The One Key to Employee Onboarding Success

If you read the general literature (for example: here, here, or here) on the best practices for new employees to be successful after joining a company, you will see many things which are supposed to help. From first-day team lunches to setting up their email, they all seem to state that those are important for success.

While those might be important, they’re not the most important and are definitely not what makes people successful.

My favorite thing to say is that: “Some things are way more important all things being equal”

You could certainly do without a lot of those things and still have successful onboarding happen. However, in every single case I have seen failures because the one key thing was either not done or done incorrectly.

I have found that the most important thing for onboarding success is to

“Always set clear expectations first-day first thing when a new employee joins by your organization’s leader”

New employees who join an organization start with a clean slate. They have no prejudices or other notions that they have picked up yet. They simply don’t know what to expect or what their job and role will be. Having an onboarding meeting first-day first meeting sets the stage in so many ways.

The employee simply walks into this meeting really unsure of:

• what is expected out of them
• how they are supposed to act
• what are the unspoken rules
• and what the shared set of beliefs that make up this organization.

Usually, they expect to learn this gradually over a period of time usually anywhere from 6 months to over a year. The problem is that learning about a new expectation (after sufficient time is passed), leads to employee resentment and often times dissatisfaction. If it is fully orthogonal to the person’s viewpoint or philosophies, it might even lead to them leaving the organization.

Losing new people after say 6 months or a year is a big setback.

Accelerating this whole timeline by making the first meeting on their first day about organizational expectations completely changes the dynamics. When a new employee gets to know the job expectations and company culture (a set of shared beliefs on what is considered important), there’s much easier acceptance and understanding.

It is true that there could be surprises learning about their role if they didn’t expect it (and if there is a surprise, then your hiring process is broken). However, it is way better to get those (nasty or pleasant) surprises out of the way on day one. If they do turn around and say to you that this role is not for them, yes it is a problem but a better problem than them saying it 6 months later.

Finally, what is most effective is a senior leader communicating these expectations to the new hire. In most organizations, an HR person will run the first meeting and might also be the most available. However, when a senior leader does the same it completely changes what signals are being conveyed.

It sends the signal:

• the employee matters to the organization so much that a senior leader took the time to meet with them.
• the senior leader is 100% committed to the culture that they are part of.
• that connections between people matter and that there is openness and transparency across the org.
• that new hires should be treated with respect by all managers and other employees.

How AnyDB Enhances Employee Onboarding

Centralized Knowledge Hub
AnyDB provides a single platform for company policies, team overviews, and onboarding checklists, ensuring new hires have everything they need from day one.

Customized Onboarding Paths
Tailor workflows to specific roles using AnyDB, providing employees with a clear roadmap for their first 90 days.

Interactive Resources
Incorporate multimedia training modules, quizzes, and milestone trackers directly into AnyDB for an engaging experience.

Streamlined Communication
With built-in messaging and feedback tools, AnyDB fosters collaboration between new hires, managers, and mentors, ensuring questions are resolved promptly.

Actionable Insights
Track onboarding progress and measure engagement through AnyDB’s analytics, identifying areas for improvement and ensuring accountability.

Practical Tips for Using AnyDB in Onboarding

• Prepare in Advance: Upload all onboarding materials to AnyDB before the hire’s start date.
  
• Define Clear Goals: Use AnyDB to outline tasks and achievements for the first 30, 60, and 90 days.
  
• Monitor Progress: Regularly review performance metrics and feedback through AnyDB to make data-driven adjustments.