How to Implement Automated Employee Onboarding

As a company, you want to hire and retain the best talent to help you grow and succeed in the long term. But most organizations don’t heed the onboarding process while hiring an employee. In fact, a Gallup study reveals that only 12% of workers strongly agree that their employers excel in onboarding new team members.

Onboarding automation strategically transforms the integration of new hires into an organization, going beyond simply digitizing the traditional process.

Let’s explore what implementing automated employee onboarding software entails and how it benefits your business.

What Is Employee Onboarding Automation?

Employee onboarding automation leverages technology to streamline and standardize welcoming and integrating new employees into your organization. Think of it as a digital guide that leads new hires through their initial journey at a company, from completing essential paperwork to undergoing initial training programs and becoming familiar with company processes and policies.

While every organization has its unique way of hiring and onboarding an employee, certain fundamental aspects of the process can be standardized with automation.

Key components of automated onboarding programs include:

• Pre-onboarding engagements: Automate communications and paperwork before the employee’s first day.
• Standardized training paths: Focus on creating role-specific training modules that ensure job readiness for each unique position.
• Automated task management: Streamline content scheduling, document submission, and policy acknowledgments.
• Integration with Human Resources (HR) systems: Synchronize onboarding with existing HR software for seamless data flow.
• Continuous feedback and adjustment: Implement mechanisms for new hire feedback so you can continually refine the onboarding experience.

Employee onboarding automation systems not only save time but also ensure consistency. It’s about providing every newcomer the same high-quality introduction to their role and company culture, minus the hassle of manual processes.

The end goal? A smoother, more efficient start for both the employee and the organization.

💻Learn how the HR department can support employee well-being.

Implementing Automated Onboarding: A Step-by-Step Guide

Automating the onboarding process is putting your new employee’s introduction to the company on autopilot but in the best possible way. To effectively automate your employee onboarding, follow these five steps:

Step 1: Assess Your Current Onboarding Process

Begin by reviewing your current onboarding process. Ask yourself: Where are the bottlenecks? Which tasks are repetitively manual? For instance, if you manually send out individual welcome emails and book initial training sessions for new hires, you are prone to human errors and scheduling conflicts. With an automated system, you can welcome new hires with personalized messages, schedule training directly on the company calendar, centralize essential information in a single knowledge hub, and ensure a seamless journey by automatically progressing them from one task to the next.

Automated reminders keep everything on track. This approach not only boosts efficiency but also significantly enhances the new employee’s integration and engagement with the company culture. By identifying these manual and time-consuming tasks, you pinpoint the aspects of your process that would benefit most from automation. This approach sets the stage for a more streamlined and efficient onboarding experience.

Step 2: Set Goals for Automated Onboarding

After you identify the onboarding aspects that could benefit from automation, set clear, quantifiable goals to measure the business impact of the automated system.

For example, if your traditional onboarding process takes an average of four weeks to get new hires fully operational, you could set a goal to reduce this timeline. Implement onboarding automation and aim to reduce this time by 50%, targeting a 2-week timeframe. Measurable objectives will guide your implementation strategy.

Step 3: Create Automated Employee Onboarding Workflows

When a new hire joins a company, an automated workflow guides them through each step of the onboarding process. This system automates and tracks administrative tasks such as completing necessary paperwork, undergoing training sessions, and scheduling meetings with team members. The process becomes more structured and manageable for the new employee and the HR team.

For example, you can assign specific tasks to relevant stakeholders, ensuring everyone knows their responsibilities. The IT staff might receive a notification to set up email accounts and provide necessary equipment while managers arrange welcome meetings. You can also assign an onboarding “buddy” that will be part of the new employee onboarding.

This level of standardization fosters a supportive environment for the new hire, making them feel valued and well-integrated, setting a positive tone for employee development. It comes as no surprise, then, that a SurveyMonkey report says that organizations that provide comprehensive training programs experience a 24% higher profit margin than those that do not.

Step 4: Customize Your Onboarding Experience

This step is crucial as it ensures the onboarding process aligns with your company’s culture and objectives. For example, you might integrate customized training plans and development resources into the onboarding experience. This helps ensure that each employee’s journey resonates with their role at the company. The focus here is on creating a unique and engaging onboarding process that not only aligns with the organization’s values but also addresses the individual needs and goals of each new employee.

Implementing such customization reflects the company’s commitment to their team’s personal and professional growth but also aids in building strong internal networks. This aspect of onboarding can be especially beneficial in large organizations where new employees might feel overwhelmed or disconnected.

Step 5: Monitor Your Automated Onboarding System

Launching an automated employee onboarding system involves ensuring your team is well-trained in its use. Collect feedback, analyze data, and make necessary adjustments to enhance the onboarding experience. For instance, your employee onboarding process should handle critical tasks such as sending automated welcome messages, company documentation, and employee surveys.

The monitoring phase is critical for assessing the effectiveness of the strategy. It involves observing how new hires and HR teams interact with the system and identifying any challenges or areas for improvement. Based on these observations and feedback, you should make continuous adjustments to ensure it remains efficient, user-friendly, and effective in meeting the organization’s onboarding needs.

💡Discover 10 employee onboarding strategies to boost retention.

Why Juno Journey Is the Optimal Choice for Employee Onboarding Automation

With Juno Journey, companies streamline their automated employee onboarding process through structured, customizable journeys that ensure each employee experiences a seamless transition.

Our onboarding LMS offers role-specific training and development paths, allowing for the creation of tailored training modules that equip employees with the necessary skills for their particular roles. Our real-time reporting capabilities also enable you to track onboarding and employee progress, gather feedback, and make informed decisions, enhancing the overall experience.

To discover how Juno enhances your employee onboarding experience with automation, request a demo today.