In today’s competitive and ever-evolving work environment, employee onboarding is becoming increasingly important. Companies need to ensure that their onboarding process is up-to-date and effective enough to successfully integrate new employees into the team. There are a number of trends in employee onboarding that employers should be aware of in order to maximize their onboarding experience for both themselves and their employees.
If you want to be a good employer, you should prove it quickly. Because more and more people cancel their job within the first few months: According to a current survey by the Softgarden provider, 18 percent of over 2,000 applicants have ended a new job in the first 100 days. Four years ago it was almost twelve percent. And 65 percent thought about it.
For the United States, Society for Human Resources Management has determined that 15 percent were so shocked on the first day about the conditions at their workplace that they wanted to cancel. And Stepstone writes that only half of the newly started on the first working day met their superiors. Good integration looks different.
Statistics show that companies with good onboarding can achieve goals better and increase profits. But even HR managers admit that the quality of their onboarding does not correspond to the standard. In a survey by the personnel service provider Hays, 83 percent of all employers say that a good introduction is important, but half admit that their organization has a need to catch up.
In a study by the company Haufe, it is even 68 percent. Only twelve percent of employees are satisfied with the incorporation and orientation process in the company, writes the consulting company Gallup. There is no feedback, communication, or culture. In short: there are good reasons to deal more intensively with onboarding and close gaps to be a good employer – from the beginning.
7 Employee Onboarding Trends That You Should Know
One trend emerging in employee onboarding is an emphasis on digital orientation processes. Many companies are using online portals or applications to deliver orientation materials, answer questions, and provide resources for new hires prior to them beginning work. This allows companies to reduce paperwork and create a more streamlined approach when it comes to getting new staff members acclimated with the organization quickly and effectively.
1. Preboarding
Even before the first working day, HR lays the foundation like a workforce starts on the job and thus starts a new community. The potential is great: According to Haufe, a quarter does not use the preboarding. No welcome packages, no information, or no ways to take part in virtual events: this makes it difficult to orientate yourself. You would like a preboarding.
The provider Tydy has heard and writes that information about the role was asked, followed by information about the team and internal guidelines. New points have been added since Coronapandemie: Where does the first working day take place?
How is the exchange with others organized and which lunch dates are planned to settle in well? Very banal, but fundamental is also the information on whether there is onboarding at all and how it will be structured. According to the Soft Garden study, 16 percent have already decided against a job because they did not know what about onboarding.
2. App boarding
Digital formats have become an integral part of the Coronapandemic. If new ones do not start in the office, onboarding tools help to incorporate them and welcome them. There is already the possibility: Digital learning paths should relieve HR departments and managers for years. They convey information that applies to everyone and ensures incorporation at the same level. At least partly applies.
Because social aspects have been neglected for a long time. Tydy asked new employees before and after the outbreak of the Coronapandemic how well they have integrated. Anyone who only had the screen was significantly less identified with the team and values. Digital tools have to show creativity and give social space more space.
However, 83 percent of those surveyed at Haufe say that they have not yet developed their digital tools during the pandemic. The path goes to the app: learning paths can be personalized thanks to artificial intelligence. And according to the ARD/ZDF online study, the smartphone is the most important access to the Internet.
3. Gamification
Games can convey learning content, increase motivation and strengthen cooperation. This applies not only to children but also to adults. More and more companies are now using playful elements to improve cooperation and promote further training.
In the onboarding phase, Deloitte has new analysts chasing zombies and training Excel at the same time. Other companies use bingo games and PAC-Man analogies to present departments and employees. Tools, new faces, and guidelines in particular can be better internalized through games.
In a study by the Academy to Innovate HR, 82 percent of all respondents say that they better understand the meaningfulness of their work through games. For 87 they increase the feeling of belonging. And 88 percent say they are happier at work. Friedrich Schiller had already known this 200 years ago: “Man is only a person where he plays.”
Read Also: 5 Best Gamification Strategy And Tips For Online Business
4. Metaverse
The next stage of digital learning paths and playful elements is the metaverse. In the three-dimensional, virtual reality, environments can be better experienced and contacts are more multifaceted. In the metaverse, people have a face, a voice, interact and embody a person.
According to its own statement, Accenture sent a laptop and special VR glasses to be in meta-versed onboarding during the Coronapandemia. Virtual getting to know each other, town hall meetings and teamwork should simplify the familiarization and convey the feeling of being part of a new community. Mondelez India also invests in the metaverse to promote exchange in the international network.
Interactivity is a great advantage of the new virtual world. In addition, learning environments can be implemented much easier and cheaper and simulations for machines and processes can be used more extensively than before.
5. Diversity
Diversity plays a major role in the world of work, even if the topic is comparatively less present: Stepstone has asked employees in three countries how important the aspect is diversity. Over 70 percent would be good if your employer is involved in this. In France, it is 79 percent, and 83 percent in Great Britain.
Advantages through diversity have long been proven and, according to a study by the Charter of Diversity, 67 percent of companies are conscious. But how important is inclusion for onboarding? It becomes more important because the demands on companies are increasing to provide inclusive training.
It becomes necessary because companies have to recruit different workers in times of shortage of skilled workers and have to deal with new questions. This includes simple, including and gender-sensitive language in text and images. And culture and guidelines have to be topics in onboarding because they are important orientation points for employees and shape cooperation.
6. Pilot
Admittedly, the idea is not new. But in view of the latest developments, sponsorships in the onboarding process gain new relevance. Many have lost social contact through the pandemic. It is particularly difficult to set up a network when you get new. The better employees are integrated, the higher their job satisfaction, resilience, and creativity.
Personal contact also decides on the success or failure of onboarding: According to Gallup, the probability of triple increasing that onboarding is classified as good if other employees are involved. However, the belief that onboarding is only a task of HR is often believed.
On the contrary: Experts recommend that neither superiors nor personnel professionals be committed as pilots, but people from the college on a comparable hierarchy level. The need is great: According to the Stepstone study, only 63 percent of companies offer new forces a mentor.
7. Postboarding
Onboarding at companies takes a week on average. The personnel service provider HCI has calculated this number for the United States. The market researcher Aberdeen writes that only a third of the companies extend the training period beyond a month. They want to use more efficient and new employees quickly. Understandable.
However, Gallup calculated that new employees need a good twelve months to be incorporated properly. The trend goes to post-boarding: Onboarding is continued after initial familiarization in order to give employees orientation and not leave it alone.
This includes feedback talks that are always missing according to surveys. And it is the chance to build a culture of lifelong learning that becomes more important because structures change and new knowledge are necessary. A good learning culture also increases employee loyalty and improves the working atmosphere, show studies. So it is worth investing in onboarding and further on it: the enthusiasm for learning is particularly high at the beginning.
Conclusion
Employee onboarding should be tailored to the individual, as each employee is unique and will have different needs. To ensure a successful onboarding process, employers should focus on creating a positive first impression, providing clear expectations, and offering support throughout the onboarding process. Additionally, leveraging technology can help streamline the onboarding process, making it easier for new employees to get up to speed quickly.
