Onboarding is one of the most important parts of bringing a new employee into your company. It not only assures a proper understanding of job tasks but also of your company culture. A successful onboarding program greatly reduces training time, increases new hire retention and allows a new employee to make contributions faster. What follows is a brief overview of what makes a successful onboarding program and of how to leverage cloud-based technology to enhance the overall process.
Introduction And Objectives
Every good onboarding program needs a clearly defined set of goals and steps on how to reach them via related objectives. New employees must have the right tools, software, and data sources to complete their training. Goals should be clearly set and have related exercises to achieve them. New hires should also be clear on whom to reach out to for issue. They should additionally be aware of company procedures and be formally introduced to your training software.
The Importance Of Engagement
A key part of any successful onboarding effort is engaging your employees with the training process. Part of engaging your employees is inciting a genuine feeling of purpose with their work and a sense that their job means something. So, from the very first day employees should understand your company’s ideals, goals, and where their job fits in terms of meeting these goals. To make a new employee feel at ease during their training, assign them a mentor that can help them and answer questions.
Be Proactive
From day one, an employee should have clearly defined goals they are meeting. Less successful onboarding often lacks concrete goals and the new hire falls into a holding pattern in which he or she is waiting for something important to occur. By setting goals early on, you stress the importance of their work. Also praise good performance to show that effort and hard work aren't ignored. Training should not be perceived as being passive.
Following Up
No two employees learn the same way and this is why following up is essential. Hold interviews with new hires to get their input on the training process both during the process and several months later to measure effectiveness. Also, interview their managers and supervisors to gauge the overall effectiveness of training. Make use of this information to update and improve your training procedures. An effective onboarding process results in increased employee satisfaction which reduces turnover and increases overall job performance.
Using Technology
Cloud-based training has greatly increased the accessibility and flexibility of training materials and plans. Proper implementation of this technology makes the above steps possible. Traditional classroom-based training methods often face issues with logistics, scheduling, and location. Cloud-based training can be accessed anywhere from an Internet connected computer, thereby removing logistics and time frame issues. Online training also allows for easier sharing of learning resources by attaching required documentation and links (such as a company wiki) to the class session. Also, by making use of online learning plans, you can customize your employee training for each individual hire. This makes for a more effective training process as you can shape the training process for individual needs instead of general, overarching ones.
Conclusion
In summation, the keys to a successful onboarding process for new hires requires these key concepts and best practices:
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Defined objectives and measurable goals.
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Training methods designed to meet these goals.
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Proper overview of company culture, tools, and methodology.
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An engaged training process complete with mentoring.
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Goals set on day one.
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Correct leveraging of cloud-based technology and usage of a personalized training plan.
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Regular training follow ups and employee interviews.
