Get on board, stay on board

Posted by Ricki Sharpe on September 27, 2007
Filed Under Talent Management

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%