Recruitment is one of the most
important management functions. Ultimately, it is about getting the right
people, with the right skills, expertise and attitude, who are aligned to the
values and culture of the organisation. We all know how difficult it is to get
it right, we all know the pitfalls of not doing it well enough and well all
know how difficult it is to retain the right people.
Once completed, the recruiting
manager gets a big tick in the box. Job done ! But our experiences show that
getting the people into an organisation is only the start of another and more
important responsibility, which I personally find very exciting, that of
onboarding.
As a term, the use of the word
‘onboarding’ is relatively recent. This has replaced earlier terms like
‘orientation’, perhaps because it is about making a new entrant more
comfortable with the work place and the colleagues, and enabling them to
understand the organisation and settle down well. ‘Induction’ is another
popular term, which involves either focussed and tailored sessions about the
organisation and getting to know about the various teams or departments in the
organisation, the policies and processes, the ways of working etc.
‘Onboarding’ is presumably a
more comprehensive term which is all the above, but it is also about enabling
the person to be fully on board. It is about understanding the role that the
person is recruited to, its connection with the mission and purpose of the
organisation, the key inter-relationships both internal and external, and very
importantly, the culture and values that underpin an organisation.
So how can onboarding be
effectively done ? Here are a few things that I have found quite useful :
1.
Organisational
history and purpose: One motto that I have found quite useful is :
Respect the past, live in the present and be aspirational about the future. It
is so important to know where the organisation has come from, what were the key
phases in the evolution of the organisation, how do we understand the history
of the organisation. That is what would help us in enabling new joiners to
better understand the context in which we are working, and getting their heads
around the rationale behind the various changes in the evolution of the
organisation.
2.
Clarity
on the role : It is quite reasonable to expect that a new
joiner would know what their role is. After all, they would have gone through
the recruitment pack, which enabled them to prepare for the role and that’s why
they got the job, isn’t it ? Often, it is not that simple. When a person comes
in, they do have some understanding of the organisation and the role, but do
not take it for granted. They need to understand the role in the context of
what the organisation seeks to achieve and its purpose. They need to understand
their role vis-à-vis that of others in the team and in other teams. They need
to understand the distinctive contribution they need to make. They need to
understand what is expected of them and the basis on which their performance
would be assessed. They need clarity on the role, in terms of their objectives
and measures of success.
3.
Culture
and values : We all have seen various ways in which people try to
explain the culture and values of the organisation. It may be on wall, on the
intranet site, on post cards, in documents. The trouble is, when we ask people
about these values or explain the culture of the organisation, it often depends
upon who you speak to. As it is often said, culture is more about how people
experience it rather than how people explain it. It is that intangible, it is what
people feel about being in an organisation. There needs to be opportunities and
space for the person to understand this, to ask questions and to be guided in
enabling a better understanding, and therefore, a deeper commitment to the
organisational culture and values.
4.
Accompaniment
:
A new role in a new organisation can be daunting in itself. It can be
particularly so for a person who is relatively young and starting a new career,
someone returning after a long break, someone settling in from overseas,
someone who is from a different sector, someone who is moving up or sideways in
a career. The first port of call is
usually the line manager, who is responsible for the day-to-day
accompaniment, with a mixture of coaching and mentoring. In some cases, it
could be the someone from the HR/People team. While these are more formal and
established touchpoints for contact, it would be worth thinking of a system of
‘buddying’ if the person is up for it and if the role is complex enough that
requires some such buddying arrangement. Some organisations would also engage
external coaching for senior roles, as they need to quickly get to grips with
complex leadership challenges.
It is very difficult to
estimate the exact length of time that the process of onboarding would take for
it to be effective. But in my experience, it is rarely less than six months and
it could last for up to a year, especially in more senior roles and in
international organisations, that would require them to travel, get to the more
international parts of the organisations and the programmes. What I have seen
is that when done well, it is a huge investment of time and resource that is
well worth the effort as it is all about making the person settle down well,
which in turn, drives engagement and retention. The last thing organisations
want to see is someone leaving within a year or two of joining or someone who
is unable to perform, primarily because they were not supported especially in
their early days !
(Originally published in the Third Sector, March 2019)
