Blog 8 Benefits of Digital Onboarding Last updated: February 21, 2024 Calculating… When a new employee joins a business, the companies who excel are those that have a considered onboarding process. However for many, this isn’t always the case and it can be highly costly to a business. It can mean make or break for an employee’s initial experience and it sets the tone for their time, and longevity, within an organisation. Great onboarding can improve employee retention by 82% and digital is increasingly becoming the answer to help companies make their onboarding processes better. Digital onboarding for employees – where to start? We have put together 8 benefits of digital onboarding for employees that can help you consider a process that helps your business better engage with new starters, and supports new training initiatives to existing ones. Your employees can feel included, more engaged, and immersed in your company culture with a virtual onboarding experience. Here’s a few fundamental reasons why considering a digital onboarding strategy is a good idea and will help you know where to start in updating your current process, or getting investment from your organisation to make positive changes. Decreased costs 🤑 Because digital onboarding for employees is online, it means you can reduce in-person costs and training time. Employees can access what they need when they need to, you don’t even need to designate a training room, or take people off important projects to support new starters. Mainly, the process saves time, and because of this businesses save money. Digital onboarding also remains consistent, so it can help improve the employee experience from the off-set, which if executed well will help retain your employees and therefore means you avoid any unnecessary additional hiring costs. Faster onboarding speed ⏩ Because traditional onboarding typically requires a manager or experienced employee to support in training, it can take a long time. Because it’s not possible to tell when you’ll find the right candidate for a position, it can be challenging to organise people within the organisation to accommodate them in time for when they start. Digital onboarding means that people can join your organisation at any time because you have a process ready to go when they are. Just create their new access or login and they can start immediately. Faster and more effective, providing an online introductory experience will save extra stress and resources required for other methods. Better employee retention 🥳 Employee turnover is expensive, so retaining new employees is important, and moving your onboarding to a digital process allows you to provide on-demand training, allowing people to learn at their own pace. Starting any new role can be overwhelming, regardless of how much a person knows their role or skill set, it’s still a new company, new dynamics and new people so taking away any additional or unnecessary stress from the start, is hugely beneficial. This makes the process a more enjoyable experience, resulting in people being more likely to stay and see themselves working at your company long-term. Uncomplicated compliance 🥴 There is always compliance to be considered with onboarding new employees and it can often be complicated due to the amount of necessary reading or document signing that is involved. A virtual process means that compliance is easier. Employees can store documents, or complete necessary forms online which will be more secure for your organisation instead of transferring documents via email, or in some cases a pile of paper documents. Software can help you simplify this necessary and unavoidable part of the process. Virtual onboarding, simple and structured There is so much to be gained from a digital onboarding experience, yet so many companies still don’t consider how much of an impact a good process can have. Read our post on 24 Shocking Employee Onboarding Statistics You Need to Know in 2024 that highlights the importance of a considered employee engagement experience. Virtual onboarding makes your process simplified and well structured, resulting in anyone who starts the business receiving the same experience. This promotes continuity of your brand and just like when you receive good customer service from a company, it helps you build trust with a brand. The more trust that is nurtured early, a more positive relationship is likely to form. This means that your employees will be off to an excellent start. Employee engagement 🤲 It’s not only employees who can benefit from better engagement, but your HR department too. Your HR teams can monitor engagement easily through a centralised process and easily see who has, or has not completed necessary tasks. A US report highlighted that 50% of HR professionals have high employee engagement because the onboarding process is automated. Because your HR teams have less paperwork, they also have more time to check-in on new starters, and existing employees which will also help to provide a more engaged experience. Employee experience 🎉 Something that is becoming a topic all on its own is Digital Employee Experience (DEX). This is all about how employees interact with a business and with its online tools. Much like User-Experience (UX) that is important to consider for your customers who visit your website, engaging your employees in a way that helps them the most, is becoming more expected by prospective workers. The software you use can enhance an employee’s experience and digital onboarding can encompass all of the digital touch-points you have available within your organisation. People are able to access systems easily, know where to find correct information from logging in to engaging with HR processes. The better the process, the better the employee experience is, and therefore so is their image of you as an employer. Company culture 💛 One of the perhaps less considered benefits of digital onboarding, is the impact it can have on company culture. A culture-focused onboarding process can excel in using a digital process. Hiring for a cultural fit has been a popular trend, however more companies are now opting to hire on excellent skill sets first, and instead provide a well considered and user-friendly digital onboarding for employees to embrace new starters into company culture. A virtual onboarding process helps new starters fit in, welcoming them into the culture of an organisation. It keeps your brand, and values, introduced to your new starter so they are all of the time resonating with them. In addition to this, a healthy culture is said to boost productivity and revenue, something that everyone in the business will be happy about. Reach remote workers 🛴 Possibly one of the most important benefits of digital onboarding is that it connects all of your employees to your business. Your remote workers, and those who go into the office, site, or stores. Everyone can connect to a centralised onboarding process. Because remote workers may work for your company permanently from home, or start their employment remotely, a benefit of digital onboarding is bringing them into the business and helping them to feel included from day one. Reading papers or email documents at home can make employees feel detached from your business and brand, so making the process digital will help to promote inclusivity whilst also allowing other individuals in the business to connect with your new starters. A modern intranet for digitally onboarding your employees With a modern intranet, it’s possible for you to provide virtual onboarding to your employees, and improve engagement across your whole organisation. We have helped big brands such as Five Guys, Halfords and NatWest Group to improve employee communication. Our award-winning modern intranet also extends to our mobile app that all employees love. “Oak has allowed us to create a completely new onboarding journey for our people. Homepages for pre-starts, days 1-30 and days 31-60 guide an employee through their onboarding and shows them information relevant to them in their role. Acquired employees (employees joining us through a merger or acquisition) will see their own specific homepages to help transition them into the company and provide much needed guidance and clarification in often tight timeframes.” Liz Flynn, Communications Director, Acquisitions and Special Programs at Sevita
When a new employee joins a business, the companies who excel are those that have a considered onboarding process. However for many, this isn’t always the case and it can be highly costly to a business. It can mean make or break for an employee’s initial experience and it sets the tone for their time, and longevity, within an organisation. Great onboarding can improve employee retention by 82% and digital is increasingly becoming the answer to help companies make their onboarding processes better.
Digital onboarding for employees – where to start? We have put together 8 benefits of digital onboarding for employees that can help you consider a process that helps your business better engage with new starters, and supports new training initiatives to existing ones. Your employees can feel included, more engaged, and immersed in your company culture with a virtual onboarding experience. Here’s a few fundamental reasons why considering a digital onboarding strategy is a good idea and will help you know where to start in updating your current process, or getting investment from your organisation to make positive changes. Decreased costs 🤑 Because digital onboarding for employees is online, it means you can reduce in-person costs and training time. Employees can access what they need when they need to, you don’t even need to designate a training room, or take people off important projects to support new starters. Mainly, the process saves time, and because of this businesses save money. Digital onboarding also remains consistent, so it can help improve the employee experience from the off-set, which if executed well will help retain your employees and therefore means you avoid any unnecessary additional hiring costs. Faster onboarding speed ⏩ Because traditional onboarding typically requires a manager or experienced employee to support in training, it can take a long time. Because it’s not possible to tell when you’ll find the right candidate for a position, it can be challenging to organise people within the organisation to accommodate them in time for when they start. Digital onboarding means that people can join your organisation at any time because you have a process ready to go when they are. Just create their new access or login and they can start immediately. Faster and more effective, providing an online introductory experience will save extra stress and resources required for other methods. Better employee retention 🥳 Employee turnover is expensive, so retaining new employees is important, and moving your onboarding to a digital process allows you to provide on-demand training, allowing people to learn at their own pace. Starting any new role can be overwhelming, regardless of how much a person knows their role or skill set, it’s still a new company, new dynamics and new people so taking away any additional or unnecessary stress from the start, is hugely beneficial. This makes the process a more enjoyable experience, resulting in people being more likely to stay and see themselves working at your company long-term. Uncomplicated compliance 🥴 There is always compliance to be considered with onboarding new employees and it can often be complicated due to the amount of necessary reading or document signing that is involved. A virtual process means that compliance is easier. Employees can store documents, or complete necessary forms online which will be more secure for your organisation instead of transferring documents via email, or in some cases a pile of paper documents. Software can help you simplify this necessary and unavoidable part of the process.
Virtual onboarding, simple and structured There is so much to be gained from a digital onboarding experience, yet so many companies still don’t consider how much of an impact a good process can have. Read our post on 24 Shocking Employee Onboarding Statistics You Need to Know in 2024 that highlights the importance of a considered employee engagement experience. Virtual onboarding makes your process simplified and well structured, resulting in anyone who starts the business receiving the same experience. This promotes continuity of your brand and just like when you receive good customer service from a company, it helps you build trust with a brand. The more trust that is nurtured early, a more positive relationship is likely to form. This means that your employees will be off to an excellent start. Employee engagement 🤲 It’s not only employees who can benefit from better engagement, but your HR department too. Your HR teams can monitor engagement easily through a centralised process and easily see who has, or has not completed necessary tasks. A US report highlighted that 50% of HR professionals have high employee engagement because the onboarding process is automated. Because your HR teams have less paperwork, they also have more time to check-in on new starters, and existing employees which will also help to provide a more engaged experience. Employee experience 🎉 Something that is becoming a topic all on its own is Digital Employee Experience (DEX). This is all about how employees interact with a business and with its online tools. Much like User-Experience (UX) that is important to consider for your customers who visit your website, engaging your employees in a way that helps them the most, is becoming more expected by prospective workers. The software you use can enhance an employee’s experience and digital onboarding can encompass all of the digital touch-points you have available within your organisation. People are able to access systems easily, know where to find correct information from logging in to engaging with HR processes. The better the process, the better the employee experience is, and therefore so is their image of you as an employer. Company culture 💛 One of the perhaps less considered benefits of digital onboarding, is the impact it can have on company culture. A culture-focused onboarding process can excel in using a digital process. Hiring for a cultural fit has been a popular trend, however more companies are now opting to hire on excellent skill sets first, and instead provide a well considered and user-friendly digital onboarding for employees to embrace new starters into company culture. A virtual onboarding process helps new starters fit in, welcoming them into the culture of an organisation. It keeps your brand, and values, introduced to your new starter so they are all of the time resonating with them. In addition to this, a healthy culture is said to boost productivity and revenue, something that everyone in the business will be happy about. Reach remote workers 🛴 Possibly one of the most important benefits of digital onboarding is that it connects all of your employees to your business. Your remote workers, and those who go into the office, site, or stores. Everyone can connect to a centralised onboarding process. Because remote workers may work for your company permanently from home, or start their employment remotely, a benefit of digital onboarding is bringing them into the business and helping them to feel included from day one. Reading papers or email documents at home can make employees feel detached from your business and brand, so making the process digital will help to promote inclusivity whilst also allowing other individuals in the business to connect with your new starters.
A modern intranet for digitally onboarding your employees With a modern intranet, it’s possible for you to provide virtual onboarding to your employees, and improve engagement across your whole organisation. We have helped big brands such as Five Guys, Halfords and NatWest Group to improve employee communication. Our award-winning modern intranet also extends to our mobile app that all employees love. “Oak has allowed us to create a completely new onboarding journey for our people. Homepages for pre-starts, days 1-30 and days 31-60 guide an employee through their onboarding and shows them information relevant to them in their role. Acquired employees (employees joining us through a merger or acquisition) will see their own specific homepages to help transition them into the company and provide much needed guidance and clarification in often tight timeframes.” Liz Flynn, Communications Director, Acquisitions and Special Programs at Sevita
