Onboarding
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Onboarding or "on-boarding" is a term used for the process of handling new team members to obtain the best results from them. An organization should be prepared to handle this specific task. In a generic usage - onboarding can be defined as the process of acquiring, accommodating, assimilating and accelerating new users into a system, culture or methodology. Proponents have described the process as being more than orientation, and emphasize the importance of making the most of the "honeymoon" stage of a hire, a period which has been described as being 90 days [1] or 100 days [2]. Rather than delegating the job of training the "newbie" to a co-worker (called the "Just follow Joe around" method by one commentator) [3] or having the employee watch a video presentation, or, worst of all, letting the employee learn on his or her own by trial and error, proponents of onboarding advocate assigning the process to a person designated as an "onboarding manager", or a similar title reflecting specific responsibility for new hires. [4]
Various writers have devised their own system of mnemonics when describing what an onboarding manager should remember and the sequence in which the methods should be carried out. One description refers to a four step process of "acquiring, accommodating, assimilating and accelerating" new hires (and includes a fifth "a", referring to "aligning" other members of the management to the need for revising new hiring procedures to include an onboarding process). [5]. Another refers to a four step "a.i.d.e." process of "acclimation, integration, dialogue and expectation management". [6]
"Onboarding" has also been used to refer to the process where an ambitious new employee maximizes his or her first months on the job to learn how to become effective (and thereby to advance within the organization), and emphasizes a different set of four "a"s ("awareness, alignment, accountability and authenticity") [7], and to attracting and keeping clients [8]
Onboarding is a core personal and management skill. Effective onboarding of new team members can be one of the most important contributions any hiring manager/direct supervisor or Human Resources professional can make to long-term organizational success, because onboarding done right can improve productivity, talent retention and build shared culture. Onboarding may be especially valuable for executives transitioning into complex roles because it may be difficult for individuals to uncover personal, organizational and role risks in complicated situations when they don't have formal onboarding assistance.
References
- ^ Michael Watkins, The First 90 Days, (Harvard Business School Publishing, 2003) ISBN 1591391105)
- ^ "That tricky first 100 days", The Economist, July 15, 2006
- ^ Max Messmer, Human Resources Kit for Dummies (2d. Ed.) (Wiley Publishing, Inc, 2007), p145
- ^ George Bradt, et al., The New Leader’s 100-Day Action Plan (J. Wiley and Sons, 2006); "How to Take the Reins At Top Speed", by Jena McGregor, Business Week, February 5, 2007
- ^ George Bradt and Mary Vonnegut, Onboarding: How To Get Your New Employees Up To Speed In Half The Time, (John Wiley & Sons, 2009) - ISBN 0470407034); align the organization on the need for a new team member and the delineation of the new role; acquire the best person for the team, accommodate the new person's needs, assimilate the new person into the team, and accelerate the person and the team to achieving results more quickly
- ^ J. Leslie McKeown, Retaining Top Employees (McGraw-Hill, 2002), p153
- ^ Clyde C. Lowstuter and Cammen B. Lowstuter, In Search of the Perfect Job: 8 Steps to the $250,000+ Executive Job That's Right for You (McGraw-Hill, 2007), p436
- ^ William J. Cusick, All Customers are Irrational: Understanding What They Think, What They Feel, and What Keeps Them Coming Back (American Management Association, 2009)