A smooth onboarding process will make your employees happier

At the heart of every business are the people it employs – this is why onboarding is so important.

However, every entrepreneur knows that despite it being an extremely exciting time, recruitment can also be stressful and expensive. Finding someone that suits your culture and ethos is sometimes hard. That’s why when you do decide you’ve found the fight person, making sure they stay with the company and remain happy is crucial.

For me, the onboarding process starts at the interview stages. It’s from that point that you’ll be able to build a rapport with the candidate and gauge whether they’re the right fit for your business’ culture.

I think the biggest fear for new starters is that they’re on their own, in a completely new environment, surrounded by people they’ve never met. Having a couple of the day-to-day people involved at different stages of the interview process works well for this reason.

One of the most important things as a business is culture, and finding people that fit into that should be a main focus when recruiting. Although having an immaculate skillset and CV is key, making sure that they’ll get on with the rest of the team is just as important.

Look for candidates who show traits such as ambition and drive to make sure they’re a good fit. While having the right skillset is vital, it’s not the deciding factor when hiring. If someone’s personality or way of working isn’t compatible with your culture then you may want to choose another candidate.

How you can help

New starters should understand their target audience, regardless of what level or department they’re working at. So, to improve your employees’ understanding of your customer base, ask every newcomer to spend a couple of days on the support phones, talking to and helping customers. This is something I’d recommend to any business owner.

Not only does it make a huge difference having a workforce that is totally immersed in its customer base, it’s a great way to ease people into their new role.

Another point is to always have the new starter’s desk, laptop and first piece of work ready for when they arrive. It’s never nice to go to a new job and feel as if no one’s sure what you’re meant to be doing or why you’re there. Make sure that everything is set up for them when they get there.

This may seem like a trivial thing, but for a newcomer who knows practically no one, feeling needed and important can go a long way to helping them settle in.

Another effective tactic to touch on is social events. The best way to get to know people at work is through more relaxed social functions. So, finding an excuse to get the team out of the office for a lunch or an evening is great when it comes to ensuring new starters feel comfortable and welcome.

With that in mind, always try to plan social occasions and team building events for when a new person is starting. Even though you might think it’s not necessary, giving people a chance to socialise on a less official level can make a big difference to how the feel and behave at work.

The most important thing to get right is that transparent and open relationship between employer and employee.

Making sure there is an infrastructure for constant and consistent support and communication is the best way to engender new starters into the team. Whether this means catching up with them once a week for the first month or so, or just letting them know that you’re free to chat any time, being supportive and visible to them is vital. There also needs to be a level of patience and understanding in those early stages, as it might take newcomers a while to understand your processes and way of working.

“It doesn’t just apply to new starters though, but to all employees”

A happy workforce is a productive workforce, so any measures you can take to ensure they’re happy from the start will make a huge difference. This idea doesn’t just apply to new starters though, but to all employees.

Retaining staff is much more cost-effective than having to continually hire, so the longer employees stay with you the better. Recruiting can be a time-consuming, expensive and mentally draining process if you’re constantly having to repeat it.

Kai Feller is the co-founder of online local services marketplace, Bark.com.