Countless organisations are not giving onboarding and reboarding the attention and resources needed to make a positive impact on their bottom line. Despite the numerous benefits these critical processes have, companies often struggle to see their importance, overlooking them because of:
- Lack of understanding,
- Cost,
- Prioritising immediate tasks,
- Resistance to change,
- And a lack of focus on employee development.
Whether you’re a small start-up or a large corporation, all businesses stand to reap the rewards of taking a strategic approach to onboarding and reboarding. A successful onboarding program will ultimately lead to increased employee engagement, productivity, and overall job satisfaction. Sound unattainable? We’ll tell you how to achieve it:
Understanding Onboarding and Reboarding
Onboarding should involve forms of orientation, training and assimilation into your company and its culture. A successfully executed onboarding process will leave employees with an understanding of the company’s goals, expectations and culture – leading the way for them to effectively perform their duties.
Reboarding, on the other hand, is a form of reintegration. When employees leave for reasons such as maternity leave, a long holiday or any form of extended leave, there should be processes in place that help them to smoothly transition back into the workplace. Overlooking the reboarding process poses risks such as decreased team morale and productivity, as well as increased risk of error and misunderstanding.
Both processes are put in place to help your employees feel welcomed, valued as a team member, supported, and prepared to perform according to expectation.
How to Successfully Onboard and Reboard
Convinced of the need for onboarding and reboarding? Here’s how you can achieve success from these processes:
Plan for success
Planning is at the foundation of any successful process or system. An effective plan defines expectations and goals, and assesses what your employees need to fulfil them. Once you’ve reached this point, it’s important that you gather the right team to lead the process, map out a timeline and distribute resources.
Create effective programs
Once you have planned how you are going to introduce and reintroduce members to your team, you’re going to need to design comprehensive programs that will reinforce that plan. Your program should include orientation, relevant and engaging training, and thereafter a safe space for feedback. Ensure you regularly review and update your programs.
Navigate Challenges
Aim to put systems in place that eliminate the challenges around onboarding and reboarding processes, including ways to address problems that may arise. Navigating these potential hurdles will require you to:
- Set clear expectations and goals,
- Encourage effective communication,
- Provide comprehensive training and resources,
- Lead a positive company culture,
- Conduct ongoing feedback and adjustments,
- Host team-building activities,
- And utilise relevant technology.
This is how you can ensure employees experience a smooth transition or reintegration into your team environment.
We understand that onboarding and reboarding are critical processes to achieve the engagement and retention of employees, and we are committed to helping our clients navigate them successfully. We want your team to perform to its fullest potential, feeling supported, prepared and valued in your organisation.
Get in touch with us today, and we’ll partner with you to achieve this!