How To Create the Best Onboarding Experience
Research continually shows it takes just one-tenth of a second for people to judge someone and make a first impression. Therefore, it’s crucial for businesses to think about the full onboarding process, starting with hiring. In this scenario, creating the best onboarding experience possible is a simple and effective strategy. It can help to create positive brand association, increase productivity and improve overall staff retention.
Step-by-step Best Onboarding Experience
To create the best onboarding experience it is helpful to break it down into the following stages:
Approaching onboarding in these easy-to-follow steps improves the process for both you and the candidate. It gives you a clear guide on how to implement the best possible experience from start to finish.
Onboarding Process – The Interview Stage
It’s important to remember that candidates are interviewing you as much as you are interviewing them. Whilst you won’t hire everyone who goes through the interview process, hopefully at least one will become a long-term employee. This is your chance to create a good impression of your business and how you conduct yourself from the start.
Provide Clear Communication
Everyone that is involved in the interview, wants it to go well. The better you can help your candidates to prepare, the better you can understand if they’re a good fit.
Sharing information before the interview sets people up to succeed, such as:
A clear job description
The process of the job interview
Who they will be meeting
Any tests they will need to do
An interview isn’t testing how well a candidate can answer questions on the spot. Rather, interviews should test what a candidate’s actual knowledge and understand of a topic is. That’s why some companies are even sharing interview questions in advance.
Defining Timescale
Sharing clear timescales at the beginning of the process with candidates involved can help reduce admin during the interview stage. If a candidate clearly understands when to expect feedback, you are more likely to reduce additional emails back-and-forth.
It also helps reduce the risk of losing out on your preferred candidate. People are likely to be interviewing for more than one role at a time. If they know when to expect feedback, they’re less likely to drop out of your hiring process for another role.
Upfront Information About Background Checks
Always give upfront information about vetting or background checks that are required for role. Sharing this information in the early stages of hiring can reduce the risk of wasted time – for both parties. It means you won’t spend time interviewing people who may not be suitable for vetting or background checks. If you wait till offer stage to share this information you could be wasting yours and the candidate’s time.
Onboarding Process – Offer and Vetting Stage
Great news – you’ve found your preferred candidate!
This part of the process can often be overlooked. However, it’s crucial to create the best onboarding experience and setting expectations to a candidate of how you conduct business. It can also be the most admin heavy part of the onboarding process. You’ll have to consider offer letters, contracts, background check paperwork and references.
The Offer Process
Creating a clear offer process can help both employers and new employees understand what to expect.
You can give the initial offer itself over the phone. But it’s important to be prompt with written confirmation of your job offer including:
Details of the salary
Job title
Job location
Who the role reports into
Details of any probationary period
Agreed start date
At this stage it is also important to explain the next steps. Let the new employee know what will happen between the job offer and their first day.
The Contract and Onboarding Documents
Share your contract, onboarding form and other crucial documents promptly.
Documents that are often shared at this stage include:
Contract of employment
An employee handbook
Workplace policies
An onboarding form.
The onboarding form is a great way of gathering the key information you need to know about your new employee. It should include things like their address, bank details, next of kin etc. This can be done through an online form, HR Software tool, or paper document. However, paper documents can create more admin and risks for inaccurate information.
Vetting and Background Checks
The vetting and background check stage is a great opportunity to build trust with your new employee. After all, during background checks you are likely handling sensitive data about an individual.
Overlooking this part of the process can result in additional unnecessary delays in your new employee starting. It could also cause additional administrative work for your HR or hiring managers.
During this stage you’ll need to gather a substantial amount of paperwork. That makes it one of the most administrative intensive parts of the process. Some common paperwork for vetting includes:
Passport
Driving licence
Proof of address (this can include utility bills, bank statements, credit card statements etc)
References
Work permit or visa (where applicable)
P45 or P60
The volume of paperwork will vary depending on the level of checks being undertaken. Partnering with a vetting software, such as VettingGateway can streamline the whole background check process from start to finish. With automated processes you gather all the required information and documents in a timely manner from each new employee. It also ensure that their documents are stored in a secure and compliant way.
By reducing the back and forth involved in gathering this information you can massively reduce the amount of time taken. That helps to create an overall improved onboarding experience for your new employees. One of our partners, Crewlink recently reduced their vetting time by over 60%, by using Vetting Gateway. This allowed them to improve the overall quality of the new employee experience.
Onboarding Process – The First Day
The first day is an exciting one, and a great opportunity to further create the best onboarding experience possible.
Before Your New Employee Arrives
Creating a good impression means being prepared. Think about everything your new employee might need on day one and make sure you’ve got everything set up. This will vary depending on the role type, but some common things to consider are:
Their desk
Computer, laptop or any other devices they will be using
Their work email address
Access to key systems they will need
Their workplace pass card
An onboarding guide
It’s also important to have a clear plan of what your new employee should do on their first day. Leaving this until they’ve arrived won’t create the best first impression.
Key Things For The First Day
Every company is different, but there are some key things you should consider when welcoming a new employee. Some ways you can create the best onboarding experience include:
Be there to welcome them
Explain what will happen during their first day and what to expect
Show them where the restrooms are and explain how breaks/lunch breaks will work
Give them a tour of their workplace
Introduce them to other employees, including their new team members or other key employees they will communicate with
Share with them your overall onboarding plan, so they understand what to expect for the next few weeks.
Creating the best onboarding experience on the first day is a tricky balance. You need to make sure that you share important information with your new employee – without overwhelming them.
The first day can be a great opportunity to establish open dialogue, giving new employees opportunities to feedback. Give them the chance to tell you if they’re understanding and taking on the information you are sharing.
Some people like to dive in at the deep end with new jobs, whilst others need a more gradual approach. To create the best onboarding experience, it’s important to remember each person learns differently.
Onboarding Process – The First Week And Beyond
The onboarding process doesn’t end once the first day is done. Thinking about it as a longer-term investment helps establish good working practices during the first few months of someone’s employment. Some important things to consider are:
Giving someone a work “buddy” or “mentor” to help guide and train them
Setting up meetings with key stakeholders and team members
Giving all training required for their new role
Sharing clear information about any probationary period, including the duration of it and performance metrics used.
Offer regular opportunities for feedback on how your employee is finding their new role.
Each role will require different elements at this stage of the onboarding process. A good way to think about it is considering the things you found useful when you started your role.
Creating the Best Onboarding Experience 10 Step Checklist
Provide clear communication during the interview stage
Share timescales with candidates at the beginning of the process
Be upfront about background checks
Be clear with all information shared in your employment offer
Promptly share your contract, policies and onboarding documents
Partner with a vetting software for all your background checks
Prepare all needed equipment, systems and documents for the first day
Create a welcoming and informative first day
Share clear information about any probationary period
Offer regular opportunities for feedback on how your employee is finding their new role
If you’re looking for support with background checks as part of your overall onboarding process, contact our vetting experts today.
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