Online onboarding - facilitating better onboarding processes
Digitalized onboarding, i.e. online onboarding means an onboarding training that is carried out partially or wholly online. Online onboarding is a way of offering each new employee an equal, standardized onboarding training. And at the same time, the managers receive reports on their employees’ accomplishments in relation to the onboarding.
Digitalized onboarding also saves the managers’ time and makes the onboarding process more flexible, as the employees can accomplish the training e.g. using their own smart phones.
The easiest way to executing onboarding online is by updating your existing onboarding brochure or filling out a ready-to-use onboarding template. In this text we guide you through some practical tips in creating a digitalized onboarding training.
Start by defining the goals of onboarding
There are notable differences when comparing the onboarding processes of various companies. It’s worth a while to writing down the goals of digitalized onboarding in your company.
First, create the headlines, as they give structure to the content of the onboarding training: what are the main things that should be learned during the onboarding, and which subsectors should the onboarding cover. When writing, answer the following questions:
- Which employees is the online onboarding meant for?
- Will the training include safety, ethics or data security related instructions?
- Should the onboarding training also introduce the basic rules of working life to the youngest employees?
- To what extent are you going to introduce the company’s values and culture?
- What kind of performance is expected from the employee accomplishing the onboarding training?
What will be the pace of the online onboarding training?
The scheduling and the extent of the digitalized onboarding have a great impact on its execution. More and more companies give their new employees access to the onboarding platform already when the employment contract has been signed, even before the actual work has begun. This is a simple way to ensure that the basic facts of the employer company are known before the first day at work – this way the working gets a smooth start.
The extent of the online onboarding varies a lot - from a 20-minute compact introduction package to a couple of weeks’ introductory program, in which each day has its own module. It’s advisable to select a model that best suits your company’s goals and fits in to the extent of the onboarding.
Organize the content production of the online onboarding
Usually, the person responsible for the content production is either someone from the HR or the manager. Some companies engage their summer trainees to the content production, and this is particularly practical, as a trainee looks at the online onboarding process with fresh eyes and can consider the things that more experienced employees take for granted.
You can download a ready-to-use, editable onboarding template at onboardingtemplate.com. This is a tool with which creating your own onboarding material is a lot easier! On the same site you can also check out the online onboarding example course – maybe it’ll give you ideas you can utilize in your own digitalized onboarding.
It’s also possible to ask your elearning platform provider help with the content production. In this case the online onboarding can be created by using the existing onboarding brochures or e.g. by using telephone interviews in gathering and writing the content.
Developing the online onboarding process is a continuous process
Continuous development of your online onboarding process is worth your while! Updating and editing the content of an online onboarding is effortless and prompt, and by using online onboarding material you make sure the content is always up to date.
Don’t forget to ask feedback on the onboarding from the employees that have accomplished the training!