Timeline Guide: 7 Actions to Make Employee Onboarding Memorable

Onboarding transforms newly hired employees into promising talents for the company from day one. It is a planned integration process designed to welcome, familiarize, and prepare new hires to reach their full potential as quickly as possible.

In addition to boosting talent retention by 82% (according to a Glassdoor survey), effective onboarding ensures increased productivity, motivation, and engagement. To achieve these results, you need a well-structured onboarding process with creative actions and measurable outcomes. In this article, we provide a guide with key actions to make your new employees’ integration a memorable experience.

What is Onboarding?

Onboarding is a crucial process for new hires aimed at accelerating their adaptation to the company culture while acquiring knowledge, skills, and work methods. The term "onboarding" means “to embark,” representing the act of bringing a new professional on board.

More than just training, onboarding is designed to provide the best reception to new talent, encouraging socialization and motivating them from day one. This helps employees reach their full potential more quickly and increases their chances of staying engaged. Today, this process is more human and strategic, thanks to innovative technologies.

If you want to ensure talent retention and engagement from their first day at the company, it’s crucial to provide a memorable onboarding experience. Check out our tips!

1. Plan the Onboarding Journey

Before the new employee arrives, it’s essential to plan and personalize every detail of the integration process. Create a framework for each role, anticipating each step of the new hire’s onboarding journey. Develop a training schedule that progressively helps your new hire understand their responsibilities and achieve their goals.

Think of onboarding as a long-term process, ending only when the employee is fully integrated, engaged, and utilizing their potential. Remember: Onboarding isn’t completed in a day or a week; it should be structured in phases, ensuring that knowledge is presented gradually and assimilated effectively.

2. Start Onboarding as Early as Possible

One essential practice is to begin onboarding as soon as the candidate accepts the job offer. At this stage, the professional can be introduced to the integration program and receive initial cultural instructions. Additionally, provide an overview of what to expect on their first day.

3. Delight with the Company Presentation

In addition to welcoming and integrating, onboarding should also aim to delight new talents, ensuring they start motivated on day one. One of the best ways to present the organization, its culture, and values is by creating engaging institutional material that tells the company’s story and translates its principles into impactful visuals.

Use various multimedia formats to make your presentation more dynamic and engaging, such as videos, infographics, interactive presentations, and employee testimonials. This will help create an emotional connection with the company from the start and highlight the most inspiring and distinctive aspects of the organizational culture.

4. Set Goals and Performance Metrics

New employees should be evaluated during onboarding, and it’s crucial that they know their goals and performance metrics from the beginning. Define clear and measurable objectives that align with the company’s values and expectations.

Recording these goals and tracking the new employee’s progress throughout the onboarding process allows for future adjustments as needed, ensuring that the employee remains aligned with expectations and can develop in a continuous and targeted manner.

5. Encourage Continuous Feedback

Each stage of onboarding should include feedback sessions from leaders, colleagues, and other people interacting with the employee. Feedback meetings are vital to ensure that the new talent feels comfortable, adapted, and is receiving training suited to their learning pace.

Effective feedback helps the employee reach their maximum productivity and engagement as quickly as possible.

6. Foster a Sense of Collaboration

Promoting a sense of belonging is crucial for integration. When employees feel part of the team, they are more likely to be engaged and productive, which motivates them to contribute their best work.

Organize in-person or virtual activities that range from games to online workshops, all aimed at promoting interaction and engagement among team members. Informal meetings where team members can connect on a personal level, share experiences, and build relationships can also help break down barriers and make new employees feel more connected to their colleagues.

7. Create a Safe Space for Integration

It’s essential to ensure that new hires feel safe sharing their opinions. This partly depends on the team’s dynamics and the level of psychological safety already established. However, you should also actively encourage new employees to express their thoughts, creating a welcoming and receptive environment from the start.

Now that you have some valuable tips, take the opportunity to explore how our platform can support this crucial process. Discover all the features of Timeline and turn your onboarding into an unforgettable experience where creativity and interaction know no bounds.

Consult our team of experts to create personalized solutions that meet your specific needs and objectives.