The early days of a new employment are when enthusiasm is at its greatest. In comparison to their more experienced colleagues, new hires are creative, motivated, and usually emanate a revitalised sense of optimism. Although businesses invest a large amount of money in hiring new employees, it is also important to remember that around one-third of recruits search for another job within the first six months after starting work. Gallup’s 2017 State of the American Workplace study discovered that employees want to feel linked to their jobs, employers, and firms. If those linkages are lacking, employees are more likely to leave, forcing the firm to retake the costly recruiting, hiring, and onboarding process.

New employee excitement must last beyond the first few weeks to be effective. Here are four ways to keep that early-day enthusiasm:

Make New Employees Feel Like They Already Belong

It’s simpler to establish a connection when new employees believe they have made a smart choice. Your welcome gift is what helps people feel at ease around you as they make decisions. Dropbox, Salesforce, and Google, for example, give pricey welcome gifts stuffed with pencils, diaries, coffee mugs, and tote bags bearing your brand’s logo.

You might question how you can be successful while yet making every new hire feel welcome.

Consider combining personalised and automated pre-boarding welcome kits to show them they are appreciated:

• A custom-made postcard, for instance, shows that you value your new hire enough to put in additional effort without raising pre-boarding expenses.
• Additionally, you could send them an automated email expressing your excitement about their joining the team.
• Implementing chatbots can help address their questions.
• You might also include an introductory onboarding video from the CEO or hiring manager, or a personal message from a team member sharing stories and offering insider tips.
• Furthermore, scheduling an informal meeting with team members responsible for guiding them around the office and introducing them to everyone can mimic the “buddy” system often used by schools for new students joining mid-term.

This approach has significantly impacted new hires’ views on their speed and productivity.

Give New Team Members a Map, Not Just Directions

Often, new team members discover “how things are done here” through resistance, disapproving looks, and reprimands over bureaucratic procedures they were unaware of. Consequently, the drive to achieve results is soon eclipsed by the anxiety over reputational damage or political repercussions. This decline is avoidable. An effective onboarding process should extend beyond just the specifics of the role. Understanding the organisational context provides new team members with a solid base to engage effectively. During the onboarding phase, address questions such as:

• In what ways do various teams usually collaborate (or fail to collaborate)?
• Are there established cultural practices regarding the provision of feedback?
• Is the structure of decision-making more flexible or more fixed?
• What indicators hold the most significance for the organisation? (In addition to individual OKRs)
• Who decides what is deemed “urgent,” and how is that usually communicated?

This understanding allows new employees to quickly make a difference without the anxiety of navigating cultural pitfalls.

A Safe Space to Miss the Mark

If your organisation aims to advance, experiencing failure is often part of the journey. However, the idea of failing can create anxiety for those who want to make a good impression. A poster that says “Move fast and break things” lacks the weight needed to encourage risk-taking. Instead, demonstrate a tolerance for failure within the organisation by sharing specific examples during onboarding. Share instances of unsuccessful product launches, issues with a buggy beta version, or internal initiatives that did not succeed. Discuss the lessons learned, how the organisation evolved, and, most importantly, that the individuals involved in those efforts are still part of the team.

Keep the Door Open

The onboarding experience can feel quite daunting. With tasks like establishing passwords, familiarising oneself with colleagues, and trying to understand health insurance, there’s little mental capacity left for creativity during those initial days.

Once new hires have settled in, it’s critical to extend that invitation again to encourage them to share their thoughts and provide special insights. Ask specific inquiries that show you are interested in their opinions, rather than just asking, “Do you have any suggestions?” Think about utilising cues like:

• “I would value your thoughts on this—do you think there’s something we might have overlooked?”
• “If you could start this project over from scratch, what alterations would you implement?”
• “Have there been moments when you questioned, ‘Why do we handle it like this?'”

By conveying to newcomers that “We welcome fresh ideas!” you reinforce that it’s not just an obligatory corporate greeting.

Balance Metrics and Momentum

Driven individuals entering a new role are eager to understand what defines success. Even if they don’t inquire directly, make sure to communicate the standards against which a new employee will eventually be assessed. Whether it involves deadlines, sales goals, or customer satisfaction, provide a clear picture of what excellence entails.

However, don’t start the evaluation process immediately. Allow new hires some time to cultivate relationships and gain a solid comprehension of how to effectively reach those targets.

If the metrics are not communicated from the beginning and only emerge during a later performance evaluation, it may seem like the rules are changing unexpectedly. Conversely, initiating assessments on the very first day can come across as overwhelming or even unjust.

Establish clear expectations for success early on, but hold off on activating the performance “clock” for 60 to 90 days in roles that are based on metrics. Be open and honest, but refrain from applying pressure too soon.

Will every day at work be as exhilarating as the first? Likely not. The excitement of a new job is hard to maintain.

Nevertheless, with thoughtful actions, it is possible to sustain the enthusiasm of a new hire.

New hires frequently arrive at their jobs full of energy, interest, and camaraderie.  But if this moment is not handled well, that early excitement may eventually fade.  You run the danger of losing new hires to rivals and other job prospects if your company does not place a strong emphasis on assisting them in overcoming the demands of their positions. Many businesses inevitably believe that, by itself, hiring incentives and better compensation will significantly affect attrition and retention rates. Although these financial incentives could draw in talent, they won’t guarantee long-term employment unless you concentrate on empowering and motivating new hires to participate fully throughout and beyond the onboarding process.

Without effective management or tailored engagement, new employees are likely to encounter difficulties. Prevent your employees from falling into the new hire cliff—support them from the very beginning and throughout their employment journey.

Author: Sabrina Hassan