Onboarding is a crucial part of the new hire process for any organization. Even seasoned industry experts can benefit from learning the rules, norms, culture, and processes of their new work home.
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A refresher on the industry trends most near and dear to the heart of the company can’t hurt either. But often, onboarding efforts miss the mark when it comes to preparing new staff for getting off to a good start at the organization.
In this post, we make the case that companies should conduct postonboarding interviews or surveys of recent hires to help regularly update their onboarding processes.
Onboarding Teams are Farther Removed from the Process than One Might Think
Even though onboarding teams onboard new hires all the time, they likely haven’t been in the shoes of a new hire since they themselves joined the organization. This means they don’t necessarily know what the challenges and best pieces of information are for new hires to know.
This is particularly true if they don’t have a process in place to solicit postonboarding feedback. Not only will their own memories of being a new hire have faded, but what worked well 5 years ago might not be as effective today.
Newly Hired Staff Have Recent Experience with What Went Well and What Didn’t
By contrast, recent hires are in a great position to help evaluate what works and what doesn’t. For one, they’re actually going through the process. Additionally, new hires enter with minimal institutional context. They don’t know the company culture, unwritten rules, common habits, etc.
Simple observations like “people kept using these acronyms or jargon I wasn’t familiar with” can help identify flaws in the onboarding process longer-tenured staff might not fully appreciate.
Ask Them to Provide Additional Feedback 6 Months and 1 Year Later
Pointing out confusing lingo and jargon is something anyone just through the door can do. But to be able to provide meaningful input as to whether onboarding activities helped prepare them for their jobs, employees will need to have actually been in their roles for a bit.
Soliciting feedback 6 months to a year after their start date is a good practice to follow. It’s still recent enough for employees to remember the onboarding but gives them enough time to better understand what could have been useful over their first several months to 1 year.
Onboarding activities are a key part of orienting new hires. That means it’s important to ensure they’re executed well. A great source of often untapped input into their effectiveness is the feedback from recently onboarded staff.