6 Reasons Why Onboarding Is So Important
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Think back to the first day you had a job. Were you welcomed at the office? Introduced to everyone on the team? Did your manager sit down with you and discuss your job scope?
Then that’s great – you had a good onboarding experience.
On the other hand, if you were ignored on your first day and had to track down your manager (who may or may not be on leave), you likely went through a bad onboarding process.
Like meeting a person for the first time, it’s crucial for the business to make a great first impression on talent. This is where the onboarding process comes in. A good onboarding can make or break the overall employee experience – and whether the employee stays or leaves within the next 12 months.
With an ongoing war for talent raging amongst top employers, businesses that recognize the importance of onboarding will be the ones who can retain and grow their talent. Here are six reasons why onboarding is so important.
1. New Hires Can Adjust Faster
It’s not enough to just point out the bathrooms to a new hire, or where the best lunch spots are. You need to get them adjusted to their new environment.
When a new hire joins from another company, they may be used to working in a certain way. Getting them aligned and adjusted quickly means that you can implement the good ideas they bring, while simultaneously getting rid of bad habits. This way, new hires can also get used to the company’s goals and philosophy.
A systematic onboarding program makes this process much easier on managers, who can check in on regular intervals with their new hire. They can also inform their new hires on what the company can do for them, e.g. upskilling opportunities, exciting projects to work on, or even the monthly group sports activities.
2. Onboarding Sets Clear Goals
The minute employees join your team, you need to set clear goals for them to achieve. The onboarding process sets them up for success by setting out their roles and responsibilities, as well as the tasks they should be doing on Day One.
Thus, your new hires should be able to know:
- Their job expectations
- The goals they should be aiming for
- The timeline they should be working towards
- The procedures they need to comply with
- An understanding of the company’s culture and processes
3. Get To Meet the People That Matter
In the modern workplace, an employee’s job won’t be just ‘siloed’ in his or her department. Instead, colleagues will often need to work across departments to achieve the company’s goals.
With a good onboarding process, managers can introduce new hires to relevant team members, key department heads, and also the CEO. This way, the new hire can establish good working relationships, while everyone can know the new hire’s role and the importance to the company.
Furthermore, by introducing new hires to the CEO and team leaders, you may help them feel like they belong in the organization and reinforce the notion that their role is significant.
4. Employee Engagement Increases
Employees are more likely to become engaged once they are aware of the company's perspective and what it has to offer.
Engaged employees are the ones who go above and above each and every day because they genuinely care about their workplace and want it to achieve its objectives.
Making new hires feel welcome and cared for enhances their likelihood of feeling committed, which boosts employee retention. Engaged employees are also more productive, make lesser mistakes, and generally are an asset to the company.
Hence, the onboarding process is crucial because it shows new hires that the firm cares about them, which in turn fosters engagement and a strong sense of loyalty among staff members.
5. Opportunities for Mentorship
New hires aren’t the only ones that benefit from an onboarding program – your existing employees do as well. More senior employees will get a chance to be a mentor to new employees, which represents a great chance to further boost their leadership skills.
Aside from a leadership opportunity, mentorship also serves as a unique learning opportunity for the mentor as well. By guiding and instructing the mentee, mentors also gain knowledge. New hires can teach mentors about things never encountered before if they have diverse backgrounds. The mentee may also have knowledge of the most recent industry trends, especially younger hires.
6. Employee Retention Increases
When you make a great first impression on a new employee and guide them along their career journey, chances are they will stay with the business for the long term. Research by Brandon Hall Group has shown that organizations with a strong onboarding process improve new hire retention by 82% and productivity by over 70%.
Furthermore, new hires are 93% more likely to recommend an employer to a friend when they get a proper onboarding experience. Employee referrals are a valuable source of recruitment, as they are faster and cheaper to hire.
Get the Best Onboarding Experience with BrioHR
Designing an onboarding process differs from company to company. But with BrioHR, you can make the right first impression, improving employee engagement, productivity, and retention. With automated reminders and notifications, you can make the onboarding process as systematic as possible.
Furthermore, you don’t onboard a marketing intern the exact way you onboard a senior director of finance. Hence, you can easily customise your onboarding process and create multiple onboarding tracks as needed.
With 9 powerful modules, BrioHR’s software covers the entire employee journey from recruitment to onboarding, payroll and claims, to performance and analytics, and more.
This enables business owners and HR teams to truly focus on what matters most – people.
Visit briohr.com and get a free demo now.
Think back to the first day you had a job. Were you welcomed at the office? Introduced to everyone on the team? Did your manager sit down with you and discuss your job scope?
Then that’s great – you had a good onboarding experience.
On the other hand, if you were ignored on your first day and had to track down your manager (who may or may not be on leave), you likely went through a bad onboarding process.
Like meeting a person for the first time, it’s crucial for the business to make a great first impression on talent. This is where the onboarding process comes in. A good onboarding can make or break the overall employee experience – and whether the employee stays or leaves within the next 12 months.
With an ongoing war for talent raging amongst top employers, businesses that recognize the importance of onboarding will be the ones who can retain and grow their talent. Here are six reasons why onboarding is so important.
1. New Hires Can Adjust Faster
It’s not enough to just point out the bathrooms to a new hire, or where the best lunch spots are. You need to get them adjusted to their new environment.
When a new hire joins from another company, they may be used to working in a certain way. Getting them aligned and adjusted quickly means that you can implement the good ideas they bring, while simultaneously getting rid of bad habits. This way, new hires can also get used to the company’s goals and philosophy.
A systematic onboarding program makes this process much easier on managers, who can check in on regular intervals with their new hire. They can also inform their new hires on what the company can do for them, e.g. upskilling opportunities, exciting projects to work on, or even the monthly group sports activities.
2. Onboarding Sets Clear Goals
The minute employees join your team, you need to set clear goals for them to achieve. The onboarding process sets them up for success by setting out their roles and responsibilities, as well as the tasks they should be doing on Day One.
Thus, your new hires should be able to know:
- Their job expectations
- The goals they should be aiming for
- The timeline they should be working towards
- The procedures they need to comply with
- An understanding of the company’s culture and processes
3. Get To Meet the People That Matter
In the modern workplace, an employee’s job won’t be just ‘siloed’ in his or her department. Instead, colleagues will often need to work across departments to achieve the company’s goals.
With a good onboarding process, managers can introduce new hires to relevant team members, key department heads, and also the CEO. This way, the new hire can establish good working relationships, while everyone can know the new hire’s role and the importance to the company.
Furthermore, by introducing new hires to the CEO and team leaders, you may help them feel like they belong in the organization and reinforce the notion that their role is significant.
4. Employee Engagement Increases
Employees are more likely to become engaged once they are aware of the company’s perspective and what it has to offer.
Engaged employees are the ones who go above and above each and every day because they genuinely care about their workplace and want it to achieve its objectives.
Making new hires feel welcome and cared for enhances their likelihood of feeling committed, which boosts employee retention. Engaged employees are also more productive, make lesser mistakes, and generally are an asset to the company.
Hence, the onboarding process is crucial because it shows new hires that the firm cares about them, which in turn fosters engagement and a strong sense of loyalty among staff members.
5. Opportunities for Mentorship
New hires aren’t the only ones that benefit from an onboarding program – your existing employees do as well. More senior employees will get a chance to be a mentor to new employees, which represents a great chance to further boost their leadership skills.
Aside from a leadership opportunity, mentorship also serves as a unique learning opportunity for the mentor as well. By guiding and instructing the mentee, mentors also gain knowledge. New hires can teach mentors about things never encountered before if they have diverse backgrounds. The mentee may also have knowledge of the most recent industry trends, especially younger hires.
6. Employee Retention Increases
When you make a great first impression on a new employee and guide them along their career journey, chances are they will stay with the business for the long term. Research by Brandon Hall Group has shown that organizations with a strong onboarding process improve new hire retention by 82% and productivity by over 70%.
Furthermore, new hires are 93% more likely to recommend an employer to a friend when they get a proper onboarding experience. Employee referrals are a valuable source of recruitment, as they are faster and cheaper to hire.
Get the Best Onboarding Experience with BrioHR
Designing an onboarding process differs from company to company. But with BrioHR, you can make the right first impression, improving employee engagement, productivity, and retention. With automated reminders and notifications, you can make the onboarding process as systematic as possible.
Furthermore, you don’t onboard a marketing intern the exact way you onboard a senior director of finance. Hence, you can easily customise your onboarding process and create multiple onboarding tracks as needed.
With 9 powerful modules, BrioHR’s software covers the entire employee journey from recruitment to onboarding, payroll and claims, to performance and analytics, and more.
This enables business owners and HR teams to truly focus on what matters most – people.
Visit briohr.com and get a free demo now.
