First published: September 30, 2021 @ 6:00 pm
Employee Onboarding is a process of introduction of new employees to the organization. Employee Onboarding Process will help familiarize new employees with the existing work environment and with their role in the organization.
It will also help in developing a positive attitude among new employees towards their new organization. The overall goal of employee onboarding programs is to develop a new employee into an effective and productive team member.
Below is the list of the onboarding step to handle an effective onboarding process:
Step 1: New Employee Orientation Plan
An employee orientation plan is a structured approach to ensure that new employees are aware of the company’s mission, vision, values, products, and services.
The plan should include information about all aspects of the new employee’s job as listed below:
1) Explain job profile and duties
New employees need information about their role, duties, objectives, and responsibilities in detail. You should provide this information in written form of employee handbook so that they can refer it later if required.
It will also help them in planning for work better and taking decisions independently without any hesitation.
2) Introduce organization structure
You should give the new employees information about organizational structure including reporting hierarchy, functional units, business units etc. It will help them in identifying the key stakeholders.
It will also help them in understanding who they report to directly or indirectly.
3) Explain performance appraisal system
Performance appraisal system is an important part of employee onboarding programs.
You should give new employees information about how you will evaluate their performance.
It will help them to perform better and understand how they can get recognition for their good work.
4) Explain training and development programs
You should give new employees information about all the training materials and development programs available in the organization. It will help them in deciding which training program they should enroll for to achieve their career goals.
It will also help them in deciding what other skills they need to develop.
5) Explain employee benefits
You should give new employees information about all the employee benefits programs available.
It will help them in deciding which benefits programs they want to enroll in.
6) Provide Product Knowledge
Employees need knowledge of products/services offered by the organization. It will help them in providing better customer service and making informed decisions regarding selling these products/services to customers.
7) Explain Administrative Processes
You should give new employees information about all the administrative processes followed by the organization. It includes document flow, approval processes, approval authority, document tracking, etc.
It will help them in understanding the existing procedures followed by the organization.
Step 2: Conduct Orientation Program
An orientation program is the best way to welcome a new employee. This is the second step in the employee onboarding process. This program will help introduce the employees to their new work environment.
You can conduct this program at any time after the candidate has accepted the employment offer. We recommend you conduct as soon this program as possible after the hiring of a new employee.
The orientation program will summarize company values, products and services, organizational structure and reporting relationships, benefits programs, etc.
The orientation should provide all the information necessary for a new employee to start working.
During this session, you should make an effort to address any concerns or questions that might be bothering new employees.
This session can also help in developing a positive attitude among new employees towards their new organization.
Step 3: Induction Program
The induction program is an onboarding step conducted after completion of orientation program. This program will help in introducing new employees to all other employees working in their department.
You can conduct this program within one week after completion of orientation program. The main objective of this session is to make new employees feel comfortable in their work environment and with other team members working with them.
During this session they can ask questions regarding various policies and procedures followed by the organization so that they do not have any doubts about these policies and procedures while performing their job.
They can also ask questions regarding work procedures, work flow, office hierarchy, communication protocols, etc. During this session new employees should know various benefits available with the organization including medical insurance, retirement plans, bonus plans etc.
It will help them in deciding which benefits programs they want to enroll for so that they can enjoy these benefits while working with this organization or when they move to another organization after leaving this organization.
Step 4: Training Program
Training program is a part of orientation program and happens after completion of induction program. This program will help in developing skills required by new employees to perform their job effectively.
You should design training program keeping in mind the job profile and duties of new employees. You can design the training program based on the type of industry, type of business, size of the organization etc.
For example, if the industry is software development, then training programs for software developers should include courses on the latest technologies used in software development and how these technologies can imrpove performance in this industry.
If the industry is retail then training programs for retail employees should include courses on how to sell products effectively to customers and ensure customer satisfaction by providing good customer service to them.
You can also design training programs based on requirements identified during interviews or through any other means like assessing skills gap using psychometric tools etc.
Step 5: On-the-Job Training
On-the-job training is a part of orientation program and happens after completion of induction program. This program will help in developing skills required by new employees to perform their job effectively. You should design this training keeping in mind the job profile and duties of new employees.
You can design the training program based on the type of industry, type of business, size of the organization, etc. For example, if the industry is software development, then training programs for software developers should include courses on the latest technologies used in software development and how these technologies can improve performance in this industry.
If the industry is retail then training programs for retail employees should include courses on how to sell products effectively to customers and ensure customer satisfaction by providing good customer service to them. You can also design training programs based on requirements identified during interviews or through any other means like assessing skills gap using psychometric tools etc.
Step 6: Assign Roles & Responsibilities
After completion of orientation program and on-the-job training, new employees are ready to start working for their organization. However, they need to understand what are their roles and responsibilities in performing their job so that they can perform it effectively.
You should communicate the roles and responsibilities of new employees clearly so that they can start working for their organization with the right attitude. You should also assign roles and responsibilities based on their skills and experiences so that new employees can complete them and increase employee satisfaction as well as job satisfaction.
It’s possible to communicate role assignment and responsibilities through role descriptions, job descriptions, work descriptions etc. Role description should clearly communicate what are the roles and responsibilities of new employees in performing their job.
Job description will include all the tasks and duties new employees must perform to do their job effectively. Work description will include tasks new employees should perform during a specific time period.
We also know this as a task list or work schedule. You can also do role assignment through training programs or orientation programs by explaining what are the roles and responsibilities of new employees in performing their job during these programs.
For example, if role assignment happens through training program then you can do it by explaining the roles and responsibilities of new employees during induction program or on-the-job training program conducted for them.
Step 7: Measure Performance & Review Performance on Regular Basis
You should measure the performance of new employees on regular basis so that they can improve their performance if they are not performing well in any area or if they are not able to meet expectations identified for them. It is important to measure performance of new employees regularly so that they can improve their performance and also develop healthy competition among them to perform better than others.
In addition to measuring performance of new employees, you should also review their performance on regular basis so that they can understand how well they are performing. If they are not performing well then managers or supervisors can take necessary corrective actions to improve their performance. You should consider the following points while reviewing the performance of new employees:
1) Review the performance of new employees on a regular basis and provide feedback to them so that they can improve their performance if they are not performing well in any area or if they cannot meet the expectations identified for them.
2) Managers or supervisors and their peers should give the review to ensure new employees receive feedback from different perspectives.
3) You should give new employees clear understanding about what are the expectations from them in performing their job and how well they are performing in each area so that they can take corrective actions if necessary to improve their performance in these areas.
4) You should provide new employees opportunities to improve their performance by providing them feedback about how well they are performing in each area and providing them training or guidance required for improving their performance in these areas.
5) If new employees cannot meet the expectations, then managers or supervisors should take corrective actions so that they can improve their performance in the future. These steps will help organizations in developing an effective employee onboarding process which will help in integrating new employees into the organization effectively.
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