In most organizations I have worked, the idea of onboarding always seemed to be a bit of an organic process. I show up, I get to know people, and I start working. This process takes a few weeks when left up to its organic means.
In entrepreneurial situations, this process speeds up. A LOT! As a remote, contract person who deals with the user experience, onboarding is a hat-trick at best.
Onboarding is a unique opportunity to meet people from all walks of life and in some cases the opportunity to dive into a whole new culture.
The Statistics
While onboarding can be a bit scary, especially for the introverted ‘IT-types’ the ominous numbers by Dr. Sullivan can get even scarier;
1. 50 percent of new hires are fired or quit during their first six months
2. 40 percent of new CEOs fail in their first 18 months
3. 60 percent of new management employees fail during their first 18 months
Most Google searches regarding ‘onboarding’ will land on pages from an employer’s frame of reference. This is sad because as a new employee, one should feel they have the most to gain from the onboarding experience.
Five Steps to Onboarding Greatness
I try to keep these ideas in mind, for an amazing onboarding experience.
- Embed: Embedding is a process whereby a new hire will spend some real facetime with new departments, and get to know them and their activities in the organization. It’s difficult to know the names without seeing the faces, so this is the best way to get up and running quickly.
- Everyone has a story:
Sure, a new hire is there for a specific role, but getting to know people should be a favorable thing. Empathy pays huge dividends and showing a little interest goes a long way. Take the time to find out about people’s hobbies. What they are into. Do they watch Game of Thrones? Do they do woodworking in their off-time? Having a genuine interest in people is essential, and personally, I love hearing stories. - Assume the side job:
In every organization, I have found that every person has a problem they want to be fixed. They tell me almost immediately. I assume that every person has a hot button. Through a few simple conversations, they tell me right off, what those hot buttons are. It’s important to keep track of these, and if the bandwidth is available fix it right out of the gate. Put it on a list, and get it done. In the corporate world, this is called ‘low-hanging fruit’, and adopting a ‘do it now’ philosophy shows fellow co-workers moxie and improves the onboarding experience. And doesn’t everyone want to be a hero? - Everyone wants me to succeed:
Given the above numbers, I assume every organization has had that odd experience of someone not working out. The book Good to Great has enough horror stories of visionless people. The goal is not to be that statistic. Being ‘clutch’ is essential. Being the person that people can count on fifteen minutes after the time clock says ‘Go Home’. As contract people, we may work by the hour, but that extra few minutes go a long way in corporate culture. People want new hires to succeed, or they wouldn’t have hired them. - Make myself replaceable:
Ken Wester was my first boss in the world of IT, and I will never forget his words “make yourself replaceable”. This sounds counter-intuitive, but it isn’t. Full documentation, transparency, and communication work the opposite of what most people imagine. In the IT world specifically, I have worked with people who hide code, and refuse to be transparent. Lack of documentation is the kiss of death, not a stop-gap measure to be valuable. No organization on the planet wants to onboard someone new if they can help it. I’m already there. I already know their processes. I am agreeable, friendly, and approachable. This is how to be irreplaceable. Even if everything I have done is documented and available in total.
Conclusion:
Sure, the onboarding experience can be harrowing, but being engaged, interested, and transparent makes the process more enjoyable and will pay dividends over a full career. If done right, onboarding is just magic!