Bringing a new hire onboard is an exciting time for any organization, but it can also come with some stress. Knowing how to onboard an employee effectively is a must, and this guide to onboarding planning ensures a more effective and efficient process.
What is Onboarding?
Onboarding refers to the process of bringing a new staff member into a role within an organization. It often includes a variety of steps that begin when an individual accepts a job offer with your business. Part of the onboarding process includes collecting vital information, often through the completion of required forms and documents. But that’s not all onboarding involves, and failing to see the big picture can increase your company’s risk of high turnover and poor retention rates.
What is Onboarding Planning?
Onboarding planning involves creating a detailed plan for how the process will look every time you bring on a new hire. While some of the steps in the process will remain the same across all departments and roles, others may need to change to accommodate different responsibilities and needs.
4 Steps to Develop an Onboarding Plan
Follow these steps to engage in onboarding planning in a way that will benefit your organization and workforce.
Know your employee onboarding goal
The first step is identifying at least one goal of the onboarding process. This often includes what a new hire should be able to accomplish by a set date. In order to achieve that goal, what needs to happen? Maybe the employee needs specific training or education, or perhaps they need to do certain tasks to become more familiar with them. With a goal in mind, it becomes easier to establish an onboarding process that includes the steps needed to achieve it.
Create your onboarding training team
Another vital aspect of onboarding planning is deciding who will take part in each step. Who is helping throughout the process? In most cases, the employee’s supervisor will take an active role in bringing them onboard and up to speed on their tasks and responsibilities. But you may also have others involved, such as those working in human resources and IT. Make sure you know who is part of the onboarding team and keep them informed as to their role.
Invest in the right tools
Invest in the tools needed to manage the onboarding process more effectively. A simple option is to create a checklist with all the tasks that need to happen before the employee begins working on their own. You could also use a timeline that emphasizes when each step will be completed and what the new hire can expect.
Technology tools are also vital in ensuring a consistent and highly efficient process. The days of filling out forms by hand are long gone, and it’s time for every organization to say goodbye to this manual and hand-cramping process. Choose an HR system that includes vital documentation with electronic completion capabilities. You can also look for onboarding tools available within your hiring platform, or an all-in-one solution that keeps all data in a single place.
Map your onboarding steps
Map out the steps of the onboarding process to ensure that everyone in the organization is on the same page. You can also provide a copy of the timeline or checklist to your new hire to keep them apprised of what to expect during their first few weeks or months on the job.
Understanding the Stages of Onboarding
We cover the stages of onboarding in detail on our blog, but here’s a brief overview of what each time period should include:
During the hiring process: Collect personal and contact information from the new hire to make follow-up communication easier.
During the offer stage: When making an offer, stay in contact with the individual and answer any questions they may have.
1-2 weeks before new hire’s first day: Before they come onboard, send a welcome message and any new hire paperwork they can complete prior to starting.
Day before first day: Provide details around their first-day schedule, work location, and expectations so they know where to go and what to bring.
On the first day: On day one, make sure to greet the new hire and show them around (if in person), as well as provide all necessary tech tools to do their job.
During employee’s first week: Throughout the first week, a new hire should have someone they can count on to answer their questions and provide assistance. This may be their supervisor or a co-worker.
During first three months: Over the first 90 days, assign the employee small tasks to build their confidence and skills, set aside time for regular check-ins, and request feedback on the process.
Onboarding FAQ
If you have questions about onboarding planning and the process of bringing on new hires, we may have an answer for you below.
How long should the onboarding process take?
The timeline for onboarding often depends on the role and experience level of the new hire. But for most positions, it should last for at least a few weeks. You can also review our blog post that covers this question in more detail.
An onboarding checklist is a document used to track the process and ensure that no steps are overlooked. You can review templates and examples to build your own that aligns with the needs of your employees.
With ApplicantStack, onboarding planning doesn’t have to take a lot of time or effort. With onboarding tools built right into the platform, clients can easily find and bring on top talent. Learn more or try it for free today!
This webinar series will get you answers to all your ApplicantStack questions. During the first 10 minutes, we’ll cover a specific topic in the system, followed by 50 minutes of Q&A. See you there!
This webinar series will get you answers to all your ApplicantStack questions. During the first 10 minutes, we’ll cover a specific topic in the system, followed by 50 minutes of Q&A. See you there!
It’s no secret that employee onboarding is key to successful recruiting efforts and strong employee retention rates. But one question that often comes up among those responsible for building and maintaining the process of bringing on new hires is, how long should onboarding last? We answer that question, as well as cover the benefits of more intensive onboarding, below.
Average Onboarding Time
According to research published by CareerBuilder, more than half of HR professionals reported an onboarding process that lasts less than a week. A quarter responded that the process lasts for a day or less, while only 28 percent spent over a month with new hires. Some industries may vary, as enterprise and tech companies onboard new hires for an average of three months.
It’s vital to understand that onboarding is more than just a day-one thing. No new hire is going to feel comfortable in their role after a single day of information. In fact, the opposite may be true – trying to cram all the information about a company and professional role into an eight-hour shift could leave someone feeling overwhelmed and confused.
Bringing someone new on board should be a longer process that involves various people throughout the organization. Explore the reasoning behind extended onboarding, along with the benefits of investing in this type of program.
Investing in a More Comprehensive Onboarding Process
Ultimately, the right length of time spent onboarding a new hire depends on your company, industry, and the individual role. But experts recommend creating a more comprehensive process that allows someone to ease into their job, rather than feeling like they’re drinking from a fire hose. Extending the onboarding experience allows those involved to transition the overall process into a chance for continuous learning and development.
Benefits of Better Onboarding
By taking time to adjust your company’s onboarding practices and extending the process, you can create a more positive experience for every new hire. The benefits of these efforts are extensive.
Improves knowledge retention
Can you think back to your first day at your current job? You probably experienced a feeling of being overwhelmed, along with some confusion – especially when learning more about your expected duties and responsibilities, company policies and procedures, and even the lay of the land (if you work in-office).
Starting a new job tends to be an experience of knowledge overload. But according to research performed by Goins & Fisher, a new hire retains approximately 10 percent of what they learn during the onboarding process, 30 days into their role. By contrast, nearly three-quarters of new employees have knowledge gained by performing essential duties of their jobs. Hands-on training is a much better teacher than a person talking at you for hours on end. Consider how your onboarding process can introduce ideas, then put them into practice ASAP.
Establishes a supportive, learning-based culture
A longer onboarding period can also play a role in your organizational culture, establishing the importance of continuous learning. When employees can learn more things over time, they tend to have stronger skills and improved retention of their knowledge. As a result, your organization can drive growth and innovation by providing opportunities to learn and develop.
Drives business success
The bottom line is that you want your business to succeed, and employees play a significant role in making that happen. Return on investment is generally one of the most important metrics to consider, including when recruiting and bringing on new hires.
Employees who feel comfortable in their roles and understand what is expected of them tend to get up and running faster, which translates to improved productivity and engagement. These characteristics can influence overall business success, making it worthwhile to invest in supportive onboarding processes.
So how long should onboarding take? We recommend spreading it out over at least three months for lower-level roles and up to a year for higher-level positions. Provide opportunities to meet with others in the company to get a sense of how an employee fits into the strategy and future goals. By taking these steps and extending the process, you can reap the benefits of employees who feel positive about their futures and ready to step up in their roles.
Managing onboarding documents isn’t always straightforward. For many, it involves handling uncoordinated paper forms, PDFs and printouts. Some companies have updated their processes to include shared drives and folders in an attempt to adapt to new technological systems. But, if your onboarding document management isn’t seamless and intuitive, it can cause inefficiencies and delays down the line.
In this guide, we’ll list the essential new hire onboarding documentation, establish the importance of these documents and explore solutions for how to manage them effectively.
What are Onboarding Documents?
As an essential aspect of the onboarding process, onboarding documents allow organizations to collect required information and share information that you must make new employees aware of early on in their journey with your company. Often, these documents are presented shortly after a new hire as accepted their job offer or on their first day. The process involves the employee reading, acknowledging and sometimes signing forms to begin their role.
Onboarding documents should cover informative resources about their entitlements, such as benefits and pensions, as well as the institution itself. This can include a layout of the office building, compliance regulations like confidentiality agreements and data security policies. To help you remember the key aspects of onboarding, follow the 5 C’s rule.
The 5 C’s of onboarding are:
Compliance: Policies and regulations
Clarification: Job expectations
Culture: Values and norms
Connection: Networking and relationship building
Check-back: Feedback and ongoing support
New workers might receive onboarding documentation in the form of digital attachments, links to shared documents or physical paperwork. For effective distribution, well-structured administrative systems must be in place that make the task simple for both HR members and the recent hire.
Before considering documentation management, it’s important to understand exactly what new employees need to get off on the right foot. Below, we’ve provided a comprehensive walkthrough of the onboarding documentation required when taking on new hires.
4 Main Types of Onboarding Documents
There are four main kinds of onboarding documents of which to take note when hiring. Make sure to get in touch with your HR team and hiring managers to ensure you have all the essential onboarding documents necessary for incoming employees.
1. Legal Forms
Required legal documents for new hires depend on the country in which your employees operate. For example, U.S. employees on a fixed salary must complete W-4 tax forms. Be sure to provide contractors and other non-permanent employees with information for legal forms within the onboarding documentation. Despite the distinct regional variations, they should cover the employment necessities, including:
Taxes
Healthcare
Working hours
Salary information
Employment eligibility form
Different types of leave (such as paid leave and sick leave)
Criminal background checks
Drug tests
Liability waivers
2. Job-Specific Documents
As part of the onboarding journey, job-specific forms are the main documents you’ll need to deliver to new hires, starting with the transition from candidate to employee.
Job offer letter: An offer letter should provide a brief overview of the new position and formally extend a job offer in writing. Some job offers may include a welcome message, start date, and next steps for new hires, whereas others may await confirmation before delivering this information.
Employment contract form: The employment contract form should outline administrative details surrounding the new position, covering key information such as:
Working hours
Salary
Holidays
Position duties
Company policies
Contract renewal
Termination guidelines
Process manuals: These will provide step-by-step instructions on how to complete various tasks associated with the role. Although process manuals are helpful to new employees, they shouldn’t replace formal training. Instead, they should function as a useful and accessible resource to remind them of what they’ve learned.
Role goals and responsibilities: On top of the other documents, it may be beneficial to provide a document outlining the key responsibilities and details of their new role. This will clearly underscore their main goals and provide best practices for succeeding in the position.
If there’s any information not covered in the job offer letter or employment contract, you can deliver this in another document that details company policies, procedures and expectations.
3. Company-Specific Documents
The internal documents are business materials that support new employees in understanding the organization’s culture, structure and expectations. Internal documentation should aim to establish the process of obtaining company-specific knowledge with a single, clearly laid out platform.
Here are a few ideas to help build an extensive overview of your company’s framework and guidelines.
Employee Handbook:These booklets give insight into the company’s general guidelines, referring to policies and procedures, as well as culture, mission and values. Employee handbooks also help businesses outline any legal procedures. Content can include:
Environmental policies
Ethics policies
Dress code policies
Non-compete agreements
Non-disclosure agreements
Company code of conduct
Your organizational chart: This type of diagram visually displays the managerial hierarchy within the organization. It provides information about various roles, responsibilities and relationships between individuals, which helps new hires identify relevant contacts and familiarize themselves with the team.
Workplace hybridization:Give employees information on their permitted workplace flexibility. Inform them of your company’s hybrid work practices and outline the structure of when they’re able to choose how and where they work.
Policy evaluation forms: Evaluation forms enable managers to assess the strengths, capabilities and progress of their team. Present this to new employees so they’re aware of the assessment criteria.
4. Pay and Compensation Records
Many employment agreements contain payment information and benefits, but this isn’t the case for all contracts. It can be found in other documents, such as:
Pay and compensation plans: Detailed packages that establish an employee’s wages, salary, benefits and terms of payment.
Pension and retirement documentation: Possesses an employee’s social security card information, proof of age, passport images and a full list of previous addresses for proof of identity.
Paid-leave policies: Regulations that entitle workers to paid time off for certain instances, for example, vacation, sickness, family emergency, maternity and grief.
Further pay and compensation documents include:
Direct deposit forms
Healthcare benefit forms
Stock options information
Other benefits documents
When building your policy documents, evaluate which options work best for your business and provide employees with the utmost transparency. This will help support your employee satisfaction.
The Importance of Onboarding Documentation
Official documents underpin a company’s contractual relationship with its employees. Without a formal onboarding process in place, businesses would likely have trouble integrating new hires into their systems and processes, and newly hired employees would struggle to grasp the expectations of their roles and institution. This is certain to cause delays and setbacks that detrimentally impact employee satisfaction.
This documentation mitigates these risks by helping employees manage the realities of their roles, meet targets and obtain full transparency of the services available to them. Additionally, organizations gather the information they require to remain compliant, add employees to the payroll system and enroll new hires into the applicable benefits schemes.
It’s imperative that the onboarding documentation process is streamlined and frictionless to benefit both sides. If not handled appropriately, it can quickly form a bottleneck that impacts business growth, employee retention and the customer journey.
Here are a few ways to level up the onboarding experience for your new hires.
Form a Buddy Program
Forming a buddy system can be a simple way to offer real support for your incoming employees and help them settle into their new teams. A Harvard Business Review study found that new employees assigned a buddy were 23% more satisfied with their onboarding experience compared to those without buddies. After 90 days of working in their new role, results showed a 36% increase in satisfaction.
Assigning a designated employee to answer questions and handle concerns can provide a sense of emotional safety to your new hires. It also gives them a comfortable opportunity to bond with members of the team and integrate into the company.
Optimize Workflows
Onboarding can be an overwhelming and tedious task for both new hires and the HR team. Streamlining workflows to make onboarding more fun and intuitive affirms incoming employees that their company will nurture their well-being. Establishing productivity as your main priority will bode well for your internal brand image.
Make sure your onboarding process doesn’t end after one week. Employees should feel that onboarding is a guided, ongoing journey for seamless integration into their new company, ensuring they’re more than equipped to take on their new responsibilities.
How Do You Manage Onboarding Documents?
Manual onboarding processes lead to vicious cycles of lost productivity and human error. It’s best practice to mitigate this risk by taking advantage of onboarding software. The right solution will keep all your essential documents organized on one comprehensive, secure and easy-to-use platform. That’s where ApplicationStack can help.`
Simplify Onboarding with ApplicantStack by Swipeclock
Utilizing automation capabilities will optimize company time and reduce the number of procedures involved in your onboarding process. Our powerful employee onboarding software lets you:
Manage documents effectively with an extensive onboarding checklist.
Secure important documents with digital employee files.
Streamline the signing stage and reduce physical paperwork with e-signing capabilities.
The Onboard tool is built into our hiring platform that streamlines the entire process of finding and bringing on new hires. Set yourself up for success. Start your ApplicantStack Onboard trial today!
