3 new hire statistics that will make you RETHINK onboarding

A powerful statistic can change your outlook. If you don’t believe me, try this on for size: if we captured 0.3% of solar energy from the surface of the Sahara desert, we could power the whole of Europe!

So, with that in mind, we’ve hunted down three of the most game-changing new hire statistics that will transform the way you think about employee onboarding.

Work Institute’s 2019 Retention Report found that turnover has skyrocketed by over 88% since 2010. If the trend continues, voluntary turnover (employees choosing to leave their positions) will be at an all-time high of 35% by 2023.

What this means for onboarding

Despite these intimidating numbers, there are so many areas where employers can better support their staff to turn this trend around. According to Work Institute, the five biggest causes of voluntary turnover include:

• Lack of growth and development opportunities
• Work-life balance
• Manager behavior
• Compensation and benefits
• Concerns about wellbeing, such as mental health & pregnancy

In other words, treat new hires like people, versus product, and you’re more likely to keep them.

Teach new hires about your culture of employee engagement, provide on-the-job training, and explain benefits. Give them opportunities to grow and support them with positive reinforcement - a little can go a long way.

Pro Tip: Don’t forget to get all new people leaders into manager onboarding; it’s the fastest, most effective way to get them up to speed and help them become managers that people actually want to report to.

Your first day of a new job is crucial, so you’d think that new hires would get the red carpet treatment. But according to our Expectation vs Reality of Onboarding research report, a surprising number of them are abandoned on day 1.

What this means for onboarding

The good news is that this is low hanging fruit. Go beyond day one with these great tips and tricks that will delight and inspire your new hire throughout their entire first week.

And why stop at week one? Research shows that new hires who undergo longer onboarding processes become productive 34% faster than those in the shortest programs.

Mellon Financial corp. crunched the numbers: it takes new hires 8 to 26 weeks to reach peak productivity. This learning curve can cost companies 1% to 2.5% of total revenue.

What this means for onboarding

You may be tempted to speed up the onboarding process, thinking you’ll cut expenses. That might work, but it’s more likely to undermine your new team member’s preparedness for his or her role, not to mention kill employee engagement when many of the culture boarding elements are left on the cutting room floor.

The Takeaway

Spend time planning and building an employee onboarding program that contains the 6 C's of onboarding. It may require more resources in the short term, but it’ll pay off in productive, engaged team members who will be up and running and integrated faster.

Ultimately, a new recruit’s journey will only ever be as good as the work you put into building it. So get your creative cap on and start brainstorming today!

Want more great onboarding content? Explore our resource centre and get inspired with whitepapers, webinars, guides, infographics and lots more!