From Offer to Onboarded: How to Create a Seamless Candidate Journey

Just 12% of employees agree that their organisation does a good job of onboarding new team members. 

Shocked? Think back to a time you joined a new job. Were you adequately cared for and trained? An engaging job advertisement and strong employee benefits may have drawn you in, but the key to a great employee value proposition (EVP) is the onboarding experience. Put simply, the work isn’t done once the contract is signed. Onboarding is the prime time to deliver on your employee value proposition (EVP) and other promises made during the early hiring stages, providing new employees with a real insight into your organisation’s culture and values.

Not sure where to start? In this article, we’ll explore the key steps to creating a seamless onboarding journey, from acceptance to day one.

Why is the Candidate Journey Important?

The candidate journey is an essential part of successful retention. It’s no wonder that a quarter of organisations with poor onboarding processes report annual average turnover rates of 20% and above! Employees quickly leaving puts pressure on ongoing recruitment efforts and having fewer long-term staff around can also significantly damage company culture. 

Here are three more benefits of a seamless candidate journey beyond just the job offer:

• Boost Your Reputation – A company that prioritises the candidate experience will attract and secure top candidates more quickly. Gallup research shows that employees who feel connected to their organisation’s culture are four times more likely to be engaged at work. They’re also almost six times more likely to recommend their workplace to others, which can strengthen your brand reputation as a employer that truly cares about its workforce.
• Retain More Employees – A seamless application process is about attracting and retaining the right talent. Companies with strong onboarding practices are more likely to keep employees on the payroll for up to three years, according to Employee Matters HR data. Effective onboarding can also increase employee performance by up to 70%, helping new hires feel more confident and secure in their roles.
• Streamline Administration Processes – From a lack of communication to time-consuming forms, leaving gaps in your recruitment process sacrifices precious hours. New employees could instead spend this making a difference within your company.

Having detailed contracts and policies ready to go from day one and interviews scheduled smoothly helps you avoid this. It also makes a great first impression on candidates and attracts even more applications for future job roles.

How to Create a Positive Employee Onboarding Experience in 3 Steps

Onboarding is an activity that lasts longer than just one week. In fact, with regular check-ins and ongoing reviews of a new hire’s progress, the entire process should span a few months, consisting of the following three stages:

1. Pre-Boarding

Pre-boarding covers the gap between offer acceptance and the start of the onboarding process. This is also when employees may get cold feet, which is why making them feel welcome from the very start – not just on their first day – is key. A great way to do this is by creating a preboarding checklist to keep HR managers, IT staff, finance departments, and upper management in sync. Include steps to:

• Schedule introductions from the new employee’s team
• Send welcome messages from leadership
• Start setting up the candidate’s welcome portal for a seamless employee experience
• Ensure access to training materials and important policy documents

Preparing a clear contract during this stage is another crucial step for smooth onboarding. 

Using an advanced contract assembly tool speeds up the process, taking details directly from employee agreements to ensure accuracy and compliance. Once complete, contracts are automatically sent to candidates and all relevant departments for fast, secure approvals.

2. Onboarding

All onboarding processes are unique and vary depending on the organisation’s industry and hiring needs. However, this part of the candidate journey generally involves a formal job acceptance, filling out starter forms, and setting up a workspace and technology. 

A great welcome goes beyond simply signing paperwork. Strong onboarding processes should also help the new employee feel connected to your organisation’s culture and mission. This starts with creating a comprehensive welcome pack that includes the following details:

• A CEO or leadership welcome letter
• Onboarding documents, from contracts to emergency contact forms
• Company handbook or newsletters exploring the organisational culture
• Internet and technology policies, including logins and email addresses
• Ongoing training and career development opportunities
• Personalised gifts or company merchandise 

Want to reduce the time taken to welcome new team members on board? Build your welcome pack with ease by utilising intuitive onboarding software, which automates the entire process. Auto-fill contract templates and personalised packs eliminate manual onboarding costs and leave more time to support your team.

3. First 90 Days

The first three months are make or break when it comes to new hires. Employment data shows that applicants who stay for at least 90 days are more likely to remain with the company for at least a year.

The key to success is not overwhelming new hires in the first week. Although policies and procedures should be outlined in the welcome package, leave plenty of time to answer any queries that may come up, fine-tune the details of the role, and solve any IT-related problems.

Assign a co-worker to assist with this process, who can offer more personalised support to the successful candidate. Partnering with another employee rather than a higher-up manager may help the candidate feel more comfortable asking questions and getting to know the company culture.

Goal setting and progress monitoring, with regular meetings or check-ins for constructive feedback throughout the 90 days, can also help your new employee settle into their role. Higher job satisfaction and happiness are often the result, with Management Science studies finding a direct link between happiness and increased productivity.

How to Develop Successful Onboarding Processes

A huge 43% of new employees leave within the first month due to poor onboarding practices. These processes can often be difficult to establish, especially with large amounts of information to process, the administrative burden placed on HR managers, and time-consuming forms for new employees to fill out. Not to mention the challenges of meeting compliance requirements for your industry! Struggling to find time to optimise your onboarding strategies? Purpose-built onboarding tools like Onboard Express are designed to streamline workflows and automate repetitive tasks, helping you secure first-choice candidates without endless paperwork. Process multiple new hires simultaneously without sacrificing attention to detail through automated contract and policy creation. Switch specific clauses on and off to personalise these forms to each new hire, with a full audit trail of offer and policy acceptances ready for HR to review.

Other automated features Onboard Express offers include:

• A candidate welcome portal containing all company policies and marketing materials
• Easy completion of new starter forms via mobile or browser
• Keep all departments in sync with automated notifications throughout the process
• Fast approvals, so everything is ready for day one without delays
• Hiring analytics and insights to optimise onboarding 

Helping New Hires Thrive, Not Just Survive

Developing great onboarding processes that span the entire hiring journey is now more than just a formality. It’s essential for competing in high-turnover industries, especially to attract and retain candidates who can add value to your team.

And investing in automated onboarding software is one of the most effective ways to achieve this. The right onboarding software can set new starters up for success while cutting hiring costs by up to 80%. 

With Onboard Express, every organisation we work with receives a dedicated project manager for personalised support. Enjoy smooth integration into your existing systems and tools using our open API, with no coding required. 

Book a demo and start creating seamless candidate journeys today.