8 powerful onboarding strategies to boost new hire engagement

How many employees worldwide do you think are truly engaged and enthusiastic about their work? 30%? Maybe 50%? Plot twist: it’s just 15% according to Gallup, which is a huge financial drain for businesses considering that offices with engaged employees are as much as 43% more productive.

With all of this in mind, we thought it was the perfect opportunity to go back-to-basics with our list of 8 powerful onboarding strategies to boost new hire engagement.

Think back to your first day at a new job. You probably had dozens of questions floating around your head:

• What does my average day look like?
• What do my managers and colleagues expect from me?
• What EXACTLY am I responsible for?

Your new hires are thinking those same things. Don’t let them go into their first day blind; set them on the right track by explaining the scope of their role and your expectations.

Speaking of expectations, it’s never too early to start talking about performance reviews!

Share a sample performance review sheet and walk your new hire through setting one performance target, one development goal, and a job essence objective.

Don’t know where to start? Try our step-by-step recipes for crafting successful employee objectives.

Championing sustainable-tech, revolutionizing the aviation industry or banking with a purpose - your company probably has an awesome, unique mission. Explain it to employees and then hone in on how their individual work will contribute to the company’s mission.

When employees work toward a purpose that isn’t just “making the company money", they are more likely to stay engaged.

Equip new hires with the gear they need to succeed right off the bat, whether that means a lightning fast computer, login information for the company’s resource center, or pristine business cards.

Nothing kills your buzz like having to wear a visitor badge for the first week because no one thought to request a security pass...

Don’t send your new hire home with a headache from signing one too many forms.

Walk them through a handful of the most pressing documents, and leave the rest for later.

According to a recent Reflektive study, 94% of employees prefer that managers address performance issues and development opportunities in real-time. So begin cultivating a great relationship on the very first day by setting aside quality time to connect with new employees.

Then, use our New Hire Milestones Checklist to stay connected all the way through their first year - the make or break point for most employees.

In their Relationships @ Work study, LinkedIn found that:

50% of 18 to 24 year-olds believe that workplace friendships make them feel motivated Nearly half of all professionals worldwide think that work friends contribute to overall happiness

Facilitate workplace friendships or at least positive team relationships by organizing a team lunch. Your newest employee may leave day 1 with a best buddy.

First days can feel like a whirlwind—set aside the last minutes of the day for a calm debrief. This is the perfect opportunity to answer any questions that may have come up throughout the past few hours and summarize the schedule for the rest of the week.

New hires will leave engaged and excited to come back rather than thinking “abandon ship!” as soon as they walk out the door.