Employee Onboarding - Process

Employee onboarding is a strategic process of inviting/introducing a new resource to the organization and providing training, information, coaching and mentoring throughout the phase of the transition. An effective onboarding process turns the new recruits into assets for the organization.

The process of onboarding starts at the acknowledgment of an offer and continues throughout the initial six to twelve months of employment in the organization.

Stages of the Process

Following are different stages of the employee onboarding process −

• Preparation − Pre-arrival, first day through first month activities that acclimatize the new employee with the culture, team, work environment, and introduce to policies and procedures and online modules.

• Orientation − HR New Employee Orientation online, classroom, Benefits training and department specific orientation.

• Integration − Employee development planning by supervisor and employee’s attendance in HR staff development training.

• Engagement − Developing awareness of the organizational culture, building relationship, meeting performance expectations and contributing towards organization’s success.

• Follow-up − Monitoring and measuring the effectiveness of the onboarding process.

Note − Two decades ago, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average number of jobs held in one person’s career was six. Today, the average number of jobs held is 11. And according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the cost for replacing an employee is over 25% of their annual salary (some say 50%), so it is very costly when you don’t get it right.