Onboarding is not a one-day, one-week or even one-month process. Yes, there are tasks that must be completed on or before the hire date. But to fully integrate new employees into the organization with the goal of increasing job satisfaction and retention rates, onboarding needs to include more than filling out paperwork, a quick round of introductions to peers and (maybe) a follow-up survey or visit from HR.
A little creativity will go a long way toward helping your company make a great first impression, and keep standing out as a great place to work.
There are as many ideas on how to inject fun, warmth and appreciation into onboarding activities as there are organizations, and not all will be a great fit for every company. Here are a few ideas to get you started, with some variations tailored for various work models and company types.
- Goal setting: A common reason new hires lose their enthusiasm is a lack of clarity around job goals and expectations. While not as fun as a scavenger hunt, it’s worth setting aside time early on to define what the new hire is expected to contribute to the company, in what timeframe and the criteria for success. This can come from HR, the supervisor or both and be reinforced by your gamification platform.
- Gamification: Gamification—that is, using elements of games such as scoring, competitions and redeemable tokens to raise morale and reinforce teamwork—have been popular with forward-looking employers for some time, and it’s gained steam with remote work since these apps are virtual. There are a number of platforms to help employers set up gamification programs. Here are three that work well for onboarding and beyond:
- Personalization: Include a “get to know you” survey in your preboarding process where you ask about the new hire’s preferences and impressions—anything from tee-shirt size and dietary restrictions to their preferred mix of in-office/work from home to their impressions of the hiring process and why they chose to accept your offer. This signals interest in the hire as a person.
- Swag: Gifts with company logos are always welcome, and hopefully your survey captured preferred sizes.
- Welcome gift: However, also consider other thoughtful and useful items that reflect what you’ve learned about the employee’s likes, dislikes and personal goals. A “welcome” sign is great for in-office, while a home worker might receive an ergonomic office setup kit.
- Mentoring: Assign more-senior team members to mentor new employees until they can gain their footing. The mentor is responsible for informally answering questions about the job, the company and department processes, as well as making introductions, explaining company Zoom etiquette and inviting the employee to join in on everything from lunch to after-work get togethers.
- Buddy system: If you’re bringing in a group of hires at around the same time, the buddy system pairs up new employees so that no one feels like a lonely outsider but rather part of a group on a new adventure. You can make pairings based on factors including geography, role, department or survey results. Set aside plenty of time at orientation and afterwards for buddies to socialize and bond.
- Scavenger hunt: Consider a real life or virtual scavenger hunt to reinforce information introduced in onboarding, such as a facility’s layout, a process they need to follow or finding the goals that lead to the next steps in onboarding or some company swag.
- Glossary: Provide a glossary checklist or puzzle for the employee to complete as they hear someone on staff use the words. This will help familiarize the new hire with company buzzwords and culture.
- Welcome lunch: For onsite employees, set up a welcome lunch and invite peers, management and even a company executive or two where feasible. If the welcome is to be virtual, provide a welcome lunch for the new employee and family by shipping food or providing prepaid credits on a food delivery app so they can choose their preferred meal. Company peers and management can still join by Zoom.
