Easy! How to humanize your talent onboarding experience.

Having an onboarding plan for your new team members when they start their new job is a business imperative.

Why? 

You, your team, the company, and the new team members want to be set up for success. A positive onboarding experience has a direct impact on employee productivity and retention (Indeed Australia). It also has an impact on all involved. 

In the Catalyst article Turnover and Retention from May 2018, two calculations are listed as examples: one claims a turn-over in the US costs approx. $15,000 per employee, while the other estimates the amount to be about 21% of that employee’s annual salary. Whichever way you calculate turnover costs, it’s expensive. A lot of money is spent on lost productivity, recruitment and training, etc. So, from a business point of view, you need to ensure new team members are up to speed as fast as possible, and remain with your team.

Here are just a few painfully bad onboarding experiences I keep hearing about:

• “My manager and team didn’t expect me on my first day.”
• “My desk was so dirty, I had to clean it before I could start working.”
• “Nobody was available to tell me what I should be doing and/or nobody was there to train me.”
• “There was no equipment for me to work with.”
• “Two months in and I have yet to have a meeting with my manager.”

Not only does this not make any business sense, it also doesn’t make sense on a human level. With experiences like those above, what would be your level of motivation for your new job? How much would you be inclined to give your absolute best and go above and beyond when you know the other side doesn’t value your presence? Examples like these are not difficult to come by, and unfortunately demonstrate a lack of caring, awareness, empathy, and so much more. 

According to Inc. “Empathy moves us to be more understanding and helps us to be better managers and leaders.” Daniel H. Pink is quoted as saying, "Empathy is about standing in someone else's shoes, feeling with his or her heart, seeing with his or her eyes. Not only is empathy hard to outsource and automate, but it makes the world a better place." Data backing up the importance of Empathy in the workplace is analyzed in this article by Forbes, which lists even more business benefits. Empathy is also a big cornerstone of Emotional Intelligence (EI) and has recently been named as one of the top skills to have by 2020 by the World Economic Forum. 

So, let’s make the onboarding experience personal and humanize it! Simply because it’s the right thing to do!

While it’s important to have an HR supported and aligned approach for all new team members across the organization, I’ve listed a few personally tried and tested tips that will set you, Team Leader & Hiring Manager, up for an amazing start and sustained success. Some of these points can obviously be delegated to a member of your team, a trainer, or a mentor.

Connecting People with People

• Reach out to your new team member before the start date and welcome them to your team, introduce another team member (possibly the mentor or trainer), offer to be available for questions.
• Identify who will be the main peer contact in the team for your new team member as a possible buddy, mentor, or trainer. Introduce both to each other and set expectations regarding training, scheduling, and knowledge/ skill goals.
• Inform your existing team that you will all be welcoming someone new. Send an email with the name, start date, and some logistical data (assigned workplace, reporting structure, or whatever you think might be required) to the team and people who will be working with your new team member.
• Make personal introductions with stakeholders where possible, once the new team member has started.
• Allocate a few minutes at the first team meeting for them to introduce themselves to the team. This was always a highlight with my previous team, as the introductions were rather informal and creative, giving the new person the option to share what’s important to them in life, such as hobbies, family, previous events that they are proud of, etc.

Connecting People with Resources

• Assign a workspace or desk, and ensure it’s in a condition that you’d find welcoming too.
• Organize equipment, like a laptop and stationary, and have it in working order and ready to use for day one.
• Ensure security clearance, access to required software and work spaces, and all authorizations are in place.
• Have a training plan, or at least an outline with expectations at hand for both the mentor and the new team member.
• Provide information on lunch and coffee break options so they don’t stay behind in the office while everyone else is out. When? Where? How?

Connecting with You

• Lead by example. Connect with your new team member early and regularly. It can be anything from a 1 minute check-in, to a more formal setting.
• Explain your work-place culture, values and mission. Set the tone. Discuss how these link directly to the new team member.
• Set goals and expectations together for the first few weeks/ months. Explain how you’ll both keep track and in alignment (i.e. regular feedback sessions, data analysis, input from mentor/ trainer, test results, customer feedback, etc.).
• Build trust and a solid connection. Have a “This is me - Fireside Chat”-type conversation. You’ve interviewed your new team member and know a lot about them. It’s time you introduce yourself and openly talk about your background. What achievements are you proud of? What motivates you? What are your values? What can they expect from you? Make it an informal, authentic chat, and allow them to ask you questions too.

For every effort you invest in the crucial onboarding time, the ways in which they will pay off are manifold. Make it a priority to invest time, build trust, establish rapport, and create valuable connections for an amazing workplace culture and an engaged team that’s raring to give you their absolute best. It’s about humanizing the workplace and working towards the basic human need to feel safe, appreciated, and connected. It’s not about micro-managing and hand-holding, but rather it’s a demonstration of emotional intelligence and empathy.

I’d love to hear from you. How do you personalize your onboarding experiences? Which tips would you like to add?

We’re all in this together. Spread the love and share this blog with people in your network who might benefit from it too. Thank you. 

P.S. Please use this link to discover my previous blogs.

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