Provisional Accounting Blog

Hiring Spokane accountants is hard work, but helping them hit the ground running can be even more challenging. You understand the importance of having a thorough onboarding process because you want to set your new hires up for success.

The thing is, there’s a fine line between a comprehensive onboarding program and one that’s just too much. If your new hires seem exhausted and overwhelmed by introductory activities, it might be time to scale back a bit. Here’s a guide to help you determine whether you need to make some changes.

Three Ways Your Onboarding Process Overwhelms New Hires

Information Overload

New hires represent your company, so it’s important for them to learn about your culture, history, and products and services. However, there’s such a thing as too much information. Requiring them to spend days in training sessions to learn about the company or read thick manuals is excessive.

People can only absorb so much information at once, so focus on the basics in the beginning. Allowing them to acquire the rest of the knowledge gradually will help them ease into their jobs comfortably, and increase the chances they’ll remember what they’ve learned.

Unnecessary Steps

The best training programs aren’t necessarily the longest. Putting new hires through a long, arduous orientation process can make them feel confused and discouraged.

Onboarding should be tailored to individual needs, so take both the job itself and the employee’s history into consideration. Eliminate steps that don’t relate to the job, are unnecessary given the person’s skill set, or are otherwise redundant. Making the process more efficient will benefit everyone.

Expecting Too Much, Too Fast

When you needed to fill a position yesterday, you might be tempted to put new hires through a quick and intense training program, then set them free. The thing is, proper onboarding doesn’t work like that.

Adjusting to a new job, at a new company takes time. Expecting people to jump right in places too much pressure on them. Even the most talented people need time to learn the ropes without feeling rushed.

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By now, you understand the importance of providing a thorough onboarding process for new hires, but there’s always room for improvement. Whether your new employees come from accounting recruiting agencies or are hired internally, their first few days on the job set the tone for their tenure with your company.

If they’re made to feel valued and put at ease from the beginning, they’ll feel confident in their decision to join your team. However, if they’re largely ignored or thrown into the mix with little-to-no training, they’ll be begging their former employer to take them back.

You already have a robust orientation process in place, but keep it fresh by working these three best practices in.

Go Easy During the First Week

Starting a new job is incredibly exhausting. New hires want to impress, but with information coming at them all day from several directions, it’s hard to keep up. Minimize their stress levels by easing them into their new job. During the first week, give them one task at a time to complete, and don’t have them do anything too complex.

Even if the rest of the team is working late on a project, dismiss new employees at standard quitting time. They won’t be in a position to offer much help yet, and information overload coupled with the pressure to please a new boss is a lot to take on.

Standardize the Welcome Process

All employees deserve a warm welcome to your company, but different managers aren’t always on the same page about what this constitutes. Consequently, some managers probably just send an email announcing the new person’s arrival, while others plan a team lunch on their first day. Give everyone the same experience by requiring managers to complete specific introductory activities.

Create a Key to Translate Internal Jargon

Your company probably has a language of its own. This suits existing employees, but makes it hard for new hires to understand what anyone is talking about. Many will be too shy to speak up and admit they’re lost in the conversation, so make a cheat sheet they can use for reference. Include all acronyms, words, and phrases used within the walls of your company, but not so much anywhere else.

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