How to onboard an employee, step by step

"An employee tends to make the true decision to stay long-term within the first six months,” explained Amy Hirsh Robinson of Interchange Consulting Group during a recent webinar, "and that same employee is 69% more likely to stay with the company after three years if brought up to speed through a structured onboarding program.”

Robinson laid out a detailed plan for bringing newbies on, one you can adapt to your own organization.

First, though, her onboarding pitfalls to avoid:

·         Not having a clean and ready workstation ready on day one

·         Cramming 20 hours of information into four dull-as-dust hours of orientation

·         Ignoring the needs of mid- to senior level execs ("Onboarding gets worse the higher your position,” a manager once told Robinson, as if you're just supposed to know your way around because you're wearing a nice suit)

·         Failing to address generational needs and differences

·         Starting a new hire when their supervisor is absent

·         Relying on org charts to explain lines of communication

·         Assuming a new hire can't be productive from the start

·         Running a disorganized program

·         Adopting a sink-or-swim approach—because it worked for you

Ensuring success

Before an employee's first day:

·         Assign a buddy to the employee—someone to answer questions as they occur and make introductions.

·         Extend a personal welcome.

·         Communicate the first day logistics: What should they bring? Where do they park? Who should they ask for?

·         Send paperwork in advance or have them complete it through an online portal.

·         Issue the employee handbook and have benefits explained.

·         Prepare internal workers for the newbie's arrival. Does anyone have any questions about the new employee? Are the phone and computer ready to go? Security badge? Workstation?

·         Identify any transition risks, such as a possible capability gap or problematic office politics that might be encountered.

Their first day:

·         Introduce the employee to the assigned buddy and other colleagues.

·         Situate the employee with the resources or networks required for work.

·         Commence an orientation to the organization and its culture.

Their first week:

·         Set performance expectations and the scope of the job.

·         Explain your performance appraisal process.

·         Assign meaningful work—put them on an intriguing project as soon as possible.

·         Ensure direct managerial involvement in the first week. Their manager shouldn't be out of the office or immersed in a project that can't be set aside.

·         Schedule meetings with senior leadership to guarantee exposure to the broader company.

Their first 90 days:

·         Create an employee development plan: Show them the future that can be achieved, and how to achieve it.

·         Provide essential training and make sure the employee is not overloaded.

·         Assign a mentor.

·         Plan team-building activities and inter-departmental mixers.

·         Monitor performance and provide feedback.

·         Obtain feedback about the company through a new hire survey, online whiteboard, etc.

Their first year:

·         Recognize positive employee contributions.

·         Provide formal and informal feedback on performance.

·         Assess future training and development needs.

During and well past the onboarding process, here are Robinson's top three strategies for staying an employer of choice:

1.     Define your employer value proposition. In simple terms, an Employer Value Proposition (EVP) is the value employees receive in exchange for their spending 8+ hours per day working for an employer. A good EVP tells a clear and compelling story about what is expected of employees and what they can expect in return.

2.     Invest in career pathing and development. Provide structured information and guidance about career paths from the very start of employment and throughout job tenure. Do you have a visual ladder you can provide? To get ahead, do they understand what they have to do, when and how well?

3.     Make flexibility real. Unless flexible work is a reality, younger employees (and increasingly Generation Xers and Boomers) will leave their employers. To make flexibility a reality in the workplace, companies must provide remote work options and technology, allow variable schedules and dissuade managers from clinging to a "if you're not at your desk you are not working” mentality.