New-To-Role: Onboarding In the Digital Age

Here’s why an app-based system makes employee onboarding more effective and efficient

Onboarding is the first step to creating a positive, thriving relationship between newly hired employees and the company they’ve chosen to work for. It can set the stage for communication, interaction, and an employee’s growth and future at the company. The best, and perhaps most humorous, an analogy for a successful onboarding process is to say that it resembles dating.

The first part of onboarding requires that the company deliver the most basic, but important, information to the employee. Just like a first date, companies cover topics like history, expectations, habits, and specific details about how the business runs in the first part of onboarding. As new employee moves through the onboarding process, they’ll encounter other important details: like how to communicate, what is expected of them, and how they play a part in the overall goal. During onboarding, employees meet their colleagues, managers, and even higher-ups in the company—just like, when a relationship is serious and you meet friends and family. Some onboarding programs include a “DTR” (define the relationship) moment where new employees are introduced to career pathing strategies, and their future at the company is discussed.

Do you see the similarities? Well, both dating and employee onboarding underwent monumental changes during the pandemic—they went virtual. Whether online dating or remote work, those relationships are being forged on digital platforms. After all, we are in the digital age, and the pandemic only accelerated its adoption.

Successful new-to-role onboarding in the digital age will require companies to invest in both the best tools and the best strategies. Employees will be most successful in the onboarding process when companies provide easily accessible training resources through platforms that they already know and use.

Invest In App-Based LMS Platforms

Before onboarding begins, companies should invest in tools that will make the process more efficient and enjoyable for training managers and new employees. An app-based LMS platform is an easy win for companies and employees alike. ExpertusONE’s learning tools make it possible for companies to integrate the training tool with existing systems like Microsoft Teams, Slack, and Salesforce. Those platforms are some of the most commonly used workplace tools and, as a result, there is a significant chance new hires (even new-to-role hires) will already be familiar with such tools.

App integration alone can be a significantly impactful asset when it comes to the onboarding process because it reduces the excess time an employee will have to spend learning new software. More often than not, an employee’s first week or two at a company will involve learning new technology, sifting through databases, setting up digital accounts, and becoming familiar with the tools the company uses. While this is a natural part of the job, it can slow down new employees and feel overwhelming to learn multiple systems. With an app-based LMS platform, employees are more likely to be familiar with tools like Slack, Salesforce, and Microsoft Teams, so they can easily access training materials without having to learn a new system.

Provide a Collaborative Employee Onboarding Experience

According to research by McKinsey, one of the highest values employees have in 2021 is a sense of belonging. They want to feel like they have a place within the culture and community of a workplace. Company leaders should work to create this type of environment from the beginning of an employee’s experience, and that starts with onboarding.

Whether a company operates remotely, with a hybrid workforce, or totally in-office, an LMS platform can facilitate employee engagement through collaborative courses. ExpertusONE’s LMS does just this through interactive training courses that make it possible for new employees to engage with training managers as they work through the content. The platform makes it easy to incorporate video lessons, in-app conferencing, and interactive links within a course.

ExpertusONE also offers gamification features that can facilitate healthy competition among employees. Companies can showcase a leaderboard within the LMS platform so that employees can see who has completed what course, or how engaged they are in comparison to others. Collaboration is encouraged in this way because new employees can easily engage with others due to their shared learning experience.

Leave Room for Questions During Employee Training and Development

Here’s the sign of a good employee: they ask lots of questions. This is especially true for employees coming into new roles. Questions are an essential part of the learning process, but legacy LMS systems made it virtually impossible to get information outside of the course. Traditional LMS systems required employees to watch endless videos, sometimes with completion quizzes at the end. But these methods leave no room for questions or connection.

If employee engagement and successful onboarding is your goal (and it should be) it’s time to embrace the digital tools that make learning more enjoyable and connected. Employees need to be able to ask questions as they are working through courses, and ExpertusONE’s platform makes this possible by offering virtual meeting platforms within the system—it’s one of the first LMS platforms with this feature. ExpertusONE’s integrated content player also makes it possible for learners to provide feedback to managers as they are working through the course. That way, employees can engage with both the content and their leaders at the same time. This makes learning more effective and provides another way for new hires to engage with their colleagues.

Provide Bonus Material Alongside Compliance Training

ExpertusONE’s artificial intelligence feature makes it possible for employees to extend their learning beyond required courses. When employees complete courses, other relevant content is recommended based on their profile. AI pulls information about the employee’s job description, which courses others with similar roles are taking, and the employee’s interests and preferences. Based on these data points, the system serves recommendations to the learner.

In addition to a sense of belonging, employees in 2021 are also looking to upskill and build a future for their careers. Companies can encourage engagement and retention by providing employees with learning opportunities beyond what is required. Should an employee want to progress in their field, specific certifications can be offered or bonus training recommended. Companies can even implement wellness programs and workplace strategy courses (like stress management or communication tips) that help create a more harmonious work environment. This is where companies can offer clear trajectories for growth and advancement, showing new employees (and existing employees) the steps needed to make it to the next level in their careers.

New-to-role onboarding provides an incredible opportunity for companies to encourage engagement, promote collaboration, and provide a clear path for the future of those new employees. New remote and hybrid work environments have caused companies to reevaluate how they handle learning and training. It’s time to implement training strategies that cater to the digital age. Updated LMS platforms like ExpertusONE make it easier than ever before to create engaging training tools so that employees have the best experience and retain the most information. The key to successful onboarding is to cater to the employee’s needs and create a learning environment where they can thrive. Companies that invest in digital-first learning initiatives will see greater retention and competency, and they will be able to be flexible no matter how much life changes—whether we stick with in-office and hybrid work, or go remote altogether.