When it comes to new hire onboarding, you want to make sure to integrate them into the new workplace as efficiently as possible. A new employee onboarding process can be vital to any workplace.
While there are ways to go about the onboarding process for maximum benefits, there are some onboarding mistakes that can actually cost you big time—especially with new hires. Here are a few onboarding mistakes you’ll want to steer clear from:
1. Unstructured Onboarding Process
The onboarding process can be unimportant to many employers. So once a new employee comes on board, they may be left to do some paperwork, meet their new workers, and then be left to complete their delegated tasks. However, this form of unstructured onboarding can leave them with lots of questions, isolated, and unmotivated.
Go beyond the basic paperwork route and be sure to interact with new employees in terms of setting up any software accounts, highlighting work objectives, and providing further resources to help them learn more about the company.
2. Delaying Onboarding
And perhaps even worse than an unstructured onboarding process is delaying onboarding. When you delay onboarding, you are leaving new employees drifting and unsure of the next steps in the workplace.
Instead, make sure to go over all workplace basics on the first day and be prepared to answer further questions to allow them to feel motivated as they join the team.
3. Less-Than-Stellar First Impressions
Employers have high expectations when it comes to new employees, but the same can be said in reverse. Disorganized and messy workspaces can be off-putting for new hires, especially when trying to make a good first impression. If your new hires are training on-site, make sure to have an organized space for them to learn in.
4. No Clear Goals or Expectations
One of the biggest onboarding mistakes you can make is failing to set up clear goals or expectations. Setting clear goals or expectations can not only help employees understand what is expected of their role but can also help employers get to know more about the strengths of all new employees.
5. Not Using Technology to Automate Processes
In this modern age, companies do themselves a disservice when they don’t take advantage of many tools and platforms to make the onboarding process easier and less time-consuming.
Using management apps or software to keep track of new employee documentation, as well as have resources, such as handbooks, payroll guides, and more, that all employees can reference.
6. Forgetting Employee Engagement
It is always important to remember to keep engagement high with new hires. Forgetting to do so can impact employee morale and even hinder productivity. Employers can set up mentorship programs, one-on-one meetings, and even 90-day check-ins during the onboarding process to ensure new employees feel included and engaged.
7. Information Overload
Bombarding the new person at the office with too much information regarding their work tasks can actually do more harm than good. Instead of overloading them with information, employers should stretch out the time period when it comes to revisiting resources and information. This ensures new employees are learning and relearning, helping with retention and efficiency in the workplace as well.
8. Staying Hands-Off
After training new employees, employers may believe that this is the end of their guidance. However, staying completely hands-off when it comes to new hires can be detrimental to workplace productivity. Always be around to answer questions or offer insight to newer employees, so they can better integrate themselves into the company.
9. Not Collecting Feedback
Your company may constantly be hiring new employees, so it is vital that after every onboarding process, feedback is collected. This could make it easier to adapt and change around processes that can save you time and leave new hires satisfied.
10. Micromanaging Onboarding
There’s a difference between offering resources and helpful guidance during the onboarding process compared to micromanaging every little task at hand. Though you do not want to stay hands-off during the process, you also want to leave some space for new employees to learn on their own.
By avoiding the mistakes listed above, you are ensuring an onboarding process that can go about seamlessly and leave new hires ready to be productive and efficient in the workplace. Don’t forego onboarding tasks; instead, make new hires feel at ease and ready to learn for maximum efficiency and success.
