Rethink onboarding and reap benefits, say academics
A radical but not costly shake-up of traditional approaches to staff onboarding could be of substantial value to recruiters, according to a study by a transatlantic panel of three business professors.
The new approach suggested does not require more financial resources than traditional approaches – it is more about obtaining a new mindset, the trio say.
A study of the onboarding process at a number of organisations as diverse as Disney and Oracle was undertaken by Dan Cable, a professor of organisational behaviour at London Business School, working alongside Harvard associate professor of business administration Francesca Gino and Brad Staats, associate professor of operations at the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.
The ‘four principles’ of the new approach are:
- Break out of the traditional employment trap
- Help newcomers identify their authentic strengths
- Facilitate introductions to other colleagues around authentic strengths
- Ask newcomers to reflect on their authentic strengths and how they can be helpful on the job
This can result in better relationships with colleagues, greater satisfaction, lower stress, stronger performance and greater employee retention, the academics claim.
One of the overriding keys to better onboarding is authenticity. The report says that “by making authenticity a core value that is communicated to newcomers, organisations may not only inspire greater attraction and inputs, but may also strategically allow for positive deviance that keeps them fresh and agile.
“For example, firms like Southwest Air and Zappos.com hire new employees based on their willingness to be themselves at work and solve problems using their unique perspectives and strengths, with positive results both for employee engagement and organisational success.”
Professor Cable says: “We suggest that organisations should replace their traditional approach to onboarding with a new approach we call ‘personal-identity socialisation’.
“Rather than imposing organisational culture onto employees, ‘personal-identity socialisation’ involves giving newcomers the opportunity to express their unique perspectives and strengths on the job from the very start, and frame their work as a chance to do what they do best every day.”
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