Each employee only gets to experience the first day on the job once, and an effective employee onboarding from that first day and through the weeks and months after can mean all the difference. Your onboarding process is very important, as it acclimates employees to their role, the company’s philosophies, and culture. It also engages employees, creating workers that are committed to your company’s success and helps retain new hires by making them feel like a member of the team.
Companies often will spend large amounts of money on recruiting new talent but then spend little energy or few resources on onboarding them. However, without a proper onboarding process, increases in employee turnover and loss of productivity occur. According to a survey, 1 in 10 people have left a company because of a poor onboarding experience, and 37% of employees said their manager did not play a critical role in their onboarding experience support.
According to statistics, an essential key to achieving better engagement and retention is effective onboarding. Glassdoor found that a strong onboarding process can improve new hire retention by 82% and productivity by 70%. It’s crucial to understand that onboarding is more than just processes and paperwork and should go beyond the first day or even the first week on the job. With that said, there is always a huge opportunity for organizations to improve their onboarding process and employees’ experience.
The best way to enhance your onboarding process is to understand what your new hires really need. Aside from all the paperwork and welcome packages, new employees want to be involved and immersed in the company as quickly as possible. They want to integrate into the culture, feel like they belong, and fully understand the extent of their role in order to be able to do their job well.
Understanding what your new hires really want out of onboarding is essential in order to improve your process. So we have put together some statistics and research findings that can help you improve your employee onboarding experience:
According to an onboarding survey of over a thousand workers, 31% of people have left a job within the first six months. With 68% of those employees left their job within the first three months. For many new employees, the first few months at an organization are the most critical. That’s because, during that time, new hires are trying to learn how to do their jobs well, how the organization operates, how they fit within their teams and the company culture, and more. It’s a lot to take in, and without help through onboarding programs, they can easily feel lost or drown in information.
Research shows that 76% of new employees want on-the-job training. This really helps employees learn about their role, culture, policies, and benefits, making it easier for them to understand and absorb the information. To keep your new hires from feeling overwhelmed and lost, it’s vital to continue the employee onboarding process beyond their first few days and into their first several months of employment.
When new employees have a negative or difficult onboarding experience, they are more likely to second-guess their decision to join your organization. They may even quit in the first few months, as mentioned above. According to research, here are some of the top reasons employees leave within the first six months of a new job:
Setting the right expectations during the recruitment process can make new employees feel more confident and understand what’s expected of them. Employees usually want two things; the opportunity to do their best work and a sense of personal connection with their teammates. These line up with Gallup’s 12 elements of engagement, which include employees’ desires for clear expectations, a sense of contribution and job alignment, positive manager and peer relationships, and more.
The best employee onboarding programs are those that engage new hires from the start. You can set your new employees up for success by clearly defining responsibilities, processes, and expectations for their job. This allows them to understand why they are there, be confident, and channel the excitement and enthusiasm you’ve generated during the hiring process.
According to employees, below are what they value the most during their first week on the job to help them become effective and productive quickly:
Better job and policy training can help employees feel more comfortable in the company and their roles. Whereas buddy programs or assigning a mentor can provide guidance, new hires need to feel even more comfortable and better integrate into their roles and organization.