Top 3 Reasons Onboarding Fails.
Onboarding, or as it was previously known, induction, has always been an afterthought.
You’ve got through the challenging part of the recruitment; you are relieved and want the person you’ve appointed to get started, to get on with what you need them to do.
Or am I wrong?
I don’t think that onboarding is seen as the strategically important and cost-effective activity that it is. There are so many benefits to getting your onboarding right.
When you consider that 1 in 3 of new starters are looking for a job in the first six months, that 1 in 4 has left in the first 12 months and that it can cost upwards of 150% of base salary to replace someone, there are undoubtedly operational, performance and cost reasons to ensure that people you appoint stay in post for longer than 12 months.
I would define a successful onboarding as “giving someone access to the information, resources, relationships, insights, support, and development they need and in a way that will enable them to perform their role successfully.”
Based on that, let’s look at some of the top reasons onboarding fails.
Reason 1
It’s a paper exercise
When you look at the research into onboarding and your own onboarding experiences, for most, it will have revolved around completing paperwork or e-learning modules for compliance reasons.
Yes, there may have been a handy and colourful presentation about the organisation, who does what and where to find the coffee machine. Yes, you might also have had a few introduction meetings set up, getting you to meet a few of the people who will be vital to you.
You’ll meet with your new boss, who, if you are lucky, will set out what you are expected to deliver and then it’s over to you to crack on with your new job and team.
Does that sound familiar?
The reality is that more is needed. There needs to be more time helping a new person navigate the ways of working in an organisation, how best to build relationships and the actual deliverables for success.
Reason 2
It doesn’t last long enough
The research identifies that it can take eight months for someone to start performing in their role. When you match that against the amount of time formally spent in the onboarding phase, only 11% of organisations say their onboarding phase goes beyond one month; then, you know that onboarding isn’t given the attention it needs.
Considering the time it takes for someone to start performing, you can see why so many people leave in the first year. If you don’t feel you can get on top of your job quickly enough, it will likely make you question whether it is the right job, especially if you lack support and development in the first 6-12 months.
Acknowledging that the onboarding phase will last as long as is required and that it will be given the focus it needs will help new starters to feel more relaxed and supported.
The research by Gallup identifies that when new starters have exceptional onboarding, it makes a difference. For the new starters who ‘strongly agreed that their onboarding was exceptional’, 61% of them said that they felt prepared and fully supported to excel in their new role, and 77% said that their job was better than expected compared to those who stated that they ‘agreed that their onboarding was exceptional’, 30% said they felt fully prepared and supported, and 37% said their job was better than they expected it to be. Exceptional onboarding makes a difference.
Giving onboarding the time and attention it deserves will pay off for the individual as it will enable them to perform in a supportive and successful way. It will pay off by having a new starter who is more likely to achieve, be engaged and who is more likely to stay.
Reason 3
It doesn’t deliver
The final reason we will look at this is that the onboarding doesn’t deliver. We know that it is often a paper and compliance exercise and that the time afforded isn’t enough. Still, if greater attention was paid to what was required for the individual for their onboarding, that might fix reasons 1 and 2.
Considering the definition I provided, successful onboarding is about giving new starters everything they need to be successful. That means a one-size fits all approach to onboarding isn’t going to work.
Yes, there will be some standard information that will be useful to everyone about the organisation. Providing an onboarding guide of crucial information upfront will be incredibly helpful. Still, you need to understand the specific needs of that role and that person.
If we assess the role's requirements, what information, resources, relationships, insights, support, and development will they need to succeed in that role? What do they already have, but what don’t they have, and how do we help them to close the gap on that?
A critical part of moving a new starter to performance is ensuring that onboarding transforms into integration.
Integration is where someone can move into actual performance, and integration can only happen when the onboarding has been successful.
If we want those appointed to new roles to succeed, we must recognise the importance of brilliant onboarding. We need to see onboarding as the essential activity that it is, not just a paper exercise that ticks some compliance boxes. Getting onboarding right will accelerate these great people to success.
See my 5 Top Tips for Brilliant Onboarding to improve your onboarding experience.