What is employee onboarding and why is it so important for your company and your employees?
Onboarding new hires is the process companies go through to welcome and integrate employees into the workplace.
This very definition suggests that the employee onboarding process extends far beyond the first day of a new hire – it continues until they’ve fully adjusted to their role and team.
And this is the main difference between onboarding and orientation.
The employee onboarding definition refers to any action that helps new hires understand how things work in their new work environment, get acquainted with the company culture, and feel welcomed and valued in their team.
Employee orientation, on the other hand, is the first step of onboarding.
It’s when new hires learn the basics of their environment: for example, they might familiarize themselves with the office building and company policies, understand their new job duties and get introduced to their colleagues.
Now remember your first day in any job – chances are you were excited but very nervous too.
If you don’t receive enough attention and instruction, that may not augur well for your mood or your motivation to get up to speed in your new capacity.
This may be one of the reasons that more than 25% of new hires quit their jobs after their first three months. And this is a huge loss for a company that must repeat a costly hiring process to find a replacement so soon – not counting the resources spent to train or compensate that new employee during their time with your company.
So, onboarding new employees effectively can improve your company’s employee retention.
Another benefit of a good onboarding policy is that new hires reach full productivity faster.
If they don’t receive adequate help from HR or their manager, and they’re just trying to make sense of everything on their own, your company loses potential revenue this employee would otherwise bring.
On the other hand, if new hires go through a well-developed onboarding process, they’ll be quicker to settle in their role and start producing value for their team.
And an effective process is even more imperative when you’re onboarding remote employees (who have extra difficulties in connecting with their colleagues due to distance) or interns and graduates (who are new to your company and to the world of employment).
At Emerald Zebra, we are always here to assist you, not only to find the right candidates but also to make sure your onboarding process goes smoothly.
Please feel free to contact us for all your recruitment needs and remember we are never more than one click away from you.
