Onboarding Process: Make Your Company Workplace A Welcoming One

 
Making your workplace a welcoming one depends upon a successful onboarding program according to The Benefits Guide. Have you ever started a new job and felt lost and disoriented? While people might seem friendly enough, and a small tour might have also been offered, not all questions are covered during the interview process. Research from the Society For Human Resource Management suggests new employees that were the recipients of a "successful, organized, and structured onboarding process were 69 percent more likely to stay at a job for at least three years." Detailing FAQs in a welcome page gives the new hire a handy resource that answers the most common questions and makes them feel comfortable in a new work environment.
 

 
Dates and deadlines

The Benefits Guide recommends a summary page with dates and deadlines to make your workplace a welcoming one. It should include, but not be limited to, deadlines for projects or paperwork, benefit submission dates, when insurance becomes active, payday, direct deposit, 401K choices, holidays and company closings.

 
Employee bios

It is sometimes easier to remember names, titles and job descriptions with an accompanying photograph and brief biography. This will help employees to avoid that feeling of being lost, which new hires often experience.

 
Parking, mass transit and location

This information is key in getting to work on time, avoiding tickets, annoying neighbors and parking in a reserved spot. Provide any tips for mass transit as well to lessen any commuter stress that could arise. In addition, if relocation was involved with a new employee, include general items of both necessity and interest such as grocery shopping, malls, dry cleaners, etc. Also, inform employees if there are any discounts available for your business.

 
Vacation and PTO

Employees are very much interested in knowing and understanding when and how vacation or paid time off can be requested. Include the protocol for requesting days off, how time is accrued and if sick or personal days are separate from vacation days.

 
Insurance

It is highly recommended to make any pertinent insurance information easily available, even if registration is done online. Include agents phone numbers and brief instructions to submit their selection.

 
This article was written by Dierdre Haggerty for CBS Small Business Pulse