The importance of onboarding

Research in 2022 indicates that if an employee is not onboarded the right way when joining a company, there is a higher chance they will leave in the first 12 months. Your employees are the heart of your business. To better retain staff — and keep them happy — you should show you value them from the start. A successful onboarding program not only helps new hires feel like they’re part of the team, but they will also better understand the onboarding process and how their role contributes to the overall success of your business.

The more they understand about their role and the business, the better they can contribute!

Other reasons why effective onboarding is so important:

Increased productivity

When done right, employee onboarding can result in greater productivity. Remember that a people-first culture leads to happier staff, and staff who have a better understanding of their role. In addition to your company-provided onboarding, create a process so managers plan the first few weeks for their new staff.

The length of the onboarding process will depend on your unique business.

Defined roles

A major part of employee onboarding is training on how to carry out the job. Onboarding brings the job description to life by explaining what’s expected of the new employee. Setting the expectations for the new employee also aids in setting them up for success and provides parameters to measure their performance as the employment relationship continues.

At the end of the onboarding process, the new employee should be aware of how their role fits into the team and the business as a whole.

Less employee stress

Starting a new role can be stressful for new employees. There’s so much for a new starter to consider including how they will fit in and how to manage their responsibilities. Leaders can reduce the stress that their new hires may feel by welcoming them to the team and providing all the tools and information required to do the job.

Reduced employee turnover

We all know the costs associated with employee turnover. In addition, the Bureau of Labour Statistics recently reported that people typically have nearly 12 jobs between the ages of 18 to 50. This demonstrates that employees won’t hang around if they aren’t happy at work. Consequently, employers need to do all that they can to retain good employees and a robust onboarding process is the key! This helps employees to become engaged in the business culture from the first day.

So please take the time to onboard your new employees correctly and you will see an improvement in employee engagement which is absolutely vital to building a strong and productive team.