First day in school…First day in college….First day in an organization..All these events are full of anxiety and apprehension for almost all of us!
And these events can make or break our willingness to stay at the place for a longer period. Our experience in the initial days of our work tenure helps in building a bond with the organization we have chosen to work. And maximum exits are said to happen in these initial days. It’s simple – If the start is pleasant, the journey will be a successful one.
Since retaining talent is one of the key challenges for a company, a strong Onboarding program helps in winning this challenge. A good onboarding program ensures that the employees develop a “connect” with the company and are glad about the choice they made. This in turn ensures that they stay for long tenure with the company.
So what does a good onboarding program comprise of? I have heard many people talking about the exciting welcome kits they receive on their first day at workplace. But is that the only thing that matters? No. What helps a new employee connect with a company is the “sense of belonging”. Sense of belonging is most important for employees in seeing their value in the company’s growth and also helps in decreasing the chances of feeling left out.
A good on boarding program should ensure that by the end of the program the employee is well aware of the following aspects:
- History and the milestones of the company
- The management – their background, experience and their role in the company
- The hierarchy structure and where does s/he fit in
- HR processes and policies
- Employee Engagement initiatives of the company which highlight the “fun at work” component
- Escalation procedure – usually this point is missed out as most of us fail to understand the apprehension of a new employee. Sharing this information can calm the employee a bit as s/he knows whom to approach if they face any issue
- A strong buddy program that helps the employee in getting acquainted with the culture and atmosphere of the company. A buddy can be chosen in such a way, that s/he can act as a mentor, buddy and can also provide on job training to the new employee
All the above, are general points to be kept in mind while designing an onboarding program. However, we cannot follow the same format for Senior Recruits. Most companies prefer to have special onboarding programs for them, which involves more of one on one meetings with the direct reportees, peers and management.
Till When? – This is the next big question that comes up while designing a good onboarding program. Typically an on boarding program is designed for 30 days. But very recently companies are going for the 90 day programs. Though the tenure is considered to be long, but a 90 day program helps in addressing issues of new employees along with building a strong connection with the company. Apart from these, the 90 day program also acts like a good feedback mechanism for companies. Such feedbacks can help in addressing any problems in policies or procedures of the company.
Hope you enjoyed this read! We are open and glad to have your feedback and viewpoints on this topic!!
Shirin Ara
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