How to create effective employee onboarding training

The power of self-reflection

Starting a new job can be overwhelming. With new processes, tools, faces, and spaces to get to know, a flood of information hits new hires all at once.

To help them start off on the right foot and get them up to speed quickly, how you organize that information matters. In fact, according to one study, 69 percent of employees who have positive onboarding experiences are more likely to stay with a company for three years—the type of long-term loyalty that can significantly boost your bottom line.

In this post, we’ll explore strategies for creating an onboarding program that gives your new hires all the tools they need to be successful at your organization—and stay with you for the long haul.

Looking for more strategies for boosting your employee retention through thoughtful training? Read our e-book: The Future of Employee Onboarding

What is employee onboarding?

Employee onboarding isn’t just a single process—it’s a series of steps an organization takes to make new hires feel confident, capable, and involved in their new role. It encompasses everything from guided training to self-led e-learning, meet-and-greets with new coworkers, office tours, and more. 

The onboarding period begins after an individual is hired, and ends once the employee is considered up-to-speed at the company and in their role. Just like workplaces today, employee onboarding can be conducted in person, online, or via a hybrid approach. 

It can be helpful to think of employee onboarding as a significant phase in an individual’s tenure with your organization. After all, it can take time—often months—for employees to become acclimated to their new role, team, and company. They’ll appreciate the effort you took to make them feel comfortable and successful.

3 benefits of an effective onboarding process

A well-crafted onboarding process can have many benefits. Below, we’ll dive into three key assets: stronger company culture, more effective employees, and higher employee retention.

1. Stronger company culture

Onboarding is an integral part of your company’s overall culture, as it introduces your new hires to many essential aspects of the organization. You can use onboarding to help set the tone for a new hire’s tenure with you by spotlighting your organization’s values, introducing important team members, and organizing key resources for them. 

By making employees feel prepared and cared for as early as day one, your onboarding program can actually increase job satisfaction and improve employee relationships.

2. More effective employees

A key part of a successful onboarding program is introducing team members to new processes, resources, and responsibilities. Even if they have extensive experience in a particular field, they’ll still need guidance on how to perform at your company. By laying the groundwork in an effective way, you can help them hit the ground running, reducing any skills gaps and creating more valuable employees.

3. Higher employee retention

A good first impression goes a long way—especially at a new job. A streamlined and thorough onboarding process can show new hires that you’re invested in their long-term success, making them more likely to stick with you over time. This increased employee retention can cut down on your hiring costs, strengthen your company’s reputation, and foster greater job satisfaction.

5 best practices for your onboarding training

Onboarding training can look vastly different from company to company, and even from role to role within the same organization. After all, different jobs require different types of preparation to ensure employees are successful. 

However, there are a few best practices all companies can implement to create strong programs. Looking for a place to start? Follow the best practices below.

1. Start onboarding before day one

Employee preboarding sets the stage for a new hire’s first day. This phase involves gathering essential information about the employee, setting up any important accounts, and completing necessary paperwork. Completing as many of these steps before the first day as possible can help reduce new hire anxiety, save them time on their first day, and give them a solid understanding of their job responsibilities.

Preboarding is also another helpful touchpoint for introducing your new hire to your company’s culture. To get them excited about their new role, provide them with a welcome message and send them your employee handbook, as well as information about their employee benefits and other perks.

2. Get the whole team involved

Team introductions are one of the most important parts of a successful employee onboarding process. Help your new hire start off on the right foot by connecting them with their manager and the key teams they’ll be working with. This helps facilitate better collaboration and communication down the line and can help your new hires feel more settled and supported in their role. 

It can be helpful to involve the whole team when training new hires about different processes. This way, they can get more face time with those they’ll be closely working with on a regular basis, building rapport while receiving individual training time about key tasks. 

You may want to consider connecting new employees with other new hires, or assigning an onboarding buddy or mentor to new hires. This can help facilitate a sense of community, provide essential support, and help employees navigate their roles more effectively. 

3. Personalize your content

Role-specific training is a crucial component of the onboarding process. Tailoring the training to the specific job functions and skill sets of a new employee is far more effective—and engaging—than providing the same general training to all employees. As always, be sure to make your training sessions interactive to enhance engagement and information retention. Your e-learning platform can make this easier.

4. Introduce key tools and processes

Your employees likely use a variety of technologies and platforms on a daily basis, which is why it’s crucial to introduce your new hires to those same tools from the get-go. Make sure employees understand why they’re expected to use specific tools for certain tasks and ensure they can easily navigate different platforms on their own by the time onboarding is complete. 

You can set up one-on-one training for various tools and processes, or even create e-learning modules that new hires can complete at their own pace. This is a natural fit for remote and hybrid employees but is also great for in-office new hires to take learning in between training sessions or in their own time. 

5. Measure success, collect feedback, and continually adjust

Continuous feedback and adjustment are essential for improving your onboarding process. Conduct regular check-ins with new hires to help identify challenges, make meaningful adjustments, and ensure they feel supported. Gathering feedback from new hires allows organizations to make meaningful adjustments that improve the employee onboarding experience.

It’s also key to measure the success of your onboarding program with qualitative data. Conducting employee feedback surveys, collecting your company’s net promoter score, and even tracking employee retention over time can help you identify what’s working well and what needs adjusting.

Boost employee performance and retention with an effective onboarding program 

Effective onboarding training is essential for integrating new hires into the organization and setting them up for success. From employee preboarding to role-specific training, each component of the onboarding process plays a crucial role in ensuring new employees feel welcomed, prepared, and engaged. 

By implementing best practices, utilizing digital tools, and continuously gathering feedback, organizations can create a positive onboarding experience that enhances employee retention, satisfaction, and productivity.

Looking for more strategies for building employee retention? Check out our e-book: The Future of Employee Onboarding.