So many of our clients ask us about creating an employee onboarding process for their new employees. Their most common question is: what do new employees need to know to be successful? Most consider onboarding as a 2-3 day program. The truth is that onboarding should take a full year for most companies, though the first 30 to 90 days will be the most hands-on. Obviously the specifics of each program will be different from one company to the next but the basics are pretty much the same.
If you took psychology 101, you probably know about Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Maslow’s work has been criticized as too limited; however, it will suit our purposes for human resources. Maslow identified five levels of human needs:
- Physiological
o Air, water, food, clothing, shelter
o If these needs are not met, the body will fail
- Safety
o Physical safety, economic safety, health and well-being, safety against accidents/illness and their adverse impacts
- Love/Belonging
o Interpersonal, feelings of belongingness, friendship, intimacy and family
- Esteem
o Need for respect from others – feel respected and valued by others
o Self-respect – need for strength, competence, mastery and freedom
- Self-Actualization
o Drive to reach one’s full potential and to affect your surroundings
Each of each of these gives human resources the opportunity to address every element of a sound business culture. They are what humans need to succeed in their jobs. Plus, as generalities, they are flexible enough to adapt to your company’s culture and business goals. We’ll replace Maslow’s wording with those that reflect the workplace.
- Job Duties (Physiological)
o These are the most basic needs, the skills and abilities to meet the requirements of the job duties. This really is what it takes to meet the minimum, what someone has to do to keep their job with you.
- Company (Safety)
o Once employees’ feet are on the ground, they need to know that the company is secure. We do this by addressing the company’s long-term goals and demonstrating that the company is going to be a reliable employer.
o On a more personal level make sure employees know what benefits are available and that the employee understands the value of what is being offered.
- Culture (Love/Belonging)
o Make sure that employees are working toward the same direction and that any interpersonal issues are resolved quickly and fairly.
o Team building and collaboration are essential to a unified company, especially in small businesses that are experiencing quick growth. You don’t want to go through a growth spurt and find that you have lost your group identity.
o The workplace needs to feel like a second home to truly fulfil this need. Employees spend more waking hours at work than at home.
- Recognition (Esteem)
o Recognize employees for their contributions and coach them through shortcomings. This can be best achieved with a combination of structured reviews and informal praise as well as a dose of public recognition.
o Discuss what employees’ career goals are on day one and annually. Not everyone wants to climb the ladder. This doesn’t mean they aren’t ambitious.
o Develop skills by letting employees take advantage of learning opportunities and cross train with others.
- Impact (Self-Actualization)
o Not every employee will make it to this step. But be prepared for it when someone comes along who is ready for the challenge.
o Fulfillment for some involves directly impacting the company’s success. This may mean an idea for a new product, service or customer base. Or helping other employees in their professional development.
o Encourage top performers to feel like they have a vested interest in the company and allow them to take some ownership for the successes and failures that come with taking calculated risks.
o Encourage employees to approach leadership with ideas and listen to them when they do.
The above provides a helpful outline human resources can use to create a stellar employee onboarding program tailored to your specific needs. While this can be a lot of work upfront, the benefits (higher retention, happier and more engaged employees, and more fulfilled team members) are well worth the effort.
As an outsourced HR firm, we develop and analyze employee onboarding programs every day. If you need help with your program, just give our HR experts a call.