Setting The Stage

A robust onboarding programme is as important as a firm’s recruitment process; without this, talent rarely sticks.

- David Mattson

Here are three true or false statements I would like you to consider in relation to your company. Please answer with absolute, brutal honesty. On at least one occasion, I have onboarded new hires ‘informally’, without any documentation or process, and/or let others do so.

In previewing or evaluating the performance of new hires during their early months with our company, I have said or thought some variation on, ‘They are smart; they will figure it out.’

My organisation has, on at least one occasion, hired someone and then expected that person to ‘hit the ground running’ without clear, measurable performance benchmarks, and/or without a comprehensively written playbook that showed them exactly how to do what they needed to do during their first weeks and months on the job.

Most of the leaders I work with will tell me that, if they are being completely honest, then they must answer ‘true’ to all three of these statements. Maybe you have just had that same realisation. If so, you are looking at a blind spot that could undermine or even kill your business: the failure to onboard new talent effectively.

No matter what industry you are in, talent is the lifeblood of your organisation. When you think about upgrading the talent you are able to attract and retain, two questions must be constantly on your mind: how effective is your hiring process? And how long does it take a new hire to become profitable, or make a contribution to your organisation? Creating a good onboarding process, one that is based on trackable metrics, regular check-ins, and clear playbooks give you an immediate insight into the real-world answers to both of those critical questions. But most leaders do not know the answers to these two questions.