The smooth onboarding of new employees is a decisive factor for the success of your company. In this blog post, we not only show you how a successful onboarding process is structured in three phases, but also how you can use our project time recording software to do this Optimize process And be able to support. Effective onboarding not only increases the productivity and motivation of your new employees, but also helps to strengthen loyalty to your company. This in turn has a positive effect on your image as an employer and can reduce layoffs during the trial period.
What does onboarding mean?
Good onboarding enables the targeted integration of new employees into your company. Measures are being taken to make the start as smooth as possible for the new team members. This is critical to creating a positive experience for new employees and thus quickly introducing them to work processes and your corporate culture.
The goals for successful onboarding are always the same, regardless of the position. Because: Whether you're an assistant or a project manager, onboarding is primarily about introducing new employees to their new tasks quickly and safely and familiarizing them with your corporate culture and internal processes. But the integration of the new employee into the existing team is also of great importance at this point. The overall goal of a successful induction process should be to quickly introduce the new employee to his tasks and thus achieve timely productivity.
Another advantage: Loyalty to you as an employer is promoted right from the start. Keyword: Employer Branding!
Overview of all onboarding goals & tasks
Onboarding new employees is a critical process that aims to effectively integrate new team members into the company and set them up for success. It covers various aspects, from teaching corporate culture to professional training.
Key Objectives and Tasks:
👋 Welcome and provide orientation
🏢 Communicate corporate culture and values
🔄 Introduction to work processes and tools
👥 Introduction of the team and important contacts
🎯 Clarification of Expectations and Goals
🔑 Provision of necessary resources and access
📚 Training and familiarization with the specific role
Onboarding process — the 3 phases
In every onboarding process, there are certain key stages that are critical to ensuring that new employees are successfully integrated into your company. These phases should be carefully structured and aimed at making entry into your company as smooth and efficient as possible.
Create a clear roadmap for new employees to ensure that they are not only professionally competent, but also integrate into the corporate culture and processes and can work productively quickly. This ensures a positive start for everyone involved.
Three phases of the onboarding process in detail:
Stage 1: Before the First Day of Work
The First Impression Counts! Before starting a new employee, you should make some preparations to make the start smooth. Clarify all formalities, such as employment contracts, access rights and uniforms. Provide the new employee with relevant information about the start of work, workplace and a task overview. So inform future team members, the secretariat and the IT department about the new college's start.
Make sure that the workplace is fully set up. Plan Introductions and Meetings with Key Contacts. Organize necessary training, for example on in-house IT programs. In the case of a newly created position, you clearly communicate the responsibilities within the team. A small welcome gift can help give the new employee a sense of appreciation.
Phase 2a: The First Day of Work
A new employee's first day at work requires a positive atmosphere for a smooth start. A small gift can convey a sense of belonging. A short round of introductions with direct colleagues or the assigned mentor is recommended in order to integrate the newcomer into the existing workforce.
A list of colleagues' names and positions can help the new employee find the right contact person if they have any questions. A joint lunch on the first day of work promotes team spirit and lays the foundation for trusting cooperation in the future.
Phase 2b: The First Week of Work
In the first week of work, you should provide an overview of the onboarding process and discuss clear expectations and goals for the new position. This promotes a pleasant working atmosphere and prevents misunderstandings. Integrate the new colleague into projects right from the start and assign exciting tasks to them to arouse enthusiasm for your company.
Offer a guided tour of all departments in your company and provide a detailed introduction to the products and services. Make sure that the new employee uses the tools they use every day, such as Project time recording software, is familiarized.
Stage 3: After the First Week of Work
After the first week of work in the company, there are still important aspects to consider in order to successfully continue the onboarding process. Take time to ask about the new employee's impressions and experiences during the first week. This enables you to identify any problems or concerns early on and respond accordingly. Avoid information overload by gradually providing important information and training. This allows your new team member to process and apply what you've learned without being overwhelmed.
After four to eight weeks, it's time to review the onboarding process again and make sure that your new team member has arrived safely at the company. Regular feedback meetings can be very helpful here.
Remote onboarding: This is how we recruit new team members at ZEP
At ZEP, we attach great importance to structured and friendly onboarding, even in a remote setup. Our aim is new employees to prepare optimally for their start and to enable them to get started smoothly. Here are the key steps we're taking in our remote onboarding process:
📧 Preparation before the first day: Technical setup of access points (hardware, software, etc.) and preparation of the necessary communication channels.
👋 First working day: Stand-up meeting with management for personal acquaintance and a comprehensive introduction to the company structure and values.
📅 Structured onboarding: Well-planned first week with a mix of professional and personal topics, followed by targeted topics in the following weeks.
🗂️ Onboarding board: Access to a structured online onboarding board that documents progress and provides transparency about expected tasks.
📊 Product demonstrations: Participate in product demos of our software in the first two to three weeks to develop a deep understanding of what we offer.
🔄 Regular check-ins: Monthly discussions and comprehensive reviews after three and six months to assess progress and answer questions.
Checklist for your company: You should pay attention to this!
Professional onboarding is crucial for the success of new employees and long-term commitment to your company. A well-structured onboarding checklist ensures that all important steps are followed and that no tasks are overlooked. Whether you support your onboarding processes manually or with software, this checklist will help you keep track and ensure a smooth start for your new team members.
Here is an overview of the key points that should be included in your onboarding checklist:
PreboardingRequest for documents: collect documents and information ☐ Organizational preparations: Office equipment, system access, set up e-mail address ☐ Invitation to corporate events: open house, team events, etc. ☐ Sending a welcome letter: sending information for the first day of work ☐ Creating a welcome folder: Prepare important information and contacts ☐ Invitation to training measures: Inform about internal/external training in advance ☐First working dayWelcome by the manager and presentation of the team ☐ Handover of welcome gift and welcome folder ☐ Introduction to the new workplace and work equipment ☐ Presentation of passwords, telephone numbers, etc. ☐ Start of the sponsorship program: Assignment of a contact person ☐ Explanation of the induction plan: Give an overview of the induction process ☐ Tour and joint lunch: Integration into the team ☐ Discuss the first work assignments and coordinate appointments further ☐ Final discussion at the end of the first working day: Clarify feedback and questions ☐Continuous onboardingRegular feedback rounds and adjustments to the training plan ☐ Participation in further training and development opportunities ☐
Use this checklist to ensure a structured and positive onboarding process.
Structured Onboarding with Software for Project Time Recording
Through structured training, new team members adapt more quickly to their tasks and to the existing team in your company. A software for project and Working time recording How ZEP can be integrated into the onboarding process to support you. Another advantage: As soon as your new employee has gone through their own onboarding with ZEP, they know the tool so well that it is easy for them to work with the program for customer projects in everyday business — via app Even when you're out and about. Which additional modules are particularly suitable for successful onboarding?
Modules: Tickets, Tasks & To Dos
Structured onboarding is the key to successful entry of new employees. Our ZEP Ticketsystem Provides a comprehensive solution to make this process efficient and ensure that no important steps are missed. With this module, you can create a higher-level onboarding project that contains all relevant information and tasks for your new employee to get started. Each step is then stored as a ticket or subtask to ensure a clear structure and clarity. The subtasks make it possible to subdivide specific aspects of training.
The direct recording of times on tickets and subtasks enables a precise analysis of the time required for each step of onboarding. This is not only interesting for the new employee, but also for planning future onboardings. The analysis data helps to make future introductions more efficient and to make optimal use of resources. Other functions, such as manually entering additional information for each ticket and configurable notifications, ensure that the onboarding process runs as smoothly as possible and that no step is missed.
Modules: Planning hours
Smooth onboarding requires clear steps and precise planning of the required resources. The ZEP add-on module Planned hours Enables you to plan and manage the effort required to onboard new employees in detail. The function of storing dynamic or fixed plan figures gives you the necessary flexibility. Fixed Plan Figures enable top-down planning by distributing a predefined number of hours to processes or sub-operations of the onboarding process. Dynamic Plan Figures, on the Other Hand, Lead to Bottom-up Planning, in Which the Sum of the Planned Figures Determines the Total Onboarding Effort.
The evaluation options offer a comprehensive target/actual comparison of the entire time required. As the person responsible for onboarding, as well as your new employees, you always have an eye on the progress of the onboarding process. With the Planning Hours module, you can schedule the onboarding process by storing the planned effort in hours for each onboarding station. The various display options for planning figures ensure that all participants always keep an eye on the entire familiarization plan.
Get onboarding feedback: These are the questions you should ask new employees!
In order to continuously improve the onboarding process, it is crucial to feedback to be obtained from new employees. The right questions will help you identify weak points and identify potential for optimization. Here you can find out which questions you should ask to gain valuable insights into the experiences of your new employees:
How do you rate the entire onboarding process on a scale of 1 to 10?
Was all the relevant information and resources available that you needed to get started?
How clear were the expectations for your role and tasks during onboarding?
Were there any aspects of onboarding that were unclear or confusing? If yes, which?
How helpful were the training and familiarization measures for your rapid integration into the team?
Have you received enough support from your manager or mentor?
How effective was the communication between you and the onboarding team?
What improvements would you suggest for the onboarding process?
Did you feel welcomed and integrated enough during onboarding?
Were there any specific resources or support that you lacked?
Conclusion
A well-structured onboarding process is crucial for long-term success and satisfaction of new employees. By carefully planning and implementing the three phases — before the first working day, on the first working day and in the first working week — you lay the foundation for successful integration into your company. At ZEP, through our remote strategy and the use of modern software solutions such as Project time recording Ensures that the entry of new team members is smooth and effective.
By designing the onboarding process with clearly defined goals, a structured induction plan and regular feedback meetings, we not only promote the productivity and motivation of new employees, but also strengthen their loyalty and identification with our company. Use these insights to optimize your own onboarding process, improve your employer image and increase employee retention.
