Harvard Business Review reports that “Organizations with a standardized onboarding process experience 62% greater new hire productivity, along with 50% greater new hire retention.” Sounds pretty important! To make sure we're all on the same page, let's get this next bit out of the way.
What is onboarding?
Onboarding is the process of helping new employees (and sometimes, customers) get started with your company. The goal is to make the newcomer feel welcome, introduce them to the team, and provide all the information and tools they need to start functioning effectively.
This usually involves a mix of paperwork, training sessions, and social activities. New hires might fill out forms for human resources, learn about the company's policies, and get training on specific job tasks. They might also get a tour of the office and be introduced to their colleagues. Sometimes, there are also social events, like lunches or casual meetups, to help them get to know their coworkers better. In the case of remote work, it could involve scheduling meetings and introductions with different team members. Overall, it's all about setting up new employees for success and making them feel like they're a part of the team.
Onboarding is the process of helping newcomers feel welcome and know how to access the tools they need to function effectively.
The onboarding process is a crucial one, as it plays a significant role in shaping the experiences and performance of new employees within an organization. It lays the groundwork for their integration into the company culture, understanding of expectations, and professional growth. Here, we will discuss the importance of onboarding for employees and the benefits that effective onboarding brings to both businesses and their team members.
As your business grows and your team expands, streamlining the onboarding process for new employees is crucial. It not only helps them feel welcomed and supported but also ensures they hit the ground running in their new roles.
To stand out, businesses must develop unique approaches to welcoming new employees into teams, also known as employee onboarding. It's a critical opportunity to communicate the company's culture and values at a time when an employee is most impressionable. If the new hire's onboarding process is seamless, the new employees will have an excellent first impression of your business.
The current data makes it clear – most businesses don't quite get employee onboarding right. According to the Harvard Business Review, 22% of businesses don't even have a formal employee onboarding process as a part of their recruitment efforts. Companies need to be proactive and adopt deliberate onboarding strategies to make new employees' experiences more rewarding.
Better onboarding – how organizations benefit
Smooth employee onboarding helps to ensure that new employees are properly trained, understand company policies, and feel welcome in their new workplace. Additionally, it helps to reduce the turnover rate of new employees, as they are more likely to stay when they feel comfortable in their new environment. Let's dive a bit further into the benefits businesses will see from a better onboarding process.
1. Improved employee retention
Strong onboarding serves as an important employee retention strategy. Companies that invest in a comprehensive onboarding process are more likely to experience lower turnover rates. When employees feel supported and valued from the start, they are more inclined to stay with the organization, reducing the costs associated with recruitment and training.
2. Increased productivity
Effective onboarding equips new employees with the skills and knowledge they need to contribute effectively from the outset. This results in increased productivity and efficiency, as employees are better prepared to meet their performance targets and contribute to the company's success.
3. Strengthened company culture
A well-structured onboarding process helps to strengthen the workplace culture for remote teams and establish values and goals, ensuring that every employee is aligned with the organization's objectives. This unity can lead to a more collaborative and motivated workforce, which in turn contributes to a healthier, more positive work environment.
Onboarding is your opportunity to communicate the company's culture and values at a time when an employee is most impressionable.
4. Streamlined compliance and documentation
Compliance training can be delivered through an onboarding template. Effective onboarding includes the collection and management of essential documents, such as tax forms, confidentiality agreements, and other necessary paperwork. This ensures that the organization remains compliant with relevant laws and regulations, mitigating potential legal complications.
How employees benefit
Businesses aren’t the only ones that stand to benefit from a smooth onboarding process.
Better understanding of duties. Employees who have undergone a well-structured onboarding process are more likely to have a clearer understanding of their roles and responsibilities, which makes them more likely to jump in and begin contributing to their teams. This also applies to the onboarding process for remote employees, who you may not have regular interactions with.
Increased confidence and job satisfaction. As a direct result of the above, a comprehensive onboarding process helps employees feel more confident and competent in their new roles, leading to higher job satisfaction and motivation.
7 benefits of using onboarding course templates
1. Time and resource efficiency
The onboarding process can be time-consuming, requiring a great deal of effort from HR professionals and team leaders alike. GoSkills course templates can save you valuable time and resources by providing you with ready-made, customizable course templates. This means you can spend less time creating training material from scratch and focus more on other important aspects of your organization.
2. Consistency and branding
Using a template ensures that your onboarding materials are consistent across your organization. A uniform approach not only reflects a strong company brand but also provides new employees with clear expectations and guidance. You can easily integrate your company's logo, colors, and other visual elements into the training content on the template for a polished, professional look.
3. Enhanced employee engagement
With a template, you can create an interactive and visually appealing onboarding experience that keeps your new employees engaged and excited to start their new roles. Our templatized training can include content, such as videos, infographics, and interactive quizzes, to make the onboarding experience enjoyable and informative. This type of strategy works well to retain millennial employees and engage them effectively.
4. Improved employee retention
The onboarding process plays a significant role in employee retention, especially for newer members of the workforce, such as Gen Z employees. A positive onboarding experience can lead to increased job satisfaction and a higher likelihood of employees staying with your company long-term. By focusing on a good onboarding experience, you ensure your new hires feel valued, supported, and prepared to excel in their new roles. This, in turn, can improve your organization's employee retention rates and reduce turnover costs.
5. Clear communication of expectations
An effective onboarding process clearly communicates the company's values, goals, and expectations for new employees. The GoSkills templates are designed to convey this information in an accessible and easy-to-understand manner. By using an onboarding template, you ensure that your new team members have a clear understanding of what is expected of them, which sets the stage for their success within your organization.
6. Streamlined compliance and documentation
Templates for employee training also make it easier to ensure that your onboarding process complies with applicable laws and regulations. This helps you maintain accurate records and avoid potential legal complications down the line.
7. Customizable for your unique needs
Every organization has its unique culture, values, and goals. GoSkills' template gallery provides a range of templates that can be easily customized to suit your specific needs and to help you train your team. Our user-friendly interface allows you to quickly and easily modify the content and structure of the templates to create the perfect onboarding experience for your organization.
Wrapping it up
In today's competitive business environment, a well-structured and engaging onboarding process is essential for attracting and retaining top talent. The GoSkills Template Gallery for LMS users is designed to help businesses streamline this process, saving time and resources while ensuring a positive experience for new employees.
By leveraging the numerous benefits of our templates, such as consistency, employee engagement, improved retention, clear communication, streamlined compliance, customization, and integration with our learning platform, you can create a training experience that sets the stage for long-term success within your organization.
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