A pretty strong argument can be made that the onboarding process might be a make-or-break moment when it comes to new employees. Onboarding introduces new employees to the company’s culture and vision while familiarizing them with policies and procedures that are vital to their success in the company. In short, onboarding lays the foundation for what all parties are hoping will be a successful and fruitful career with the company.
How important is onboarding? According to a study by the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM), 50% of hourly employees leave their new job within 120 days of being hired. Conversely, a well-structured onboarding and induction process leaves 69% of employees likely to remain at the job for up to three years. Anyone who has worked in HR can tell you the hours and money that employees staying on can save a company.
With technology changing the way more industries perform their duties, technology can also make your job of onboarding new employees more efficient and more effective. Here are our top 5 advantages you’ll experience when you switch to an electronic onboarding system.
Younger generations entering the workforce are more tech-savvy than ever. Most of them are looking for a job within a company that appreciates these skills and gives them opportunities to use technology to save time. Electronic onboarding gives employees the impression that your company is also on the cutting edge and that the work experience you provide them will use all available resources to make their jobs better and more efficient.
While many industries were already moving toward remote workforces, the COVID-19 pandemic brought a lot more companies into the trend. That means you may have to onboard employees who will never step foot into your company’s building or into your HR office. Electronic onboarding gives all employees the same onboarding experience no matter where they are located geographically, ensuring all employees are on the same page whether they work alongside you or remotely.
Electronic onboarding allows employees to “preboard” which means they can complete important paperwork tasks and become familiar with the company’s values and cultures all before their first day on the job. Traditional onboarding may require an employee to spend an entire day in HR filling out paperwork and getting their employee file squared away. However, preboarding means their first day can be spent jumping into their new role right away and learning the responsibilities and duties that will come with it.
Again, onboarding is vital to the success of a new employee, so holding employees accountable on their end of the bargain is important. Electronic onboarding allows employers to track progress the employee has made in the onboarding process in real-time. Employers can see what modules are still left to complete or what resources were downloaded and how many times. This can also give employers valuable insight when it comes to improving the onboarding process.
If specific parts of the onboarding process are not strong, the number of employees not completing them may give you that information. Some programs even contain surveys that can help you strive to improve the entire process.
Traditional hiring and onboarding processes can really tax your HR department. Between the mountain of paperwork they have to get through and the possibly dry delivery of important but not-so-exciting information, employees can become disengaged pretty quickly. Automating a lot of these tasks frees up HR representatives to spend more personal time with the new hire, discuss why they have a passion for their work, and introduce them to team members.
An automated process gives new hires a chance to do the boring stuff on their own and spend their time acclimating to their new role and meeting the people who will be working with them.
If you’re thinking about taking your onboarding process into the 21st century by using digital software that will make HR’s life easier and your employees more engaged, Complete Payroll can help. Contact one of our team members today to discuss how Complete Payroll can save your company valuable time and help new hires hit the ground running with all the resources they need at their fingertips.