The Three Most Common Induction Mistakes
We’re in an ongoing talent war. It’s a constant battle to attract and secure awesome talent, and the best people can pick who they want to work for. So when those expensive and amazingly talented people start with us, and they see that we’re not ready for them or it’s not what they expected… it’s only a matter of days or weeks before they walk out. Awesome people don’t stick around waiting for us to catch up - they’re in a hurry to contribute, to make things happen. And if they can’t do it here, they’re going somewhere where they can.
But it gets worse. Those awesomely talented people who haven’t already left, can quickly become disheartened and disengaged. In fact, research tells us that a massive 33% of all our new recruits are looking for another job within their first 6 months[1]. Too often those who don’t leave immediately drag it out and give minimum effort for a year or so - making it look good on their CV.
Combined, these disengaged and unproductive employees cost US and UK organisations up to $37billion per annum[2].
So whether they stay or leave, a massive amount of time, money, effort and talent is being wasted because of careless induction!
If you recognise your organisation in all this… it’s not your fault. Right now, onboarding and induction is more important than it has ever been before, and it’s time for a new approach.
Here are the three biggest mistakes that organisations make when it comes to induction and onboarding.
#1 Failure To Get Them Engaged
Too often organisations treat a new employee as someone to be administered. They’re given a raft of boxes to tick and multiple forms to complete, and they’re sent off to different stations to get processed. Their induction experience feels more like they’re being admitted, than being welcomed in to become part of the company’s competitive edge.
So it’s really no surprise that over 25% of new employees walk out in their first 12 months[3] because they weren’t given the opportunity to become emotionally engaged. The smart companies realise that by helping new hires to feel connected and aligned to the business, their new employees are 69% more likely to become emotionally invested and still there after three years[4]. And that means they avoid being on the recruiting and training treadmill!
The New Zealand Blood Service (NZBS) undertakes its life-saving work in a highly-regulated, quality-controlled environment. And just like 58% of all other organisations globally[5], NZBS’ induction was focused on administration, health and safety, and compliance. Obviously, NZBS needs to incorporate these things - they can’t afford to put lives at risk by new employees getting things wrong. But they were taking motivated, enthusiastic new recruits who were excited about the life-saving work they’re about to do, and burying them under mountains of paperwork, gradually killing off their passion and enthusiasm for the cause.
After reviewing their recent engagement survey, HR Director Sarah reached out to us with the goal of improving their results. According to Gallup[6], organisations with highly engaged employees outperform others by 21%, primarily due to the all-important discretionary effort. So we set about helping her to achieve early engagement so NZBS could achieve more… with the same amount of funding.
We helped Sarah see that whilst NZBS were putting considerable marketing effort into making new donors feel great about saving lives, they were neglecting their new employees who would soon be helping to save many lives - every day.
We worked with Sarah to ensure that now, from the moment they signed their contracts, new employees will get started on an inspiring and engaging induction journey. At the centre is the high-impact Vein to Vein experience, where in their first few days, these new life-savers follow a “bag of blood” on its life-saving journey. These employees become emotionally invested, impacted by the revelation of the part they play in saving lives.
By increasing emotional engagement, NZBS expects to enjoy 50% greater new hire retention, saving NZBS almost $1million a year[7].
Continue Reading:
The Three Most Common Induction Mistakes:
#1 Failure To Get Them Engaged
#2 Failure To Give Them What They Need
#3 Failure To Create A Consistent Experience
Sources:
[1] Harvard Business Review 2015 Technology Can Save Onboarding From Itself
[2] Cogniso 2010 $27billion: Counting the Cost of Employee Misunderstanding
[3] Lawson Williams, National staff Turnover Survey to March 18
[4] SHRM Wynhurst Group 2007
[5] Human Capital Institute 2016 Talent Pulse
[6] Gallup 2013 How Employee Engagement Drives Growth
[7] Aberdeen Group Welcome to the 21st Century, Onboarding!
