American managers may complain bitterly that they just can’t find or keep the talent they need, but a short-sighted attitude to new recruits and a distinct lack of effort in helping them feel part of the team is in no small part to blame. A study by global consulting firm Novations has found that fewer than half of employers have a structured program to help new recruits settle in, or on-boarding as it is called.
Under a third of employers train their hiring managers in on-boarding techniques, with fifteen percent even leaving it up to their hiring managers to sort out all the paperwork.
Similarly, fewer than half give candidates a realistic job preview or provide interviewers with tools to help them evaluate a candidate’s skills.
While six out of ten do follow a structured selection process, just 46 percent establish objective hiring criteria for all open positions.
An effective on-boarding program starts during the recruitment process and becomes formal when an offer is accepted.
Tim Vigue, executive consultant for Novations, commented: “On one hand, most companies seem to recognize the importance of objective hiring and selection as well as supporting new hires,” he explained.
“But it also appears that a large minority of employers are pretty much winging it” in the selection process and on-boarding,” he continued.
Even just small things, such as ensuring new hires had a desk to sit, could make an enormous difference, he stressed.
Novations asked more than 2,000 HR executives what their companies do in order to minimise first-year departures:
Results
| We follow a structured selection process | 62% |
| We provide new employees with comprehensive on-boarding. | 53% |
| We provide interviewers with tools (e.g., behavioural interview guides) to help evaluate candidate skills. | 49% |
| We train interviewers on interviewing techniques. | 48% |
| We give candidates “realistic” job previews. | 48% |
| We establish objective hiring criteria for all open positions. | 46% |
| We train hiring managers in on-boarding techniques. | 29% |
