How to deliver best employee onboarding experiences
A program for welcoming new employees is just what it sounds like.
Employee onboarding is a process that helps new employees get up to speed quickly and start contributing to the team’s success.
It involves a number of steps, from getting ready before boarding to orientation and training. All of these are meant to make new hires feel welcome, involved, and ready to do their jobs. It doesn’t matter how long or big a company’s onboarding program is as long as it gives new employees the tools, information, and direction they need to do well in their new jobs.
In today’s blog, we will cover the tips and activities that can help you deliver the best employee onboarding experience for new hires. At the end of the blog, we will even share software that can help you achieve onboarding that will make your organization automatically get qualified by your employees as one of the best places to work. Let us get started.
Tips for giving new employees the best possible start
For a world-class employee onboarding experience, you need a well-thought-out process that takes into account the needs and expectations of new hires. By following these rules, organizations can improve how they bring new employees on board:
Make it more personal: Personalizing the onboarding process can help new hires feel right at home and like they’re a part of the team right away. Some ways to do this are with a personalized welcome gift, a customized orientation program, and a chance for new hires to meet their coworkers.
Culture Takes Center Stage: Putting money into building a strong company culture can pay off in the form of happy, productive, and loyal employees. The onboarding process can help new hires feel like they’re part of the team right away by incorporating parts of the organization’s culture.
Provide Ongoing Training and Development: Offer opportunities for ongoing training and growth By giving new employees opportunities for ongoing training and growth, you can help them do their jobs well and grow in them. This can be done in the classroom, online, or by inviting people to conferences and other social events.
Create an environment that encourages people to work together: Creating an environment that encourages teamwork and collaboration can make new hires feel more at home at work and more invested in the success of the company. This group includes things like team lunches and projects where people work together.
Make it Fun and Engaging: Making the onboarding process fun for new employees can make them more excited about their jobs and loyal to the company. For instance, the orientation program could include games, puzzles, and other ways for people to learn while doing something together.
Goals should be achievable: Setting realistic goals for new hires can help them feel more confident in their abilities and understand what is expected of them in their role. This can include things like the job description, the goals, and the metrics you use to measure success in the job.
Offer Continued Support: Helping new people on your team is a great way to make them feel welcome and part of the group. This group includes feedback and mentoring opportunities, as well as regular check-ins and access to resources.
By following these rules, organizations can come up with the best employee onboarding experiences that inspire and motivate new hires from day one.
Activities to make the onboarding experience more memorable
The following activities can be added to the onboarding process to make it more memorable:
If the onboarding process has activities that are both interesting and memorable, new hires will feel more invested in the company, learn more about the culture, and remember more information. Try some of these fun ways to provide the best employee onboarding experiences:
Exercises to build teams and break the ice: Using icebreakers and team-building activities to help new hires get to know and bond with the rest of the staff is a smart move. Games and puzzles are two examples of activities that can help people in a group talk to each other and work together.
Guided Tours: Giving new hires guided tours of the company’s facilities can help them get used to their new environment and learn about how the business is set up and runs. This can also be a great way to get to know the top people in the company and learn more about its history and mission.
Company Culture Workshops: Workshops on the company’s mission and core values are a great way to make new hires feel like they belong and take pride in their work. This can include activities that get people to think about how their own values compare to the mission and values of the company.
Role-Specific Training: New hires can do well in their jobs if they get training that is specific to what they need to do. Training new hires can be done in a number of ways, such as through classroom lessons, video lectures, and hands-on exercises.
Social Events: It has been shown that new hires and the organization as a whole feel more like they belong when fun, casual events are part of the onboarding process. There should be lots of ways for new hires to meet people and have fun, like team lunches and happy hours.
Integration with the technology of the company: Using technology as part of the onboarding process can help new hires get used to the tools they will be using every day and make the process run more smoothly. Through hands-on training sessions, new hires should be able to learn how to use the company’s software and platforms.
Action-based learning: As part of the onboarding process, new hires can feel more invested in their roles and the company by working on hands-on projects. This also encourages them to put what they’ve learned into practice. Real projects that the team works on together or simulations that the team goes through to learn how the company’s systems and procedures work are both good options for projects.
By adding these exercises to the onboarding process, organizations can make the experience better. This can make new hires feel more invested in the company, make them more likely to do their best work, and help them remember important policies and procedures.
How to Give New Employees a Good First Impression
Organizations should focus on the following important steps to give their new employees the best possible experience:
- Write down what you want the onboarding process to accomplish. This will help make sure that the program is in line with the overall goals of the organization and that new hires have the best chance of succeeding.
- Look at the process of getting new employees started as it is now. By looking at the current onboarding process, organizations can find ways to make the program better and make sure it works well.
- Plan your process of getting started from scratch. Every new hire is different, and so is their plan for getting them started. If you take the time to make a plan that is tailored to their needs, you can make it more likely that they will be happy in their new job.
- Give a lot of detailed instructions and help. Giving new hires a lot of training and support, like an orientation, training on company policies and procedures, and ongoing support and feedback can help them feel ready and confident in their new roles.
- Make people feel like they belong and are part of a group. When new hires feel like they belong, they are more likely to be engaged and motivated, which makes it more likely that they will stay with the company for a long time.
Companies with the best employee onboarding experiences
Several businesses have gotten attention for how well they bring on new employees. Here are a few examples of case studies that show how they set themselves apart during the onboarding process.
Google: Google has made an onboarding process so that new hires feel right at home and supported right away. The process includes a thorough orientation program, a personalized welcome gift, the chance to meet with key staff, and team-building exercises. Google also offers ongoing training and development opportunities to help new hires do well in their jobs over time.
Salesforce: The goal of Salesforce’s onboarding program is to make new employees feel like they are part of a team. The process includes a thorough orientation program, exercises to build teams, and chances to get to know other people at work. Salesforce also provides new hires with ongoing training and development opportunities to help them do their jobs well.
Microsoft: The onboarding process at Microsoft includes a full orientation program, a personalized welcome gift, chances to meet with key staff, and activities that help build teams. Microsoft also gives new employees chances to get to know their coworkers and take part in the company’s culture and mission. There are also opportunities for ongoing training and development.
AirBnB: New employees get a thorough orientation program, a personalized welcome gift, and many chances to meet and talk with other employees as part of the onboarding process. Airbnb also gives new employees the chance to be a part of the company’s culture and mission by giving them opportunities to learn and grow.
Zappos: Zappos is known for its great onboarding process for new employees, which includes a thorough orientation program, team-building activities, and opportunities to get to know their coworkers. Through ongoing training and development opportunities, new hires at Zappos have the chance to help shape the company’s culture and mission.
Deloitte: The process of joining Deloitte includes a thorough orientation program, exercises to build teams, and networking events. Deloitte not only introduces new employees to the company’s culture and mission but also gives them opportunities to keep learning and growing.
These companies have become leaders in their fields by giving their employees great onboarding experiences. Other companies that want to create their own best-in-class onboarding processes can use them as models.
So what is that software which can help you too?
A digital solution called SharePoint Employee Onboarding Software automates and simplifies the onboarding process for new employees. Information about the onboarding process, like HR policies, company culture, and knowledge base, can all be stored and shared in one place. The following are some of the benefits of Employee Onboarding Software for SharePoint:
Better Collaboration: SharePoint Employee Onboarding Software makes it easier for HR professionals and new hires to talk to each other and work together. This makes HR’s job easier because new hires will have the information they need to do their jobs well.
Consistent Onboarding Experience: With SharePoint Employee Onboarding Software, organizations can make sure that all new hires get the same onboarding experience, no matter where they work or what department they are in. This makes sure that all new hires get the same information and training and makes the onboarding process more consistent.
Improved Employee Engagement: The streamlined and interesting onboarding process of SharePoint Employee Onboarding Software makes new hires feel more connected to the company and more motivated to do their best work. The result might be a more dedicated and enthusiastic staff that stays put.
Customizable: The SharePoint Employee Onboarding Software is very flexible and can be changed to meet the needs of each organization. Because of this, organizations can tailor their onboarding process to reflect the values and culture of their organization.
Improved Efficiency: SharePoint Employee Onboarding Software streamlines the onboarding process and gets rid of manual steps, making it faster and easier for both new hires and HR professionals. New employees can be trained faster, which increases output.
Improved Compliance: With SharePoint Employee Onboarding Software, HR departments can be sure that they’re following all laws and rules. This keeps the company safe from legal and financial risks.
Data Analytics: With the help of data analytics, SharePoint Employee Onboarding Software lets organizations track how the onboarding process is changing, find weak spots, and figure out how well their onboarding program is working.
Conclusion
Effective employee onboarding is key to getting top talent, keeping them, and keeping them motivated. By giving new hires the best employee onboarding experience, companies can help them feel supported, engaged, and motivated right away.
The solution is with the SharePoint Employee Onboarding Software, a flexible tool that can be used to streamline and simplify the whole process of bringing a new employee on board.
With its many benefits, organizations can improve compliance and collaboration, reduce the amount of work HR professionals have to do and make the onboarding process for new hires smooth, effective, and memorable. Ready to deliver a mind-blowing employee onboarding experience? Get started today