You’re Hired! Might there be a better way to onboard new hires?

Being a new hire can be an overwhelming experience for many. This is especially true for those stepping into a new role that doesn’t have a clear onboarding path. There’s a seemingly endless amount of information and not always clear direction on how to use that information responsibly. As an employer, the burden of onboarding new hires falls squarely in your court. So, before you hand over the keys to the castle to your new employees, make sure you know how you want to open the door for a quickly growing team.

Here are four ways to improve your onboarding process and create a more secure environment for your team.

Focus on Consistency

Most new employees in your organization will go through some form of an onboarding process. Onboarding is their first foray into the day to day life of an employee in your organization. It is also one of the most important opportunities to make an impression on the new hires and transform them to loyal employees with the potential to make a great positive impact in the business. While the onboarding process is often tasked with the responsibility to finalize any dangling procedural requirements, its primary purpose is to be motivational. From a new hire’s perspective, it should be rich in relevant information that they would find useful. From the organizational perspective, it should also be reliable, repeatable, and most importantly flexible.

Customize Onboarding for the Role

Everyone learns slightly differently. The goal of the onboarding process is not to enforce uniformity in the learning styles but instead to deliver a great first impression and provide other relevant information. You will have the most success in grabbing and retaining the attention of a large audience if the onboarding process incorporates flexibility. This could mean having multiple different delivery mediums such as in-person sessions, online information, onboarding videos, and group sessions versus a more personalized session. Different people will find different parts of the content more appealing to them. It is important that the delivery mechanism is tailored towards that and lets employees go at their own pace.

Provide the Right Tools and Information

Onboarding processes provide a great opportunity to present relevant information to new employees and make them productive members of the organization. Don’t overlook this vital opportunity to provide the right tools and information that a new hire will need to be successful within the role. Whether that’s arranging for IT to get them set up properly with a connected workspace, or making sure they have all the software and devices they need to do their job, your new hires are counting on you to help them get started.

Teach Smart Data Management (Both Online and Offline)

Accessing files remotely can expose your company and your data. Make sure you and your staff know how to work on the road without exposing your company to any unnecessary risks. Keep software and hardware up to date and fully functional. Avoid logging on to the corporate intranet when connected to a questionable network or hot-spot. Don’t allow employees to use unprotected devices or download unnecessary or unapproved apps or software programs. Make sure that when employees are out and about their work computers are protected in case of theft or damage. Make sure that your team is not exposing your data to theft, hacking, or worse, when they are on the road or at home. This requires a strong cyber-security policy and regular enforcement of rules.

 

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