In the past, many people viewed the onboarding process as a one-day exercise, or perhaps a period of a few days or weeks, where a new employee would undertake training courses, fill in forms and read through the organisation’s HR policies.
Our understanding about the part onboarding plays in helping an employee to succeed in their role has evolved over recent years. People now know that it can help to influence how well an employee performs in their role and whether they stay or leave the organisation. As a result, employers are placing much more emphasis on the onboarding process.
Onboarding covers the period from when an employee accepts a job offer through to the point when they:
- understand their role and how their contribution fits in with the overall business objectives;
- are performing their role to a successful standard (which may include a probationary period – see below);
- understand and exhibit the organisation’s values, vision and culture; and
- are integrated into working life (including being able to navigate relevant policies and procedures).
Do not underestimate the time it will take you to onboard a new colleague into the team; it can take several months.
An important part of onboarding is creating a sense of team spirit for the new starter, but this has become increasingly difficult to achieve with more remote working. Where a new colleague will be working remotely, or where their team works remotely, some or all of the time, you may need to rethink your approach to onboarding.
