Onboarding Can Boost Retention by Up to 50%: Here’s How Your Team Can Replicate the Results

First impressions count, so the onboarding process can be the difference between a new employee who is keen to get stuck into their role and one who questions whether they made the right decision. It helps create a more welcoming and supportive work environment, and 4 in 5 employees say that it helps them integrate and understand the company culture. Companies that have a formal onboarding process in place can see a 50% higher employee retention than those that don’t, so what is holding you back? The Importance of Structured Onboarding When a new employee joins the team, the onboarding process should be far more than just getting them up to speed on their role. It’s a key opportunity to welcome them into your team and get them settled in. This also helps give them confidence that they made the right choice when accepting the job offer. Here are some of the main reasons why a good onboarding plan is so important: Cost: The costs mount up , from advertising the role to investing in training, particularly when hiring for multiple roles. The better your onboarding process is, the quicker new employees become productive and the more they will be inclined to stick around. First impressions: As much as a new starter is looking to impress you, you should be looking to impress them. A good working relationship is a two-way street, and the first few days will determine how a new employee feels about the job. This is where you want to be showing organisation, supportiveness, and a strong team dynamic. Engagement: There is nothing worse than starting a new job and feeling as if you are unsure what is expected from you or that you are getting in the way. Clear communication and expectations are essential here. People should know exactly what their day looks like and who to go to with questions. Integration: Your new employees should be welcomed into the team from day one and made to feel as if they are part of the team. Building up relationships with colleagues and getting to know the company culture is just as important as getting to grips with the role if you want people to settle into their new workplace quickly. Creating a 4-Step Onboarding Plan for Your Business Putting a standardised onboarding process in place will make onboarding run much more smoothly from here on out. Let’s break it down into four simple steps. 1. Establish where the role fits in If a new employee is being brought in to start a new role within the company, it’s important that this role has been clearly thought out before their start date. Consider exactly what this role aims to achieve, what daily duties are required, and who on the team will be involved in working alongside it. Establishing this early on will not only make it easier for the new starter, but also for existing employees since they know where the new role fits into the team. 2. Map out the first two weeks Create a timetable that can be used to structure the new starters’ first couple of weeks in their role. This will outline any meetings, one-on-one sessions, training sessions, and independent tasks. Having this in place will make sure that the employee is getting the support they need to learn their role while ensuring that time is blocked out in the necessary calendars to account for this. If the role offers hybrid working or flexitime , making a schedule also helps balance in-person training with activities that can be carried out independently outside of the workplace. 3. Assign a mentor When starting a new role, people are bound to have a lot of questions and require a lot of additional support, so it’s important that they have it. Assigning a new starter with a mentor will give them a reliable contact who can guide them through the onboarding process and be able to direct them to the best people to help with certain topics. This often makes it easier for a new starter to settle in since they can build up a strong relationship with their mentor. 4. Carry out regular check-ins A new employee is not going to be magically working at their full capability within the first week; this takes a lot of time and experience to achieve. The initial couple of months at a new job can be incredibly overwhelming due to the information overload and number of new processes to learn, so regular check-ins will help give the employee the support they need. Having the opportunity to ask questions, share their concerns, or request additional training in particular areas is a mutually beneficial opportunity that will help the employee grow into their role. Improving Retention Through Structured Onboarding A structured onboarding process is key if you want new employees to start as they mean to go on. Giving them a supportive work environment and showing strong communication are key to helping them learn their role and having the motivation to excel. By taking small steps to prepare for the onboarding of a new employee, you can transform their experience and make a positive first impression that sets the tone for their long career in your team.