A well-developed on-boarding plan will help employees fit in, learn how your company does business and shorten the time frame for new-hire productivity.
Starting a new job is stressful. The first day and often the first few weeks can be uncomfortable for new employees. New team members may experience doubt and decision regret about their job change. The success or failure of a new hire often depends on their experience in the first three months of work. In fact, some stats show turnover as high as 20% in the first 45 days of work. As a manager you can do a lot in the first day, week, month and beyond to help your new employee fit in, understand their role, and have some fun!
You have invested time and money to find the best new hire for your company, so it only makes good business sense to have an on-boarding plan in place to help your new hire succeed. A quality on-boarding program will help you welcome new employees and assist them to quickly become an engaged and efficient member of your team.
On-Boarding Goals
Your on-boarding program should help new employees:
- Understand your company culture,
- Develop positive relationships with other members of your team,
- Be productive, and
- Deliver high-quality work.
On-Boarding Tips for the first day, week month and beyond…
- Put a plan in place for your new hire before their first day of work.
- The first day is very important – make a good impression.
- Plan to have coffee or lunch with your new employee on their first day of work.
- Welcome your employee and encourage others to make them feel welcome.
- Pair new hires with a mentor.
- To keep compliant with workplace legislation and best practices, orientation involves completing paper work, participating in mandatory training and reviewing company policies, rules, and standards.
- Avoid information overload and spread out the necessary paper work.
- Develop a training plan for the first day, first week, first month, and beyond.
- Training may include:
- Mandatory legislation training (health and safety, accessibility, human rights, employment standards…)
- Technical training on company systems, software, equipment or processes,
- Culture, values, and ethics,
- Common jargon and acronyms,
- FAQs – How we do business around here…
- On the job training
- Check in regularly to see how things are going, offer support, and help new employees connect with your team.
- Managers should review performance at the end of the first week, at one month, at three months, at six months and beyond for more senior roles.
Interested in more information on what goes into a quality on-boarding program? Check out the Fusion Managers’ guide to on-boarding
