The Impact of Employee Onboarding on Employee Value Proposition (EVP) and Employee Experience

In my time working as a HR consultant, I have worked across numerous EVP and employee engagement projects. I've used data and analytics to get under the skin of what employees want from an employer, and I've ran many diagnostic workshops and conducted one to one interviews to help companies understand what a great employee experience is.

The one aspect that continually comes up is the onboarding experience, and that its a positive contributor to a great employee experience and a high NPS score. First impressions last - and those employees that are onboarded positively are usually more engaged. Frequently i get asked... Is it the role of HR? or the line mangers job? Should it start before the employee starts, or in week one? Do we talk about EVP and company culture, or focus on the job role and specific tasks? The answer varies depending on the business and seniority of role - but in my experience all organisations want their employees to "hit the ground running" - which is where I pull a face!

Recruiting and onboarding new team members is key to organsational growth, so it is more important than ever to have a strong and effective employee onboarding process that engages and excites your new starters.

Employee onboarding is also critical for delivering on a company's employee value proposition (EVP), and it is a key factor in attracting and retaining top talent. A good employee onboarding process can help to communicate the company's EVP to new employees and make them feel welcome, engaged and valued from day one.?

According to a study by BambooHR, companies with a strong employee onboarding process have a 50% higher chance of retaining new hires after the first six months. Additionally, a study by Aberdeen Group found that companies with a strong employee onboarding process experience a 25% increase in employee engagement.

On the other hand, companies with a weak employee onboarding process are more likely to experience high employee turnover rates. According to a study by Glassdoor, companies with a weak employee onboarding process lose 20% of their new hires within the first 90 days.

The Impact of Employee Onboarding on Business

A good employee onboarding process can have a significant impact on a company's bottom line. According to a study by the ROI Institute, companies with a strong employee onboarding process experience a 69% improvement in productivity. Additionally, a study by Gallup found that companies with a strong employee onboarding process have a 20% increase in sales.

So why do some companies get it so wrong? Time is usually the driving factor here, and the lack of a well thought out process, that can be flexed for a senior hire to a part time assistant.

When onboarding goes bad..

“I turned up at a new job to find the person who hired me was away for a week and no one else knew what I was supposed to do. No desk, nothing. Standing in the middle of the office while they all just looked at me blankly.”

“The HR department got my location wrong, gave me the incorrect start date and failed to send me any information regarding expectations of starting, such as who to ask for, what time to get there, what to bring with me.”

When it’s done well…?

“It may sound counterproductive, but MailChimp uses a revolutionary strategy for its onboarding process: they make sure new employees don't work during their first week. They employ an intense and complete onboarding process during the first five days so that when starting the second week, they can work at almost 100%”

“We have an all-hands once a month, a hackathon every 6 months, and each department has a quarterly social event - so there’s always something to invite new hires to before their first day. We even invited four new joiners to Tuscany last year!”

“My onboarding experience was well balanced and set expectations for my journey at Ourspace. I got a mix of small operational wins, exposure to customers, fun ways to get to know the team, and big-picture context. It was nice to not feel too overwhelmed with to-dos while also getting a clear direction.”

Employee onboarding is an essential part of any successful business, and worth taking the time to review and invest in. Take some time out with your team and ask them about their experience. You can also use data from your most recent employee engagement survey to focus down and compare those employees who have been in the business less than a year. At a department level, you can have an impact, however investing in a strong onboarding program from a company wide perspective is key to improving employee retention rates, increase employee engagement, and boost productivity.