Hiring new employees, whether they’re contractors, full-time workers, or freelancers, can be a very positive thing. It means that your organization is growing and unlocking new opportunities.
source: Pexels
However, as ventures continue to grow, onboarding new hires can quickly lead to complexities. According to SHRM studies, the majority of employers can lose up to 17% of new hires within the first 90 days due to problems with ineffective onboarding.
Fortunately, there are plenty of things that you can do to boost your chances of attracting and retaining high-quality talent for your organization.
With the right onboarding process, you can make sure that your new team members feel comfortable and appreciated as a valuable part of your team.
Here’s how you can get started.
#1 Create a Structured Process
Onboarding can be a very personal experience. Some people in your team will need a different approach to training than others. However, there are also components of the onboarding experience that will remain largely the same for every person you hire.
Maybe everyone in your team needs to know how to use certain software before they get started, or perhaps they need to understand an approval process.
Record the foundational steps in all onboarding processes into a list of to-do items that you can refer to whenever someone new comes into your business.
If there are specific explanations that need to be delivered whenever someone comes into your team, you could even record video training materials so you can save some crucial time in the future.
#2 Schedule One-on-One Time
Once you’ve got the automated and repetitive stuff out of the way, you can think about the unique needs of each employee.
In a LinkedIn survey, researchers discovered that 96% of employees consider one-on-one time with their manager to be crucial to having a positive onboarding experience.
A successful onboarding experience isn’t just about signing paperwork. Rather than just ticking the boxes, you’ll need to ensure that you’re getting to know the people that are joining your team.
A one-on-one meeting with your new candidates will help you see what their weaknesses and strengths are so that you can implement the proper training systems. For instance, someone that you hire for your developer team could be very tech-savvy but may have issues with talking to clients.
#3 Plan a Future with Your Employees
Want to prevent as much turnover as possible in your team? Then show your employees that they have a future with you.
Many new employees end up failing in their positions because they lack clear goals and expectations that will assist with keeping them motivated.
Extensive employee journey mapping helps you to see what your team members need to do next to accomplish goals that are beneficial for both them and you.
Once you know what your team members want to achieve in the future, you can work with them to create a map to their future goals. The hands-on training that you can provide will not only lead to more satisfied employees. It also means that you get access to additional skills within your team.
Investing in your staff members may require a little more money out of your pocket in the short term, but the value often comes back to you very quickly.
#4 Know How to Evaluate your New Employees
There’s a good chance that there will be some growing pains when new team members come into your workplace. You’ll need to give your employees time to get used to your culture, and how your company works.
However, that doesn’t mean that you should leave them to find their footing on their own. Frequent check-ins and feedback sessions are valuable during the early onboarding stages.
When someone new joins your staff, make sure they know how you’re going to be evaluating their progress. Give them a list of key things you’re going to be looking at, including things like intuition and punctuation. Every month, you can get together for a one-on-one meeting to discuss how they’re doing.
If your employees aren’t doing as well as you had hoped, don’t just tell them that – give them insights into what they can do to improve.
Additionally, make sure that your employees have a way to contact you outside of these evaluation sessions if they have any questions.
#5 Have a Process for Different Kinds of Workers
Remember, it’s not just permanent and traditional employees that many businesses need to consider when they’re onboarding new talent these days. You’ll also need to think about how you’re going to make contractors and freelancers feel comfortable as part of your team too.
Short-term workers, like software development experts, need a highly refined and streamlined onboarding process that allows them to get to work with your company as quickly as possible.
These short-term employees generally won’t have as much time to get used to things like company culture at their own pace.
Instead, you’ll need to ensure that your contractors have a complete understanding of your business values and what you need to accomplish from day one.
This could mean that you take a much more automated approach with contractors, using videos and checklists rather than one-to-one meetings.
Improving your Onboarding Process
No matter what kind of business you’re running, there are few things more important than your employees. It’s your team members that will determine whether or not you’ll produce amazing products or cultivate happy customers. Having the right onboarding process improves your chances of being able to attract and retain the right skills in your workforce.
Since many CEOs say that retaining and finding global talent is one of the biggest challenges that they have to face, it makes sense to have a strategy in place that allows you to consistently improve your onboarding plan.
How are you planning on helping your team to thrive this year?
—
Joe Peters is a Baltimore-based freelance writer and an ultimate techie. When he is not working his magic as a marketing consultant, this incurable tech junkie devours the news on the latest gadgets and binge-watches his favorite TV shows. Follow him on @bmorepeters
