5 common elements of a successful employee onboarding and training program

As the world of work changes, an effective employee onboarding training solution is vital to maintaining a healthy company culture. The days of hiring employees, providing them with an office tour, and expecting them to hit the ground running are over.

Today's employees function in complex ecosystems where collaboration across multiple departments is critical to individual success. To build a successful workplace, it's crucial that they have a foundation of knowledge and training before they get to work.

Enter modernized employee onboarding training software solutions.

Employee online onboarding training is the best way for organizations to ensure their new employees have the tools they need to succeed in their roles from day one.

Many companies develop a generalized onboarding experience to bring new hires into the fold as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, this approach often does not consider how an employee's role contributes to the company as a whole. The result is employees who feel unprepared, unsupported, and unaware of their value to the organization.

So, what’s the best onboarding solution?

And, what are the top onboarding software platforms available?

In this article, we’re exploring the world of employee onboarding. We’ll share some of the most important elements to include in your onboarding process and talk about new hire training software.

Ready to take your onboarding to the next level? Let’s jump in!

5 elements of a modern employee onboarding training solution

From what to expect on an employee's first day to the skills they need to succeed over time, organizations must include several critical elements as part of their modern onboarding process.

Here are five common elements that you should include in your employee onboarding and training approach.

1. Human-first communication

Today's employees expect a more personal, humanized approach to communication. They want information provided to them at the right time, in a way that fits into their busy schedules.

Employee onboarding training programs must incorporate technology that enables more human-first communications with employees as they settle into life at their new organization.

This means providing employees with the information they need to be successful when they need it. It also means allowing them to receive that information in an easy-to-digest manner. Organizations must find a robust new hire training software that’s both engaging and allows for direct contact throughout.

Customization is key in humanizing training communication. Adaptive learning paths and self-service modules that allow employees to customize their onboarding experience based on the needs of their role will pay off tremendously.

A great example would be designing multiple onboarding streams. This would allow particular roles to skip unnecessary information or go into greater depth in areas more important for their position.

With modern onboarding systems and software, you can ensure that your new employees receive information in a way that suits their needs.

2. Collaboration and engagement

An organization's onboarding program should focus on collaboration between many different teams and individuals within the organization.

Engaging managers and supervisors in the onboarding process is a no-brainer. They’re the ones who will be responsible for training and overseeing a new hire’s initial growth and development.

However, you can also ask newer employees (those who just went through the onboarding process themselves) for their input. They can provide insight into what new hires need to know right away versus what they can learn as they go.

Organizations must look to their employees as resources for onboarding information and build systems that provide collaborative and engaging learning experiences.

3. Adaptive content and curriculum design

Employee onboarding systems and software need to be adaptive by design. This means creating content that is dynamically delivered in the right format at the right time to the right employees.

Content should be continuously updated and presented in multiple formats for both in-person, mobile, and online onboarding training. In addition, you’ll want to provide onboarding information through a mix of different modalities, like:

• Short videos
• Quick tips
• Text-based education
• Self-paced modules
• Downloadable guides
• Interactive games
  
  

Different learning modalities drive learner engagement and retention, making training more effective and powerful.

Additionally, content should adapt to an employee’s needs or interests. Onboarding training software that uses AI-learning will allow learners to pick and choose what they learn.

Ultimately, the content you create should be relevant to the learner and easy to digest.

4. A focus on company culture

Employee onboarding training isn't just about skills but also about assimilating and elevating the company culture.

How are you communicating your vision and mission?

Take time to think about what makes your organization unique and what you want your employees to know about it. Ask managers and other employees about cultural gaps they see within their teams.

Then, create customized learning plans and leverage employee training software solutions that meet employees where they are at on their cultural journey.

“Journey” is the key word, as it’s not a one-time task but an ongoing process. Continue working with employees to provide the tools they need to thrive in an increasingly diverse workplace.

For example, perhaps your organization is making diversity and inclusion in the workplace a priority. You can integrate different training modules about this topic into the onboarding process, as well into future training programs.

5. Consistent communication

As Millennials and Gen-Z fill the workforce, these employees expect an almost instant connection to their organization. Especially with remote employees, organizations must maintain consistent contact and communication throughout the onboarding and training process.

Consistent communication can take on many forms, like:

• Daily check-ins from a manager
• Weekly emails
• Live events or trainings that allow them to connect with their new team
  
  

Communication should be expected to travel both ways. A practical employee onboarding training solution should provide employees with no-obligation ways to reach out and seek assistance from superiors and peers.

Keeping communication channels open throughout the onboarding process allows new hires to feel engaged while they acclimate to their new work environment.

The top onboarding software for your organization

Whether your business is in-person or fully remote, it’s essential to effectively onboard employees and provide ongoing employee training.

But this has to go beyond traditional learning paths that focus on brain dumps of information. It needs to be focused on delivering a practical "new hire experience" that keeps employees engaged and aware of how they can grow personally and professionally with your company over time.

To provide new hires with a positive onboarding experience, you can:

• Provide human-first communication
• Encourage collaboration with others teams and employees
• Offer adaptive content
• Focus on company culture
• Keep communication channels open
  
  

However, integrating all of these elements into an onboarding process can be tough to do on your own.

That’s where we come in.

At Unboxed Training & Technology, we provide organizations with creative, powerful onboarding solutions. We do this in two ways:

1. Custom onboarding training content
2. Spoke: our award-winning employee onboarding and training platform
   
   

So whether you need brand new onboarding content or are looking for a way to deliver your onboarding process in a remote world, we’ve got you covered. Our employee onboarding training solutions are trusted by Fortune 500 companies nationwide.

Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you build a successful onboarding experience that drives business results!