Employee Onboarding Problems & Challenges

What is Employee Onboarding?

Employee onboarding is the welcoming journey for new hires, encompassing workstation setup, computer access, communication tools, and necessary paperwork.

An efficient employee onboarding process is crucial as it enables new team members to quickly become productive and comfortable in their roles. In this blog, we will explore some of the key onboarding problems and challenges and how to address them. 

Problem 1: Misleading Job Descriptions

If you want capable employees who can perform the duties you need, then you need to start with a comprehensive job description review with your HR professional. Often job descriptions can be misleading and give false expectations to potential employees. Onboarding mistakes can happen long before you begin the recruiting process.

Make sure that you reassess job listings before attempting to hire new employees. Ask yourself these questions: Are the job duties listed still accurate? Has anything crucial changed about the job position since you last listed it?

If you want long-term employees, make sure you change any relevant information so that your new hires are getting all the information they need. This will help make the onboarding process much easier and give your employees the chance to do a great job with their new position!

Problem 2: Little-to know pre-boarding

Your hiring manager should offer them plenty of time with their pre-boarding materials before beginning the official onboarding process. This will give them the time to read and digest important information about the job.

This time should also be used to equip new employees with any gear or software that they need for their new positions. This could include name badges, new hire onboarding software, login information for work websites, and more. Make sure you give them all of the necessary information to use these tools as well!

Problem 3: A hectic first day

Some companies spend so much time worrying about the information their new employees learn that they forget to help them enjoy their new positions. This can give your new hires negative impressions about the workplace, which you should try to avoid. Take the time to ensure that your company is welcoming and friendly to your new hires. Your new employees should feel like a part of your work family on their first day. Small things like asking for their names, welcoming them into the team, and asking basic questions about themselves and their lives can go a long way. This will make them feel more comfortable and happy working with you.

Show that your company culture is accepting and friendly to give your new hires a great first day!

Problem 4: Unrealistic Expectations

As said earlier, without clarity, new employees will lose confidence and underperform. A monstrous workload is the quickest way to burn out. Managers should start by developing a 30-60-90-day plan with their employees. It’s vital that the new hire feels comfortable asking questions or making changes during this session.

The manager should then schedule check-ins at a regular cadence to monitor the status of each project, identify issues and work on solutions. Regular team meetings are another excellent way to unify plans and delineate roles.

Problem 5: Neglecting feedback

After setting expectations and giving sufficient performance feedback to the employer it is also important to seek feedback as an employee. Give your new hires several different methods of inputting feedback. That way, you can discover new ways to improve future onboarding sessions. This will make your employees feel heard and appreciated!

Problem 6: Timely Performance Reviews

You shouldn't be the only person tracking the goals and progress your employees are making. During your onboarding process, you should set out clear and concise goals for each of your employees. Keep them simple at the start, then gradually push them to accomplish more.

Your employees should also be able to track their individual and group goals through employee onboarding systems. This will help in transitioning into their new job and help them perform new tasks.

Conclusion

An onboarding checklist is essential for HR to facilitate a seamless transition for new hires into the company, effectively alleviating the typical challenges associated with onboarding.

If we tackle these issues upfront, companies can make newbies feel more at home and happy. That means they'll work better and stick around longer. With a smooth onboarding vibe, everyone wins!"