You have navigated your new employee through socialization, position training, and overall integration into the organization. They are now confidently going through their day and meeting other co-workers. You have noticed they attend your check in conversations with excitement and suggestions for improvement and began answering questions for newer hires joining the organization.
This indicates that the initial employee journey stage of onboarding is now coming to a close. There are some post onboarding best practices that can contribute to the positive transition of your employee into the next phase of the employee journey.
Ongoing Development: Create a clear career development plan for the employee moving forward, including training opportunities and potential career paths within your organization in the near future. This will continue to move them forward with excitement for the next thing.
Evaluation: Implement regular performance evaluations and feedback sessions to ensure the employee is meeting their new goals and to address any issues proactively. This will ensure they set good habits as they continue forward and allow opportunity to show appreciation.
Employee Engagement: Foster a culture of engagement and contribution. When asking yourself how to engage the employee and all organizational employees, consider asking them! This can be done through a pulse survey, stay interviews, or an employee engagement survey.
Post Onboarding Feedback: Conduct an intentional session to improve future onboarding. This can be done through focus groups or surveys and allows the opportunity for new hires to share how the onboarding can be improved moving forward. This feedback can shine light on areas for improvement in communication, social integration, training, and trainers, or maybe even feeling of belongingness.
One way post onboarding feedback can be collected is through survey. Consider asking questions like:
- Did the onboarding process meet your expectations?
- Did you receive support from your colleagues during onboarding?
- On a scale of 1-10, how likely are you to recommend this company as a place to work to a friend or colleague?
What factors influenced your rating?
- Please rate your trainer? What things did they do well, what areas for improvement?
- Is there anything else you'd like to add or any feedback you think is important but hasn't been covered in this survey.
By maintaining an ongoing focus on your employees' development and well-being past just the initial onboarding phase, you'll foster a work environment where they can continue to thrive and contribute to your organization's success.
A well-executed pre-onboarding, onboarding, and post-onboarding process is key to the overall success and satisfaction of your employees. Remember, the journey doesn't end on the first day; it's an ongoing process that shapes the employee's experience and value to your organization.
