Whether you’re an HR representative, a managing director or a business owner - as long as you handle the hiring process, you want to familiarise yourself with this article. Employee onboarding processesare often overlooked, although they are a setting stone of good employee management. And today we will show you some top-notch samples of effective onboarding across very different businesses.
Many businesses view the onboarding process as nothing more than admin work. And while handling the documentation of a new hire is a crucial part of it, limiting the process to just that is not the right approach.
The onboarding phase is when you introduce yourself to the new employee and set the tone for your further interactions, as well as set mutual expectations. Understanding company policies and values, being familiarised with processes and meeting colleagues: all of these components should be part of the onboarding process as they contribute toward team alignment further down the line.
Should I Optimise the Onboarding Process?
Short answer - yes. Speedy collection and safe storage of employment-related documents may protect you if any legal issues arise throughout the new hire’s employment. We recommend keeping them in centralised digital storage where you can easily access them at any time as opposed to cluttering the office. An optimised staff onboarding also helps bring the new hires up to speed quicker, so they become a valuable team member in no time.
For a long answer, we have discussed this topic in great detail a few months back and recommend you read it before continuing with this article. Now, to inspire you, let’s look at 4 outstanding samples of effective employee onboarding.
Not to toot our own horn, but we use the exact same onboarding platform we sell to our customers internally. It’s designed to be simple and easy for the new team member to use without assistance other than being provided with their company login details. It follows a step-by-step process of requesting them to upload a digital version of the required documentation, as well as add their personal contact information. Assuming the new starter may not have it on hand, the missing bits can be revisited and added later.
The onboarding platform of Timesheet Portal also serves as the employee’s dashboard throughout their employment. Not only can they update their documentation if it changes, but to also request time off, sick leave, report expenses and share documents. Other than that, we also greet our new hires with a lot of merchandise (including a beach ball!) and an informal introduction to the rest of the team. Since we’re a small, tightly-knit company, we prefer automating the bureaucracy but building relationships personally.
Unlike smaller companies like ours, giant corporations have a more sophisticated and process-driven onboarding. One of the challenges of greeting new staff in a company with thousands of employees is that there’s no way they will be able to meet everyone in person. This is why business typhoons like LinkedIn create multi-step onboarding experiences: to give every new hire a personalised approach as well as bring them up to speed with company values.
The Linkedin onboarding process, also known as [In]troduction is an award-winning procedure. It consists of seven key components that smoothen employee integration, simultaneously educating them on company policies and internal processes. It starts on the first day and includes exercises such as lectures, campus tours, 1-on-1 conversations with senior leadership and many more.
The purpose is to show the employee that despite the company size, their personal experience still matters. And, at the same time, introduce them to expectations they will need to live up to. While this may sound a little over-the-top, it’s worth noting that such an approach to onboarding has helped Linked grow its revenue by 27%.
Unlike LinkedIn’s semi-personalised experience, Netpeak, an internet marketing agency that dominates Eastern Europe, takes a route of full automation when it comes to onboarding. Instead of throwing the human factor into the educational process, Netpeak has designed a course for the new starters to undergo. They refer to it as ‘academy’ and the two-part course brings the new hires up to speed by introducing them to company rules, structure, mission, vision and other vital components.
At the end of each part, every new hire also needs to pass an exam testing their knowledge, this way ensuring they are aligned and ready to work towards the company’s goals. The managers have praised the academy system for winning back a lot of time that’s otherwise spent on training employees individually. In fact, they say that a fully automated onboarding process saves up to 200 hours a month. Additionally, the academy program is equipped with a feedback system, allowing Netpeak to polish the process continuously and adapt to potentially emerging new trends.
Verisys Corporation started questioning and then tinkering with their onboarding process in 2020 when the global pandemic forced them to transition to remote working. Since they are health data specialists, technology and security are among the top company priorities. Ensuring this by supporting the new hires in setting their laptops up correctly remotely has proven to be the biggest onboarding challenge.
As part of the onboarding process, Verisys drops the work equipment off at the new staff members' houses. It is accompanied by a lot of company swag such as balloons to ensure a pleasant first impression and a personalised introductory experience as opposed to a mundane task. The most important component, on the other hand, is brief and very clear instructions on how to set the computer up correctly.
It was recognised that not every new hire is IT-savvy, and having an IT specialist access each computer individually for a setup would not be an efficient use of the IT’s time. This is why Verisys has invested in the creation of a comprehensive and easy-to-follow technical guide as the key point of the onboarding process. They also actively seek out feedback to optimise the process further.
Summary
The onboarding process is often overlooked due to being perceived as unimportant. However, the experience you provide through it can either make or break your future relationship with the new hire as this is effectively your chance to manage their expectations. A rigged, slow and inefficient onboarding will signal a lack of organisation in the business, possibly raising red flags to the new employee and therefore affecting the level of effort they put moving forward.
A smooth and thought-through, optimised process, on the other hand, shows you care to set them up for success. Being shown personal care in their integration and development within your company proves your interest in your staff’s wellbeing and progression, as well as poses a promise of nourishing it further. An employee is a whole lot more likely to pull their weight to justify the trust of an employer who has invested in their growth.
How optimised is your onboarding process? We can help improve it.
