How to Succeed at Company Onboarding?

Key takeaways

White Paper on Perfect Onboarding

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Company onboarding marks the final step of recruitment and the first step of the employee experience. To ensure you retain new employees and give them the motivation to invest in the company, its success is a crucial challenge. How to succeed in the onboarding journey of new employees? What are the steps of a good HR onboarding? The Wobee team tells you everything!

How to succeed at company onboarding?

Company integration, also called "onboarding", is a set of measures and actions put in place to welcome new employees.

This journey aims to familiarize newcomers with their work environment so they become operational quickly.

While it varies depending on the candidate and the company, onboarding remains an essential step for major HR issues such as employee engagement, talent retention and employer branding.

Importance of company onboarding

Fewer terminated probation periods

​A probation period that ends in a departure represents a considerable loss for the company. In some sectors, such as IT services firms, turnover can reach 25%!

According to Mercuri Urval, nearly 1 in 2 employees considers leaving their company during the probation period.

A study by Josh Bersin shows that 22% of new hires leave their job within the first 45 days and 4% do not show up after their first day.

A successful recruitment process is useless without investing in effective onboarding.

Employee engagement

​Employee engagement is essential. An engaged employee is more productive, more creative, less often absent and better able to act as an ambassador for the organization. Everything hinges on the first impression: an employee disappointed by their onboarding journey quickly loses motivation.

According to Gallup, only 6% of French employees say they are engaged at work.

According to BambooHR, organizations with an onboarding strategy see a 33% increase in highly engaged employees.

Difficulty recruiting talent

Hiring pressures are real, and organizations struggle to find candidates who match the positions on offer. Beyond salary, what counts today is the employee experience on offer. The promise of a strong experience helps you stand out from competitors and considerably increase the number of qualified applications.

​According to APEC (the French executive employment association), 82% of companies report difficulty recruiting managers and professionals.

The French Ministry of Labor reports that 71% of employers say they face hiring difficulties.

Employee retention

Onboarding newcomers plays a fundamental role in employee retention and remains a highly profitable long-term investment.

​According to Glassdoor, successful onboarding improves talent retention by 82%. Go2nextlevels and OfficeVibe report that 58% of employees who went through an onboarding program are still with the company 3 years later.

Improved productivity

An effective onboarding journey considerably reduces the newcomer's learning and training time, quickly making them effective and productive. In short, investing in a structured, well-thought-out onboarding journey delivers a positive return on investment.

​According to Glassdoor, a successful onboarding period improves productivity by 70%.

What are the stages of company onboarding?

Before: pre-boarding 

Pre-boarding is an essential phase of the onboarding journey for new hires.

It keeps you connected with the new hire during the period between hiring and the actual start date, which can sometimes last 3 months, in order to secure the hire and keep the employee motivated.

To do this, you can invite the future employee to events (after-work gatherings, seminars, etc.), organize meetings with their future team (team lunch, video call, etc.) or plan a tour of the premises so the employee gets a glimpse of their workplace.

  • Handle the administrative side of onboarding (employment contract, various documents, etc.) so that, from day one, the newcomer can focus solely on their social and operational integration.
  • Prepare the onboarding day (schedule, equipment, etc.) to avoid improvisation, disorganization and mistakes.
  • Get teams on board so everyone knows a new employee is joining them and can contribute to their successful onboarding.
  • Send them a welcome email so they feel expected

According to ParlonsRH, 17% of new employee arrivals are not announced.

The HomeExchange example

During the onboarding process, HR sends all teams an email introducing the new hire with a fun description. Email remains the most common and easiest channel to set up, but HomeExchange innovated by turning it into a ritual for every new arrival. It is now something everyone looks forward to whenever a new employee arrives.

For the new employee, it helps to:

  • Reduce the stress and apprehension linked to a job change and taking up a new role, so they feel calmer on day one.
  • Make them want to join the team and reassure them that they made the right choice.
  • Understand how the organization works so they feel comfortable and less lost in the early days.

To do this, it is a good idea to give them a welcome handbook in which they can read, at their own pace, everything they need to know about the company.‍

Some organizations have chosen to develop a dedicated internal platform.

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The BlaBlaCar example

For its onboarding, BlaBlaCar decided to design an internal platform that centralizes all the information a new hire needs when joining the team. The platform also hosts introduction videos made by employees for employees to share their knowledge.

The goal is to help new employees understand how the company works and is organized, while saving valuable time in communicating information.

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 👉🏻 Download the guide to ideal pre-boarding 👈🏻 

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During: onboarding day

The first day at the company remains a key onboarding milestone.

The purpose of the onboarding day is to:

  • make the new employee want to integrate and stay with their team
  • reassure them in their choice
  • give them the user manual for the organization

A successful onboarding day includes, at a minimum:

  • A welcome organized around breakfast, led by their manager and the HR team that handled the recruitment, with their new colleagues taking part.
  • A welcome pack, or welcome kit, handed over first thing in the morning to build a sense of belonging quickly and convey the company culture
  • A rundown of the equipment provided (how it works, access, badge, etc.) and the workspace assigned to the newcomer so they can start finding their bearings.
  • A more in-depth tour of the premises than the one during pre-boarding, covering common areas and offices so the employee gets to know the place.
  • A presentation of the company, its missions, services, goals and values, to clarify the environment the employee will be working in and answer any related questions.
  • A conversation with their line manager about the role, first assignments, team organization, tools used, how the first weeks will unfold, etc.
  • An introduction to their buddy, also called a sponsor, mentor or tutor: someone with no reporting relationship to the employee who acts as a trusted point of contact. They are there to answer the questions the new employee might not dare ask their manager. Involving employees in onboarding new hires gives the program even more meaning.
  • An in-depth explanation of the company culture‍
  • An HR meeting to review the first day, address any questions, share impressions, etc.

 

The L'Oréal example

Corporate culture is paramount at L'Oréal. The group therefore launched its "Fit Culture" mobile app, designed to help employees discover the company's values and internal culture through interactive games.

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After: follow-up during the first months

Onboarding does not stop at the end of the first day, far from it!

Of course, the new hire now knows more about their role and the company as a whole, but there is still a way to go before they are fully autonomous, productive and socially integrated.

According to Bleexo, it takes on average 6 to 8 months for a new employee to become fully operational.

While many companies still end the onboarding journey after one month, it is strongly recommended to extend it until the end of the employee's probation period, and ideally until their first work anniversary.

The first months are crucial for employees as they continue to learn and build up their skills in their role.

 

The Saint-Gobain example

In the same vein as L'Oréal's approach to corporate culture, Saint-Gobain has introduced customized serious games for training new employees joining the group, particularly salespeople. This gamified approach is an excellent way to keep learners interested and engaged throughout the training and improves knowledge retention.

 

The PrestaShop example

When a new employee arrives, they can spend a whole day with a member of another team. This "walk in my shoes" day is very beneficial for building connections between teams and presenting the missions, challenges and practices of the organization's different departments .

Beyond putting actions in place to keep supporting onboarding and the new employee's adjustment, the first months are also an opportunity for the company to ask the employee about their onboarding, gather constructive feedback on the effectiveness of the process and satisfaction with it, and improve it continuously. 

This approach is a win-win: for the employee, it is a chance to share how they feel and what they need to grow; for the HR function, it is a chance to get feedback on internal processes from the people most concerned.

According to Kronos, 55% do not measure the effectiveness of their onboarding at all

To follow up, HR can put in place:

  • The first impressions report ("rapport d'étonnement")
  • An anonymous satisfaction form in which employees can be completely candid
  • A strong feedback culture, with regular check-ins
  • Dedicated tools for measuring eNPS

 

The Flixbus example

During the onboarding of a new employee, the company runs hands-on workshops to gather their feedback on the onboarding experience and find out whether they have everything they need to take up their role. This allows HR teams to provide any missing elements and adjust their approach for future hires.

Wobee: a powerful tool for successful onboarding

To ensure better onboarding, Wobee's software offers a comprehensive solution that simplifies and optimizes the onboarding journey for new employees.

  • Process automation: Personalize and automate onboarding journeys for each new employee.
  • Centralized information: All essential information and documents are accessible in one place (employment contract, pay slips, absence management, management org chart...)
  • Engagement and communication: Stay in touch with new hires before they arrive and ensure smooth, continuous communication.
  • Follow-up and feedback: Measure the effectiveness of your onboarding with built-in tracking and feedback tools.

With Wobee, you can improve your new employees' experience, reduce turnover and strengthen your employer brand. For more details, visit Wobee !

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The 10 essential pieces of information to remember for successful company onboarding

  • According to a study by Josh Bersin, 22% of new hires leave their job within the first 45 days.
  • According to a study by Josh Bersin, 4% of new employees do not come back after their first day at the company.
  • According to BambooHR, companies with an onboarding strategy see a 33% increase in employees who are highly engaged with their employer.
  • According to Go2nextlevels and OfficeVibe, 58% of employees who went through an onboarding program are still with the company 3 years later.
  • According to Glassdoor, a successful onboarding period could improve employee productivity by 70%.
  • The pre-boarding phase is essential to stay connected with the new hire, handle the administrative side of onboarding, prepare the onboarding day and get teams on board.
  • The onboarding day remains the cornerstone of company onboarding and must be prepared in advance to retain the new employee from day one.
  • According to Bleexo, it takes on average 6 to 8 months for a new employee to become fully operational.
  • According to Kronos, 55% do not measure the effectiveness of their onboarding program at all.
  • Following up on onboarding over several months is essential to employee retention.
Portrait of a man with short dark hair wearing a grey coat over a white shirt against a dark blue background.

Geoffrey Chapuis

Co-founder of Wobee
Geoffrey leads Wobee's vision and strategy to transform company intranets and HR journeys. Passionate about employee experience and technological innovation.

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