Top 5 tips for a strong employee onboarding process

In the crucial early stages of employment, a new employee will form important first impressions about their role, their co-workers and the organisation. An effective new employee onboarding program helps to set a positive tone and reduces the time needed to settle into a new role, adjust to the team and start being productive.

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Here are some tips to make new employee feels welcomed, informed, and positive about their decision to join your company:

1. Have a plan

Having a structured plan in place with deliverables and clear goals for their first few weeks of work can make a potentially stressful time easier for your new starter. Structure will help them avoid feeling overwhelmed, and they’ll also have enough work to fill their time.

Decide in advance what they will do and whom they will meet, ensuring the plan covers all the critical meetings, training and duties they will need to undertake during the induction period. This will help your new employee understand their role, where they fit into the company and their daily responsibilities.

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2. Cover the basics

Paying attention to basic requirements will help their first day run smoothly and demonstrate that you have prepared for their onboarding process. Ensure their workspace is set up and that their login details, email address and security access are organised, and ask them if there are any programs or software they will need that isn’t already installed.

Take them on a tour of the office, have any necessary paperwork ready to be filled out and talk through considerations such as company culture, work hours, dress codes, pay periods and perks.

3. Be accessible

New starters will arrive with a number of questions about how to best perform their role and fit into the team culture. However, since they are just starting they may feel uncomfortable or awkward setting up a meeting with you. Encourage questions and schedule multiple catch-ups to demonstrate your interest in their progress and provide an opportunity for them to clarify any concerns.

After the initial onboarding period, their questions will change and mature, so be sure to remain accessible by continuing your scheduled meetings. Communication is key to maintaining a cohesive and productive team, so encourage it from the very start.

4. Focus on relationships

Key to your new starter’s success will be how well they integrate into the team and understand the organisational culture. Provide an overview of how the company works, including the attitudes and values that characterise its culture.

Outline local and global reporting lines so that they understand their relationship to key people, and introduce them to their neighbouring co-workers and any immediate managers. Proactively help them to develop relationships and contacts within the company to accelerate their sense of acceptance and belonging.

5. Give their role context

To help engage your new employee, it is important they understand how their work fits into the current team as well as the bigger picture. Balance information about their daily tasks with an explanation on how their role contributes to the wider goals of the business.

Explain the broader structure of the company so they understand where their position fits, and the positions of the people they work with. This will also provide them with an insight into future career progression opportunities.

Looking for a new team member? Speak to a Michael Page specialist today.