New employees offer promise and potential for their employers.  In order to be successful, they must acclimate quickly to their new organization’s culture, structure, policies, procedures, and job expectations. If this does not occur, the promise of a new employee can quickly become a liability.  Further, employees who are new to an organization, generally consume more resources then the value of their productivity (Rollag, Parise, & Cross, 2005).  It is critical for organizations to experience a return on their investment by means of increased productivity over time. This will not happen if new employees fail to reach full productivity or leave the organization before they have an opportunity to contribute in a way that affects the organization’s performance outcomes and bottom line (Chang, Ehrlich, & Millen, 2004).  

After the first three months, most new employees can perform functionally, understanding rules, regulations, processes, and governance. However, if they do not develop personal connections both intellectually and socially, they will not experience continued growth in the organization (Chang, Ehrlich, & Millen, 2004). Organizational socialization has a profound influence on new employee adjustment. Onboarding is an acclimation process focused on integrating new employees into a company’s culture (Dai & De Meuse, 2007) both functionally and socially.  

This presentation will explain the impact of utilizing a comprehensive onboarding program to improve new employee’s success.