Before the festivities are in full flow it is a good opportunity to review any new employees due to start in the new year and work out a plan to onboard them effectively.
Globally, and no matter what size your business is, research from webonboarding reveals that businesses are failing to onboard new employees effectively, and in turn bringing costly implications to businesses. Almost four in ten of the 4,000 office workers surveyed across the UK, USA, Australia and New Zealand, admitted to having a serious problem during the onboarding process, highlighting the crisis hitting HR and businesses prompting the need for a drastic change.
Tools to do the job
42 per cent of respondents reported as not having the basic equipment such as a computer or laptop ready for them on their first day, followed by 37 per cent who didn?t receive full training. With businesses investing so much money into the recruitment process, it was surprising to learn that once they had recruited the ideal candidate they were failing to support and prepare adequately.
The extended “festive” onboarding gap
Through the research it has highlighted that there was a prominent “onboarding gap” – the grey area between recruitment and when the chosen candidate starts a new role – that somehow businesses have been mismanaging.
Engagement is critical and even more so within the first month of employment. With 79 per cent agreeing they would have settled into a new role a lot quicker had there been a better process and 15 per cent admitted they had turned down a job due to issues, it’s not really something businesses can afford to get wrong. If you have new employee starting early in the new year, the onboarding gap could be even longer.
Adam Reynolds, CEO of webonboarding, commented on the findings:
“The fundamental themes relative to businesses globally throughout the research were a lack of preparation, support and engagement. These are basic yet crucial steps needed to build the foundation of a positive working environment, a negative first impression will ultimately leave the new starter feeling like they have joined an unprofessional organisation.
“It’s important to remember we wouldn?t treat our customers like this so why would we treat new staff with such disregard These are issues that have previously been brushed under the carpet and now could be having a huge impact on company finances. With nearly two thirds of respondents admitting their current organisation needed to improve their employee onboarding.”
Technology can help
Employee onboarding technology such as webonboarding can help support the process from preferred candidate to employee and help to eliminate the onboarding gap.
Webonboarding is a cloud-based solution that saves businesses time and money by streamlining the onboarding process as well as providing an engaging experience for the new employee before they have even started.
With ready to use templates, reporting of all “onboardee” stages, digital signing and the visibility of delegated tasks and check lists, it has revolutionised the way organisations onboard new starters.
To learn learn more about webonboarding visit our website.
