Nobody has a greater impact on the success of new employees than the managers who hired them. But why? Simply because the boss knows better than anyone else what his or her employees need to accomplish and what is required (skills, resources, connections) in order for employees to perform to their full potential and be effective.
Managers also have the biggest stake in the successful onboarding of their employees. Studies have shown that systematic onboarding brings new employees up to speed 50 percent faster. Which means they are able to assist in achieving desired goals faster and more efficiently. In addition, effective onboarding dramatically reduces absenteeism rates and increases employee engagement and retention.
Therefore, the earlier bosses start supporting their new employees, the better. The time between accepting a job offer and starting work is already an important phase that can be put to good use. While employees may have already started in their new job, there are still many ways to get them up to speed quickly.
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The Importance of Successful Onboarding
Laying the groundwork for a quick onboarding is to take care of the onboarding basics. These include enrollment, compliance training, workplace, work equipment and assistance with other basic issues.
Luckily, most companies do a pretty good job in this area. Getting new employees onboarded, on the other hand, requires more intensive efforts. And that’s where the real work of the bosses begins.
These are seven key factors to be successful in the process of onboarding:
1. Understand the Challenges
One of the most difficult types of job transitions is onboarding. Why? Well, because new hires, even experienced professionals, are not familiar with the new environment. Their understanding of how things really work at the company is not yet in place, they lack an established network, and they must adapt to a new culture.
In fact, research has proven that challenges in the latter two categories are the main reasons for rapid turnover. There is a lot for new employees to learn. Potentially, they may feel very vulnerable, even if they appear outwardly confident.
This is all the more likely when people have relocated for work, so they also face changes in their personal lives, and also when they have reached a higher career stage and have to adjust to a new leadership role.
Some might respond to uncertainty by playing it safe and sticking very closely to what they already know. Yet others behave as if they have the right answer to everything, instead of asking questions and figuring out how they might add value. Therefore, it is important for bosses to reassure the newest employees that learning is more important than doing in the early days.
2. Accelerate Learning
Typically, the faster a new employee learns about the company and knows about their role, the more they can accomplish in those critical first few months. To speed up the learning process, new hires should initially concentrate on three areas in which they are gaining knowledge. These are:
- Technical learning: This means a broad insight into the basics of the business such as products, customers, technologies and systems.
- Cultural learning: This involves attitudes, behavioral norms, and values that make up the special character of the company.
- Political learning: This focuses on understanding how decisions are made and how power and influence work. Additionally, new colleagues need to figure out whose support they need most.
Managers should look at how they can support new employees. In addition to providing the best available information in person as early as possible, this means thinking about who else is best suited to convey these important points.
3. Become a Part of the Team
Although it is possible for new employees to work independently, they are more likely to be part of one or more teams. For this reason, the sooner a new employee establishes effective working relationships with their colleagues, the better. Here’s where the manager comes in, and he or she can make a big difference at this point.
Most importantly, the team needs to understand why the new person has been hired and which role he or she is expected to play. As soon as possible after their arrival, it is important that the managers officially introduce the new employee – to all colleagues.
The expectation should be clear that teams should help their new colleague acclimate and also ensure that their learning curve increases. If you invest a little time and effort in the beginning to bring the team and the new employee together, it will pay off in productivity and performance in the long run.
4. Connect with Key Contacts
There are probably many other contacts outside of the immediate team who can be crucial not only to the learning curve, but also to the new colleague’s success. It might not be immediately obvious who these people are or why they might be important and how best to approach them.
However, managers can be of critical help in this regard. An easy way is to create a list of names and brief notes. Next, make introductions, explaining why it is essential for people to get to know each other and exchange ideas. Next, schedule a meeting after 30 to 45 days to follow up with the contacts to see how the new employee’s network is developing.
5. Set the Direction – Three Key Questions for Motivation
Staff can’t work properly until supervisors are clear about what they expect of them. A good guide will help them answer three key questions:
What do I need to do? This involves both defining the goals and the time frame by which they are to be achieved. Also specified should be what benchmarks will be used to measure their progress.
Which approach should I take? This should determine exactly what strategies they should use to achieve the goals, including prioritization of actions.
What should motivate me? Diagnose and communicate a vision of what the company wants to achieve. Help the new employee identify their role within this framework to implement the goals.
While you may have talked about expectations during the recruiting process, have a more in-depth conversation once your new hire is in place. This should ensure that there are no misunderstandings and that new employees don’t have the wrong idea about what will make them successful at the company.
6. Help Celebrate Early Success
Achieving success early helps build trust and credibility for new employees. Individuals who are new to a job and a company often want to prove that they can do it all. In doing so, they quickly fall into the trap of taking on too much too soon and ending up making little difference.
The manager’s job is to make sure new employees focus on the essential tasks – and to help them find ways to make quick progress on their goals. This also involves teaching colleagues how to score in the spirit of the company culture. The aim is to ensure that employees achieve their successes in the right way.
7. Coaching for Success
Managers who are serious about onboarding don’t just provide in-depth support at the beginning and then abandon new employees under the motto “eat or die.” Time is needed before new employees are fully integrated and can work 100 percent independently and be productive.
It is therefore important that supervisors stay in contact with their employees over a longer period of time and coach them. For this purpose, simple but regular meetings under the motto “How’s it going?” held every few weeks will suffice until there is nothing left to discuss.
Bottom Line
If managers see that new employees are having issues, they should intervene. A common mistake is to treat new hires too gently, thinking that it’s best to give them time to adapt and that problems (with colleagues or the company culture, for example) will resolve themselves.
A vicious cycle can easily develop here; employees can unknowingly dig themselves a pit that they can’t get out of. In fact, the longer a negative dynamic continues, the more difficult it is to reverse it.
As bosses apply these guidelines, they should remember that “effective onboarding” is not just about helping new employees from outside the company. Even employees who transfer within the company can face challenges that are just as difficult or even tougher.
This is particularly the case if they come from different departments, were shaped by different cultures, or are from different regions. In such cases, managers should use the same approach to help new team members get off to a good start.
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