ONBOARDING AND ORIENTATION FAQS

Onboarding is the process of integrating new hires into an organization. More specifically, it includes setup of the new hire's workstation, orientation with new colleagues and managers, familiarization with work processes, expectations and cultures, alignment with a company's mission, vision and values, and other elements designed to maximize a new employee's performance potential in their job.

Orientation is typically a one time event that welcomes the new hires to the company. It is less personal, and is more of a general overview of the company. In contrast, onboarding is a series of events that helps each new hire individually progress into their role and it is specific to their unique position.

Every industry can benefit from an effective onboarding process. Effectively onboarding new employees helps improve their speed to productivity, reduces turnover at organizations and increases employee morale.

Virtual onboarding is a type of onboarding that takes place virtually, or in other words, without a physical meeting space. The trend to onboard remotely accelerated due to COVID, and many companies prefer this method because it is efficient and cost effective.

Virtual onboarding is done through the computer and does not require a face to face meeting, whereas in-person onboarding takes place in a physical location and is face to face. Virtual onboarding is efficient and cost effective. An added benefit is that some virtual onboarding providers, such as showd.me, feature a multilingual platform, so all employees can get onboarded in their native language.

You can evaluate your onboarding program by looking at new hire turnover, compare the performance of new hires to that of current employees, and ask for feedback.

Pulse surveys are an efficient way for companies to measure employee feedback using short, frequent check-ins. Pulse surveys reveal how a company is doing in the eyes of their employees on topics such as employee satisfaction, job role, communication within and between departments, work relationships, and corporate culture.

Turnover rate refers to the percentage of employees that exit a company within a certain period of time. It is important to track both turnover rate and why employees are leaving. Employees leave jobs for many reasons, but some common reasons include a clash with the manager, no room for advancement, low wages and lack of benefits. Exit interviews help employers identify the reason that the turnover rate is high so that they can address these issues before they become a bigger issue. A high turnover rate impacts employee morale, and can unnecessarily burden team members who stay with additional workload. Therefore, it is important to keep an eye on your company’s turnover rate and address it before it becomes an issue.

Utilizing video calls, training videos, and other tech tools are a great way to onboard remote workers! The same principles as in-person onboarding can be used for remote workers. If you’d like more information, please reach out to showd.me.

Remote onboarding can be highly effective! In order for remote onboarding to be successful, it is important to choose the right partner. If you’d like more information, please reach out to showd.me.

A few challenges are:

• Training is too monotonous
• Onboarding isn’t straightforward
• Lack of engagement
• Lack of communication

6 benefits of onboarding include:

• Promoting a strong employee experience amongst new hires
• Better employee engagement in the workplace
• Less turnover
• Quicker talent attraction 
• Positive company culture
• Higher productivity