10 Tips for Successfully Onboarding New Employees

There are many reasons as to why a new hire may leave a company within the first few weeks of being hired. To ensure that your staff turnover stays low, you must provide new employees with effective and engaging onboarding. 

At Four Recruitment, we always aim to ensure that our candidates settle into their new roles well and provide them with the support and guidance they need to prosper in their job. For us to do this well, businesses also need to spend time perfecting their onboarding processes.

What is onboarding?
 

Onboarding is a HR term that is used to describe the process of introducing a new hire to the company and providing them with the necessary tools and skills needed to fit into the team well.

A large portion of the amount of staff turnover is due to unsuccessful onboarding and the new employee feeling as though they are equipped enough for the job. Perfecting this process is key to maintaining staff comfort and satisfaction in their new role.

Here are 10 tips on how to successfully onboard a new employee:
 

1. Prepare before their first day

Arrange for your new hires to come in, have a coffee and informally meet some of the team before they start, especially if the time between the offer and the candidate starting is significant. This will minimise the risk of the new hire accepting a counter-offer as they become more engaged with their new employer sooner.

2. Create adequate space and time

Ensure that IT systems and desk space is set up prior to new hires starting. Plan start dates carefully, making sure they do not coincide with other major events which would take people away from the on boarding process.

3. Introduce the team

Make sure that your whole team is aware of your new employee and what their working relationship will be. Starting a new job and meeting a large group of people all at once can be daunting for new employees - split the introductions up over a few days if you have a particularly large team.



4. Provide the necessary tools

Effective onboarding will give new hires the tools needed to do their jobs quicker, which will mean that they can add value to the business sooner. This could be in the form of equipment, computer software or access to appropriate training.

5. Communicate effectively

There should be plenty of communication throughout the induction process with the Line Manager, team members and other key stakeholders. Make sure that everyone knows about the new hire and what their purpose in the company is.

6. Emphasize your values

Onboarding is a great opportunity for you to further promote your company and to introduce your new hire to your company’s mission, culture and values. The aim is to engage them so that they remain excited to work for your business.

7. Avoid turnover

Turnover is significantly higher in the first few weeks of employment than at any other time – for you as an employer, having to re-start a recruitment process is a big expense in terms of time, money and resources, as well as potentially damaging the employer brand. Aim to keep your new hires happy in their new role.

8. Set expectations

Set expectations with your new hires for the first few weeks, then move on to months. Make sure that you also set yourself expectations so that your new hire knows what to expect from you throughout their onboarding process. 

9. Automate your onboarding process

Especially for larger organisations where volumes of new hires are high, the onboarding process needs to be easily repeatable, automated where appropriate and existing staff should be trained on this process. Ensure that Line Managers understand what good onboarding should look like, as it also needs to be consistent across departments.

10. Enjoy the fact that your team is expanding!

You want your new employee to feel comfortable and happy in their new working environment. Show your appreciation for the fact that you have extra help in your team and emphasise how useful their new role will be to the company.

It is evident that done right, good onboarding will pay dividends in terms of employee engagement and retention – both things that employers are keen to achieve. If you want to know more about why our candidates choose to stay in a job, and how this insight could help you with your onboarding process, check out our blog post on retaining staff.

We have a selection of job description templates available to support businesses on their hiring journey. Why not check out some of our templates, such as our Payroll Manager Job Description?

If you are currently looking to recruit a new employee and want to outsource your recruitment process, speak to our team for more information on how we can help your business.