Organizations invest countless hours in finding and hiring the right people for their teams. Time is taken to pour over resumes, interview candidates and then set them up for success as they start their new positions. However, is a new hire truly set up for success if the onboarding process is minimal or falls flat soon after their first day on the job?
According to Harvard Business Review, “With up to 20% of staff turnover occurring within the first 45 days of employment, a standardized onboarding process is essential.” Such planful process experiences can result in “62% greater new hire productivity, along with 50% greater new hire retention.” There is no doubt the time invested in developing a thorough onboarding process absolutely returns beneficial results, both for the new hire themselves and the organization as a whole.
The start of the relationship
Everyone is excited when the right hire is ready to dive in and get started. Their strengths, experiences and skills were hand-selected to bolster business and productivity—everyone is sure they will do wonderful things immediately! Although all might look great on paper, has anyone in the organization thought about how the new hire might mesh with their new team members? Could their success swiftly become impeded by internal conflict, inadaptability or differences in communication styles?
Finding and hiring the right person simply isn’t enough. If an organization wants to retain that fabulous new hire while minimizing disruption and ensuring expected performance, integrating a customized onboarding experience within the first 90 days is essential to help them succeed as their best self.
More than just a meeting
Onboarding should be viewed as more than just an orientation and getting-to-know-you period. And it should encompass not just the new hire, but the entire workplace environment, organizational culture, leadership and teams with whom successful interaction will be critical. Everyone must learn to understand how each other works and how they can best leverage the collective strengths of the team to operate together efficiently.
At Crosworks, our approach to the onboarding process is to first understand the new hire’s background and administer the Birkman assessment to learn their skills, interests, values and motivational needs. Then, we work alongside the HR team and/or key leadership to understand the results to develop a plan for onboarding and integration into the team. The dynamics of the team and organizational culture are always considered, and strategies are created to address barriers to success upfront to accelerate performance from the start. For example, for some people, setting 1:1 meetings with the boss is critical while for others it’s more important to be welcomed by the team. And while a detailed action plan is needed right out of the gate for some, for others it is critical to have time to observe, reflect and learn.
Help them help you
“Onboarding is a magic moment when new employees decide to stay engaged or become disengaged,” said Amy Hirsh Robinson in an article by SHRM. No HR team wants to lose the incredible investment they make when hiring new team members—they want to see them flourish and become a part of the team and prove successful, quickly!
For HR leaders who need to:
- ensure strategic hires have some clear wins;
- expand roles quickly to meet organizational goals; and/or
- improve the onboarding experience, enhance culture or increase team effectiveness,
Crosworks can deliver the understanding, feedback, honesty, attention and guidance required to create a plan for new employee assessment, integration, engagement and productivity.
If you’re considering an important hire, learn more about how our Onboarding Services can help.