look at the training materials your team currently has in place to ensure that every new hire that comes along will be off to a great start.
If your new hire onboarding process is a bit outdated or lacking in any way, 16 Forbes Human Resources Council members are here to offer some additional factors to consider in your revamp to provide the best resources for everyone on the team.
Forbes Human Resources Council members share their insight.
Photos courtesy of individual members.1. Pre-Onboarding Communication
“Ghosting" is on the rise globally where candidates are accepting job offers only to never show up. To minimize the risk, train your people to focus on the pre-onboarding process, which will enable them to establish a relationship with the new hire before they start and engage with them regularly leading up to their first day. Once they show up, onboarding should be engaging and clearly aligned with the role the candidate was hired into. - Eva Majercsik, Genesys
2. A Directory Of Key Contacts
Foster connection by including a brief directory with the names and contact information of key subject matter experts within the company who can answer questions that might arise in the role and direct new employees to valuable resources. One challenge new hires, especially remote hires, often experience when they have questions is not knowing whom to ask. Make sure every new hire has a list. - Julia Pollak, ZipRecruiter
3. Company Culture And Psychological Safety Measures
Add an opportunity to reinforce feedback culture and psychological safety. One of our new employees’ first onboarding tasks is to review and critique our platform. The fresh perspective helps us grow, of course, but the point of the exercise is to ensure each newcomer knows their opinions and perspectives are respected—they don’t need to work here for X amount of months or years to have value. - Ursula Mead, InHerSight
4. Leadership News And Awards
Your business will constantly be evolving and so should new hires onboarding. Review your operational practices to ensure steps are in place for timely material refreshes. Perhaps you’ve won new awards, there have been changes in leadership or maybe there are enhanced benefits and offerings you should detail. Putting your best foot forward is critical in setting expectations for the new hire. - Chatelle Lynch, McAfee
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5. Impact Of First Impressions
You must meet new employees where they are at during different touch points in their onboarding journey. Try to put yourself in their position and think through what would not only help them onboard to their role but also make them feel welcomed and valued, with a sense that they belong, as you develop the materials. The impression you make during onboarding will set the tone for their long-term experience with your company. - Kathleen Pai, N-able
6. The Ability To Inspire, Motivate, Create And Connect
Employee onboarding materials set the tone for the employees' experience. Use this opportunity to inspire, motivate and create excitement and connections. Use this opportunity to also demonstrate the company's mission and values. Let the employee know the important role they play in achieving that mission. Turn a boring part of the process into something that energizes and inspires. - Carrie Trabue, Carrington Legal Search
7. Total Employee Lifecycle Integration
From a planning perspective, companies should clearly define the new employee onboarding and orientation phases and how they fit into the total employee lifecycle. This makes it easier to determine the correct information to provide at the right time and allows for delivering it in phases. That way, employees will focus on culture first and their impact at a very close second. - Carrie Berg, Teladoc Health
8. Interactive Platform Technologies
Consider the evolution of technology. New generations are more into videos and interactive forms of engagement, so having a number of hybrid options can drastically increase connections—and this is particularly important at the start of working relationships. Statistics associate higher retention with first impressions, so this is an easy practical way that organizations can onboard their teams. - Tiersa Smith-Hall, Tiersa Hall Impactful Imprints, Training & Consulting
9. A Buddy Program
Implement a buddy program where each new hire is paired with a peer buddy who will help them feel welcomed, connected and confident during their first few weeks. The buddy should have an open communication style that fosters trust and respects confidentiality so the new hire feels comfortable and safe asking questions and bringing up issues. - Lisa Shuster, iHire
10. Employee Perks And Benefits
Employers often focus on the details of their business, operations and missions but forget to include the aspects of an employee's daily experience that also need to be communicated to a new hire. This could include basic things like where the bathroom is and if the employer honors Casual Friday or their best recommendations and partnerships with local food restaurants for takeout and delivery. - Amie Courtney, Cranberry Township
11. Activities And Performance Metrics
Companies should anchor their activities against a performance metric like new hire attrition. The key is to understand the moments that matter, such as day one, day 30, day 90 and the first year anniversary. Once leaders identify the areas with the highest breaking points, the onboarding plan can be tailored to improve the moment that is not landing well with new hires. Everything should be data-driven. - David Swanagon, PPG Industries
12. Post-Onboarding Surveys
I firmly believe in implementing post-onboarding surveys. What better way to revamp your process than to ask those that have gone through it? If you aren't measuring your effectiveness, you will never be able to identify areas for improvement. Also, engage hiring managers to get feedback regarding areas their teams are struggling with and build related training into the onboarding experience. - JacLyn Pagnotta, Allied Partners
13. Videos And Direct Presentations
The onboarding process can have a major impact on a new hire’s attitude and happiness in the workplace. When introducing new training materials or guidelines, employers should consider how best to integrate new employees into the culture given those changes. This could include a video introduction or presentation that provides an overview of values, a team outing or a personal introduction to HR. - Niki Jorgensen, Insperity
14. Cross-Departmental Introductions
Give them an onboarding journey. Rather than just doing the standard onboarding and then passing them on to the department, have an onboarding journey where they meet with different departments to learn about what they do and how to stay in contact. This way, they'll get to know more people, and if you do it in groups—for example, new joiners of the last three months—you are also enabling them to meet new people as well. - Jordana Semaan
15. Individual Learning Approaches
Onboarding, like all things employee experience, should be bespoke. It should be tailored to individual learning approaches and more. This means developing an omnichannel approach that is designed for the full onboarding experience and will connect with the employee. Different generations or professionals experience work in a variety of ways. Expectations of how they will interface with peers, bosses and the company should all align. - Russell Klosk, Accenture
16. Micro-Learning
Incorporated micro-learning is beneficial. New team members have a lot of information to learn at the outset, but you can make it easier for them by breaking down the training into small, bite-sized chunks. It will allow them to learn at a pace that suits them best. - Kim Pope, WilsonHCG
