Importance of Effective "On-Boarding"

You have selected the best of employees as your company grows. But you have won the half battle. The other most important part is to onboard those qualified employees properly. According to a survey, the new hires have admitted that their decision on whether they will stay with an organization is made within their first six months of employment. That is why the first six months is called as the honeymoon period. All employers should take advantage of this period in turning new hires into long-term valuable employees. Follow these great test practices to make sure your new employees get started on the right foot-rnPlan it uprnWhether you have a plan or not, your employees will be getting some kind of onboarding in their initial days. Make your they will experience how you want them to. It is crucial to make sure that same message is delivered to all the new employees.rnA welcoming gesturernAll the employees should feel welcomed from the very start. Tell them you are excited to meet all of them and expecting a great future of the company by employing all of them. This message can be delivered via emails or personalized welcome message on digital signage. The idea is to make the new employees happy and excited about work, company and its surroundings.rnArm them with right toolsrnFigure out what new employees may require and make sure the necessary things are available on time. It leaves a bad impression when employees find they don’t have phone numbers, computer is not working or desk has no paper to take notes. Setting up all the important things such as computers, phones, all software logins, email accounts etc.rnOrientationrnInform employees about company’s mission, vision, goals, values, culture and other important process. It is just like introducing the company and its work processes. Mentoring and training the employees time to time also hold importance. Keeping a track of the new employees’ performances, collecting feedbacks and employing post-boarding activities are also some important factors need to be taken care of.rnImportance of onboarding rnAn effective onboarding process reduces time to productivity and reduces stress. Time to productivity means how long a new hire takes to become a full-fledged contributing employee. A structured onboarding process can reduce this time from months to weeks. Employees have four core needs -physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. The employer should take care of all these needs in the best way possible. It is bound for the new employee to be stressed as they do not have to learn about the new job but they have to adapt to the new culture. It is not at all surprising why onboarding is important. It saves company’s money, increases employee satisfaction, reduces stress and increases productivity.rnDifferent companies have different onboarding processes and requirements. But the aim is same. Making the new hires comfortable and accustomed to the new environment so that they can work freely and effectively. rnWhat is your take on it? Do you have any other reason why onboarding is important? Share with us in the comments below.