In today’s talent market, many companies thrilled to have filled key positions may forget the onboarding process for new hires is an important first step in long-term retention. The onboarding process is an employee’s first impression on what it will “actually” be like to work at your company. Is your onboarding program organized or on-the- fly, do you encourage connections between new hires and employees, do you stagger training or do you load it on all at once? Human Resources expert Maya Townsend shares tips to improve your onboarding process in a recent Inc article.

• Start before they start. Is there paperwork that can be completed prior to the first day? Is the new hire’s station set up and ready to go? Think about the onboarding process and pull out the steps that could be completed prior to the start day. New hires will see this pre-planning as a sign of a company with great organization. This can also lessen some of the downtime common to that first week that can create new hire unease.

• Expand training time. Ms. Townsend points out that many employers think of onboarding as only happening on Day 1 and may overload new hires with information. Think about new hire training and how to best deliver the information in digestible doses. Think through which pieces of training can allow a new hire to feel productive from the first day.

• Build network connections. More than just a tour. Introduce the new hire to their fellow team members. Look for common connections and encourage conversation. Do you have a mentor or buddy program? Think about pairing new hires with seasoned, top-performing employees to build relationships and increase on-the-job training.

In addition, communicate your company story and mission. What sets you apart of the competition? What are your success stories and why should new hires feel “proud” to have joined. For other tips see our past blog post “Creating a Great First Week for a New Hire.” [caption id="attachment_529" align="aligncenter" width="187"] Source: tlnt.com[/caption]