The ultimate guide to the employee onboarding process

Turning new hires into high-performing team members requires the right support and training from day one. Following a thorough onboarding program shortens the ramp-up period and ensures you give employees the knowledge and skills to make an impact.

In this article, you’ll learn how to develop an effective employee onboarding process. We’ll also share some best practices to help you maximize success.

What is an employee onboarding process?

An employee onboarding process is an approach to welcoming new hires to your company, integrating them with your team and teaching them skills to work effectively.

The onboarding process aims to give new employees the right information at the right time so they know what to expect and can get up to speed.

An effective process sets out clear stages to help employees:

• Learn about your company

• Understand their role, responsibilities and expectations

• Get to know their colleagues

• Learn the tools and techniques to perform at their best

• Access ongoing training and development to progress their career

Onboarding can last anywhere from a few months to the end of their first year. The length of the process depends on the size of your organization and the complexity of the role. We’ll explore the different stages shortly.

First, let’s consider why developing a structured new employee onboarding process is essential.

Why is an effective onboarding process necessary?

A straightforward and supportive onboarding process sets the tone for an employee’s journey with your company and lays the foundation for a successful relationship.

Smooth integration helps new employees feel part of a team and commit to doing their best work. At the same time, it allows businesses to create a positive and productive work environment where teams meet goals and succeed.

Here are the main benefits of an employee onboarding process.

Attract top talent

A structured onboarding process is an attractive selling point. It shows that your company values employee development.

More candidates are reading reviews for companies they want to work for, so positive onboarding stories can make a difference in their acceptance of your job offer. They can also boost your reputation.

Take this review by a Comparably employee:

Having the employee onboarding process described as informative helps make Comparably more appealing to candidates. It positions the company as a positive workplace.

The more employees highlight the benefits of your onboarding, the more likely you are to attract candidates who are eager to join your team.

Increase employee retention

When new hires feel they belong and have the support to excel in their new job, they’re more likely to stay with your company.

According to a study by BambooHR, 31% of employees quit a job within the first six months. The top reasons for their decision are:

• Lack of clear guidelines about responsibilities

• Lack of effective training

• No friendly smile or helpful coworker that persuades them to stay

An effective onboarding process helps an employee settle into their new role and become a valued member of the team, negating these common reasons for quitting. BambooHR found that new hires with a positive onboarding experience are three times more likely to feel a strong commitment to their employer.

Improve employee engagement and productivity

Engaged employees bring passion and commitment to their work. According to Gallup, fostering employee engagement can increase productivity and profitability.

An effective onboarding process promotes engagement by providing training and support, setting clear goals and creating open lines of communication.

Buffer’s buddy system is a good onboarding process example. Each new hire gets a buddy in the same or a similar role who checks in regularly and answers questions to help them get up to speed with their responsibilities.

They get a separate buddy to guide them through company culture and provide coaching and feedback as they settle into their new environment (more on that part of onboarding below).

When they get personalized support, new employees can settle into their roles, make connections and get set up for success within their first 90 days.

Create a positive company culture

Company culture combines shared values, behaviors, attitudes and best practices. Making it a core part of your onboarding process helps new hires feel supported and empowered to learn.

For example, as part of its onboarding process, Netflix asks new hires to review its culture document to understand the company’s values and the work environment. It also holds culture-focused onboarding sessions.

This approach helps employees feel engaged with the company’s mission and values and committed to upholding them from the outset.

Integrating employees into your culture early has a positive impact on performance. Research shows that companies with a robust culture are more productive and profitable.

Employees who like their jobs and are proud of their companies are more likely to stay, reducing turnover and onboarding costs.

5 stages in a successful onboarding process

An effective employee onboarding process boosts performance across every part of your business.

The five stages below cover the essential parts of the process. Use them to create an onboarding template that helps employees navigate this period and thrive in their roles.

1. Pre-onboarding

A successful onboarding process starts when a candidate accepts the job offer. Engaging a new hire before their start date creates a good first impression. It can help them feel positive about their new role and well-informed about what to expect from day one.

First, clearly outline the job description and everything employees need to know about their role and your company to get started.

Here are some details to include in new hire paperwork:

• Company products or services, market and customers

• Role responsibilities and expectations, such as day-to-day duties and targets

• Policies and processes such as health and safety protocols, working hours, holiday requests and performance reviews

• Company values and culture, detailing why you exist, what you stand for and how employees treat each other

• Team structure and processes so employees know how to communicate and who to go to for support

• Tools employees will use in their job (e.g., sales executives will use a CRM to manage leads)

• Company email address and login details for company platforms

• Links to learning resources, such as user guides and tutorials

Make this information part of a welcome pack that tells new hires who they’ll meet on their first day and what to bring to work.

Send new hires any equipment they need, such as a laptop and software, with details on how to set everything up.

To help employees understand the onboarding process and what to expect, consider creating a 30-60-90 day plan with monthly milestones.

Milestones differ depending on the role and your objectives, but could look something like this:

A clear plan helps reduce the pressure of onboarding, providing a structured focus for a new hire’s time and energy to prevent overwhelming them.

2. Employee orientation

Your new starter’s first week should be about getting to know your business, products, processes, tools and teams.

New hire orientation is your chance to build on the information in your welcome pack and help employees settle into work.

Make employees feel welcome with an in-person meeting. Introduce them to their managers and colleagues so they know who to ask for help and who they’ll collaborate with daily.

Schedule a one-on-one meeting with an experienced team member in the same role. The new hire can learn more about responsibilities and ask questions about the role.

Finally, give your new hire a workspace tour to familiarize them with their environment. Take this opportunity to run them through safety measures and emergency actions.

At the end of orientation, your new hire will understand their work environment, duties and tools. They’re now ready for training.

3. Training

Training takes new hires from knowing their responsibilities to implementing them. This process should cover everything a new employee needs to work confidently and efficiently.

Here are some tips for successful training:

• Create manageable modules to help new hires learn skills and gain knowledge at a comfortable pace

• Share content and resources for employees and test them on the information

• Provide product demos to help new hires get acquainted with tools

• Schedule alone time for employees to experiment with products

• Use hands-on practice sessions for new hires to apply key learnings in role-play scenarios

Check in with new team members throughout their training. Set up weekly one-on-one meetings where employees can ask questions, clarify expectations and get more support to overcome challenges.

Regular meetings are also a great opportunity to provide feedback and adjust expectations (e.g., do they need more or less support?). Understanding how a new hire progresses can help determine the next steps.

4. Growth through mentorship

The best people for new hires to learn from are your top performers. Peer mentorship opportunities help employees develop and grow. Moreover, companies that use mentoring report higher profits.

Once new hires have solid knowledge and skills through training, pair them with a mentor to accelerate their learning.

New hires can shadow an experienced colleague as they complete tasks. For example, a new marketing executive might observe strategy meetings, learn how to create email campaigns or observe reporting.

Covering a wide range of activities helps new employees experience day-to-day duties firsthand. It also allows mentors to share their knowledge and reflect on their roles.

Encourage mentors to assign new hires small tasks to speed up comprehension. For example, as part of Facebook’s onboarding bootcamp, mentors assign new engineers coding challenges that increase in difficulty each week. This process allows new hires to learn hands-on skills quickly and gain the confidence to handle significant responsibilities.

The length of your shadowing program depends on the complexity of the job role and the tasks involved. However, as the Minimum Viable Mentoring (MVM) Pyramid below shows, the process should last long enough for new hires to ask questions, gain experience and gather insights.

Throughout this process, check in with mentors to see how new hires progress and ensure mentors feel comfortable in their roles.

Additionally, make time to catch up with mentees and ensure mentoring is a valuable experience.

Teaming new hires with the right person helps build strong relationships that will benefit them as they develop, giving them someone to turn to for guidance and support.

5. Ongoing development

Growth doesn’t stop once new hires are up to speed. One of the things employees want most from their jobs is continuing professional development, which starts when they begin working on tasks independently.

Build a development structure that helps employees progress in their roles, giving them a clear path for growth.

Consider what training and resources employees need to advance their careers and promote job satisfaction.

Here are some ways to encourage ongoing development:

• Skill-specific workshops

• Access to industry events and conferences

• Internal job coaching

• Leadership development programs

Support and feedback are crucial. Create structured feedback loops with regular check-ins to give employees actionable insights into performance.

For example, software company Taktile provides new hire feedback six, 12 and 18 weeks after start. Sessions include manager and peer support, giving employees well-rounded insights on performance.

The company also uses bi-yearly reviews, including self-reviews, which look at specific areas such as achievements, personal growth goals and values.

A collaborative approach helps new employees feel supported so they understand their progress and areas for improvement. It also enables you to learn more about the onboarding process and what you can do to help new hires develop.

5 onboarding process best practices

A structured onboarding plan will outline the process for each new hire. To maximize effectiveness, apply best practices at each stage.

These five onboarding best practices will help you measure performance and ensure new hires have the essential knowledge and skills to succeed.

1. Invest in employee management software

Employee management software helps human resources (HR) teams support employees by scheduling tasks, managing workload and tracking performance.

For example, a tool like Pipedrive lets you visualize sales team deals and get real-time performance reports.

With an overview of essential data, you can see how new hires progress, set achievable targets or provide more support as needed.

Some software also includes onboarding features that let HR managers run automated onboarding processes such as sending contracts and collecting feedback, leaving more time to focus on providing in-person support.

The right software depends on your company’s size, budget and requirements. However, to streamline onboarding and improve productivity, look for an employee management platform that includes these features:

• User-friendly interface and simple navigation

• Integration with your business tools and invoicing software

• Time-tracking functionality to send contracts and signable documents

• Artificial intelligence (AI) and automation to handle repetitive tasks

• Integrated chat to communicate and collaborate with new hires

• Training materials for faster onboarding

Take time to review different providers and choose the software that works best for your team.

2. Create a resource library

Training is an integral part of the onboarding process from the start. Create a broad collection of training materials new hires can access during pre-boarding and orientation.

Your onboarding library should cover everything a new starter needs to learn to understand your company and perform their job effectively.

Here are some examples of what to include in your library:

• Employee handbook

• Customer personas and customer journey maps

• Product demos and tutorials

• Sales and marketing playbooks

• Technology user guides and tutorials

• Tips and best practices for professional growth

• Answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs)

To build a library that benefits all new hires, ask existing team members which resources they’ve found beneficial and what they want to be added.

Include diverse formats so people can learn in a way that suits their strengths. For example, some people prefer to learn about your product by watching videos, while others understand better through hands-on tutorials.

Finally, keep your library updated as your company evolves so new hires learn current best practices and processes.

3. Space out learning to improve information retention

New hires need to learn a lot during onboarding. Avoid overwhelming employees and burning them out by taking a staggered approach.

Spreading out learning periods is more effective than cramming everything into a single session. The reason is a well-established phenomenon called the spacing effect.

In cognitive psychology, the spacing effect shows how people better recall information when it’s repeated over time.

Here are some tips for using the spacing effect in training:

• Run short, regular training sessions spread over days or weeks

• Schedule follow-up sessions to review information

• Use increasing gaps between sessions (e.g., three, seven and 11 days)

• Mix theory with hands-on practice to reinforce learning through action

• Use quizzes and assessments to check retention

Applying this approach to your onboarding process gives new hires the foundation for long-term development.

4. Use the 5 Cs of onboarding

The 5 Cs of onboarding are an effective way to ensure your onboarding process meets the needs of new hires.

Each C represents different onboarding stages, from welcoming a new hire to integrating them into your team. As you onboard new hires, check your progress against each pillar.

Use the following questions as an onboarding checklist:

This framework ensures new hires feel confident and aligned with your company values and objectives, setting them up for long-lasting engagement and success.

5. Collect feedback to understand the onboarding process

As new hires reach the end of the onboarding process, check in with them to get feedback on how they’ve found it.

An onboarding review lets you determine what works well and where to improve. For example, you can ask:

• Did you feel well-informed about your role and company policies before starting?

• Did you get enough training on work-related tools?

• Which training resources were most useful and which were less helpful?

• Do you feel you still have skill and knowledge gaps in any areas?

• What is one thing you would change about the onboarding experience?

• What suggestions do you have for improving our onboarding process?

As with any business area, your onboarding process should be a work in progress. With the support of new hires, you can work to create a more comprehensive process that allows each new employee to learn quickly and become a valued team member.

Final thoughts

A well-planned onboarding process equips new hires with everything they need to hit the ground running and thrive in their role.

Use this guide’s stages and best practices to cover essential components and build a repeatable onboarding framework that improves performance.

Pipedrive can help ensure your onboarding stays efficient. Track progress and gain insights into performance to guide employees through the ramping-up process. Get started today with a free trial.