First impressions matter. Our family moved a lot when I was a kid. Most of my academic years started at a new school. I became an expert at reading new situations. Within a day or two, I could draw up a floor plan, identify the key players in the student social org chart and even predict which teachers would manage their classrooms and which ones were managed by their classrooms. It was an incredibly useful survival mechanism. In talking with my siblings as adults, I realize that experience looked different on each of us. It wasn’t as easy for a few of them as it was for me.
This appreciation for the differences in how people perceive new spaces is critical in thinking about onboarding success for your company. I saw a recent headline that said “80% of new hires who receive poor onboarding plan to quit.” That is significant. And avoidable.
From the first email you craft to reach out to a potential employee, through the screening, hiring, onboarding, training and finally, the introduction to the role itself--all of it is telling a story about your organization. Is the story you want to tell?
Does your onboarding place value on the understanding of the candidates in the hiring process? Is it clearly mapped out and communicated? In this instant gratification culture, are your “next steps” timely? There’s a reason Indeed only gives you 72 hours to "unqualify" a candidate before charging you a fee.
When you speak with a candidate, do you listen more than talk? Are you trying to fit them into a narrow definition of a position description or allowing their uniqueness to broaden your definitions for what would work for this role? You may be surprised and delighted.
When you bring on a new employee, are they introduced to and welcomed by the whole team or just slipped in the back door quietly and left to fend for themselves? Do you assign a “work buddy” to help them navigate the many obstacles, such as existing workplace dynamics, historical context, location of supplies needed, daily expectations and so on.
Do you clearly communicate in writing the company mission, workplace benefits, payroll processes, path to growth, support systems and how to request time off? Please tell me it’s not hidden within an 80 page, single-spaced Employee Handbook. Create a simplified “things you should know” slide deck?
Does your hiring manager circle back with that buddy as well as the employee within the first few weeks? This early feedback can help you more clearly see the areas in onboarding that need improved
Years of investing into the hiring and training of employees, only to have many of them disappoint you in some way, can lead management to numb their way through the process. It becomes self-preservation.
However, let's change the hiring script and create thoughtful onboarding processes that tell the story of who your company is in ways that capture the imagination and loyalty of your next employee. Make an amazing first impression that will become that employee’s legacy story!