New employees are brimming with potential. If companies turn to state-of-the-art training and technology, collaboration and a strong sense of belonging, they can flourish into fully engaged and high-performing workers with proven track records for success.

Onboarding is crucial for new employee retention, particularly as the job market cools. Just as candidates must prove their worth during interviews, businesses have one shot at impressing new team members on day one.

Employee Retention Dire in a Tight Job Market

Companies face an uphill battle in hiring quality candidates. There are currently 8.5 million job openings but only 6.5 million unemployed people. If every American found a job, millions of unfilled positions would still remain.

The widespread labor shortage means there’s little room to fail. In response, brands must uncover ways to retain top talent when they have it. Of course, this is no easy feat, especially since 51% of workers are actively searching for something new.

A 2022 Gartner study found only 59% of new hires would accept the same job offer again — down from 83% the year prior. Feeling underappreciated, wanting higher compensation and burnout are leading causes, while 46% receive better offers elsewhere.

However, many also claim the hiring process leaves little to be desired. To hire and recruit talent in today's messy economy, human resource (HR) managers must become more responsive to candidate expectations, and the same goes for existing staff. Transparency and flexibility are critical to workers who want the workplace to share those values.

Retain New Employees With These 5 Onboarding Tips

Retention must be an enterprise's priority from the beginning, or else they could end up starting over. As such, recruiters must create a smooth onboarding process for new hires. Here are five tips for hiring managers transitioning new hires to the team.

Make a Great First Impression

The onboarding process is stressful for anyone starting employment. Although new workers are eager to learn and do the job to the best of their ability, first-day jitters will likely result in much lower performance.

Human resource specialists and managers should avoid overwhelming newcomers, as it may cause them to second-guess accepting the job offer. Instead, sending them a welcome email before the start date will make a positive first impression. This email could include what they can expect during their first day or week and give them a glimpse of company culture.

Establish Clear Objectives

According to one study, less than 50% of workers understand what their organizations expect from them in their roles, leading to disconnect from their work. Many look for another job until they feel a sense of purpose.

HR managers can prevent this by clarifying the expectations and objectives at various stages of employment. For instance, establishing benchmarks for performance as new team members enter their roles helps them settle in, learn and adapt much more quickly and efficiently.

Foster Workplace Relationships

A cohesive, respectful team is essential to retention. Therefore, emphasis should be on cultivating solid professional relationships long before a business hires a candidate. Poor communication, disgruntlement and workers feeling like they must walk on eggshells signal red flags of a toxic workplace culture.

Ordering lunch for everyone, holding a morning meeting to welcome the newcomers and bringing them around to different departments allow them to connect with existing employees and create a network. A mentorship program can also help new hires navigate onboarding, training and diving into the work itself.

Utilize Technology

In the digital age, utilizing technology during onboarding demonstrates how well a company is ahead of the curve. Keeping a repository of videos and online resources makes it easier for hiring managers to customize the process and allows new workers to retain information faster.

The CultureBot Slack app is especially beneficial for automating team introductions, starting informal chats on industry topics and facilitating celebratory work milestones. As CultureBot points out, embracing new forms of engagement and socialization in a remote world creates loyal staff and a healthier workplace culture.

Ask for Feedback

The purpose of onboarding is to help new hires acclimate to the brand and their new roles as quickly as possible. However, hiring managers can foster a sense of value from the start by facilitating feedback.

New employees come with a fresh perspective about the organization's policies and processes. HR can maximize this by conducting surveys and group discussions, asking what works and what doesn't regarding the onboarding experience.

They should also inquire about what team members enjoy the most about their new roles, as this can be crucial for recruitment and retention. CultureBot can help human resource specialists customize surveys and questionnaires for anonymous insights to address issues early on.

Overcome Onboarding Challenges for Greater Employee Retention

No enterprise's orientation process is faultless — there’s always room for improvement. By properly investing in onboarding efforts, new team members will start off on the right foot while businesses reap the rewards of a stronger workforce.