Connect the Dots' Blog

Onboarding and Employee Engagement

2011-01-24T12:17:00.000-05:00

We hosted a webinar last week, titled Onboarding: An Employee Engagement Tool, and posed a poll question to our participants:

"How do you currently know if your new employees are highly engaged at the 100 mark?"

Here are the responses--

54% used surveys
21% had one-on-one conversations
25% did not know and does not measure new hire engagement

The great news is that the majority of the organizations in our audience were taking the time during the onboarding process to find out how engaged their new hires are. As studies have shown, the decision to stay in a new job usually happens within the first 6 months, so it is critical to get a gauge of the engagement level of your new hires.

How are you collecting this data? What changes are you making to your onboaridng process in response?

Onboarding Resolutions

2011-01-06T09:39:00.004-05:00

I guess it was the new calendar that I opened the other day, or maybe it was the list I made of things that I wanted to accomplish both personally and professionally, or maybe it was the barrage of media that switched from gift ideas to weight-loss programs, but I have definitely been thinking about resolutions.

Resolutions don’t always have to be something pledged on Jan 1 and forgotten by the 15th. They can be planful changes made based on research, best practices and implemented strategically over time. Those are the changes that stick.

If your organization’s onboarding program is in need of updating, overhauling or even just started, there are more resources available now more than ever.

There is a new report out by SHRM titled, Onboarding New Employees: Maximizing Success, by Dr. Talya Bauer. Its purpose, by my read, is twofold: to give the most recent information about what is being done inside organizations with regards to onboarding, and to give HR professionals some suggestions for putting the best practices into place in their organizations.

The author’s research-based model of onboarding also fits well with our own onboarding solution model of successful onboarding. Both focus on three core pieces; gaining knowledge, building relationships and getting/acting on feedback, delivered over about a four-month time period with a blend of coaching and technology.

It is most interesting to note that the biggest take-away is that onboarding seems to have left its “nice to have” status in the HR world and entered in the “must have” category.

Onboarding and the Manager Continued

2010-12-09T13:18:00.005-05:00

Wow! What a response we got from our last webinar, Onboarding and the Manager! Seems like many organizations are looking for information and answers as to how to include and engage the hiring managers in the onboarding experience.

We did a poll question in our sessions and asked the following question:

"What is your top challenge with onboarding and the managers in your organization?"

-65% of our respondents said that it's the fact that the hiring managers think it's HR's job to do onboarding

-25% said that their hiring managers don't have the time, tools or skills to do onboarding

-10% said the their managers are simply unengaged in onboarding

Very interesting results that perhaps speak to the long-standing gap between HR processes and the business.

We spent a lot of time discussing how to engage the managers to bridge this gap and came up with the following tips:

-Don’t focus on how “it should be”
-Demonstrate what’s in it for the hiring manager
-Focus on the business
-Keep your onboarding action high impact and relevant
-Start with hiring managers who “get it”

We are interested to hear your thoughts, suggestions and ideas on this topic!

Onboarding and the Manager: From Reluctant Participant to Engaged Owner!

2010-10-01T15:55:00.006-04:00

Everytime we meet with a potential client, the question always comes up, "How do we get our managers to onboard their people?" Unfortunately, most organizations have not done a great job of integrating their "HR" processes into the business and things like performance reviews, succession planning, and onboarding have been left to the Human Resources function to lead and deliver.

Most of the push-back from HR is usually when it comes to onboarding.

And they have a point.

The managers have the most to lose if their new hires are not properly integrated into their new jobs and the culture of the organization. And, they have the most to gain if these new hires can get up to speed quickly and deliver results faster and better because they have what they need to do so. But the managers usually drop the ball, or pass it to HR.

How can HR convert their reluctant managers to onboarding zealots? The answer is pretty simple to identify, yet not always easy to implement.

1. Show your managers what's in it for them.
2. Keep it simple.
3. Demonstrate the impact.

Read more about engaging your managers in your onboarding experience in our newsletter and join us for our next free webinar on November 16, 2010 @ 11 AM EST.

High Potential Moves and Onboarding

2010-06-14T10:53:00.013-04:00

Do you have high potential talent identified in your organization?

Do you have assessments, coaching and development plans for each of them?

Do you plan to move these high potentials into different roles to either "stretch" them and/or solve a business issue?

Most mid to large organizations probably have some type of talent review in place that allows them to identify and develop their star employees and next generation leaders. However, most do not include onboarding as a key strategy to smooth the transition between these roles and head off potential failure--failure that could result in the missed opportunities and business objectives, as well as the potential loss of some great talent.

There are some pretty unsettling statistics in the May issue of Harvard Business Review's article, "How to Keep Your Top Talent". The article reports that based on the research HBR did with the Corporate Leadership Council of 20,000 employees, "nearly 40% of the internal job moves involving high potention ended in failure."
The article goes on to point out the most common mistakes that organizations make with their high potential employees. Because many times a role change is used to develop these high potentials, a well-planned and well-executed onboarding experience can and will surface issues before they result in big mistakes or failure.

Internal transitions are the riskiest for an organization and for the individual because so many assumptions are made.

Here are the top five (wrong!) assumptions made for internal moves:
1. The transitioning employee gets the culture. Not necessarily--even different business units, geographic locations and teams can have a culture different from the "corporate" culture.

2. The transitioning employee knows what he/she is supposed to focus on. Not every hiring manager is clear about the job or role. This trips up even the most seasoned employee.

3. No relo, means no personal needs. Just because someone isn't moving to a new location, doesn't mean there won't be personal transition. New hours, longer commute, more travel can create stress and challenge for the transitioning employee.

4. The hiring manager can deal with all the transition issues. Most hiring managers are not focused on transition, especially internal ones. Peers, direct reports and Human Resources contacts can be a hugs support during transition, especially if their roles are defined.

5. No news is good news. Feedback is critical and even more so during transition. These employees are vulnerable and need to hear how they are hitting (or not) the mark in their new roles immediately.

For more on how to successfully onboard internal high potentials, visit our website or call 1.888.793.8805.

Onboarding for New College Grads-Tips for Early Success

2010-05-03T15:51:00.005-04:00

With hiring starting to pick up a bit now and organizations starting to look at how they will replace their "boomer" talent pools, hiring college grads is becoming more popular. However, getting these new grads integrated into the organization's culture and getting them up to speed so that they can be productive is the challenge.

It's hard enough for some of these new grads to transition from campus to corporate, but almost impossible without the support of the organization. Onboarding (not just sending them to a day-long orientation, or to skills training classes) is what they need. A good onboarding process will lay the foundation for a successful transition and productive first year, as well as create a roadmap for career development.

Here are a few tips for locking in your new grads and making them productive and engaged in their first weeks and months on the job.

-Keep in touch after the offer. Sometimes it can be weeks or months since the job offer is made and accepted and a lot of things can happen. Make sure that you are building in communication and touch points with your new college grad hires up until the first day on the job.

-Make orientation count. The days of 8 hours in a classroom with endless slides and and filling out forms are over. New college grads want and need a more interactive and relavent experience to introduce them to what it's really like to be a part of your culture. Use case studies, subject matter experts and FUN to introduce the company's stragies, processes and values.

-Engage the hiring managers. Before you bring in your "class" of new hires, make sure that the hiring managers are up to speed on what the onboarding experience should be and how they contribute to it. If consistancy is one of your main objectives, getting your hiring managers to understand what is expected of them and then giving them the tools to do it will be essential.

-Leverage the group. By reconvening the "class" of new college hires who have joined your organization at the same time, you can create a support system and network for them. They will be able to share experiences, talk about their challenges and successes, and learn from one another. Topics for workshops can include how to build a personal network, adjusting to the culture, and/or working through a 90 Day Onboarding Plan. Group assignments can also be a great way to build relationships, foster teamwork and demonstrate expected leadership behaviors.

Hiring talent right out of college can be a win-win for the organization and the new hire if done right. The organization can get strong talent without paying a steep price for experience and then have the opportunity to shape that new talent to fit its culture. The new hires get a chance to prove themselves and gain valuable experience inside an organization. Successful onboarding makes it all work.

Offer Accepted? You are so not done! Five Onboarding Tips for Hiring Managers

2010-04-01T13:02:00.008-04:00

I just got off the phone with a hiring manager who got his top candidate to accept the position and he starts in a couple of weeks.

He's thrilled and excited, right? Not really. More like anxious and concerned.

This hiring manager gets it. He understands that his organization has wooed this candidate with an impressive selection process and said all the right things of how things SHOULD or COULD be in their culture, but not necessarily how things ARE.

This manager is perceptive and right to be concerned. He knows that once the new hire actually comes onboard and starts to see the realities of the culture, he may start to question his decision.

Sound familiar?

It happens all too often that the "hand-off" from selection to onboarding is not handled properly or at all. Hiring managers tend to be "done" when the offer is made and just expect the new hire to participate in some brief orientation exercises, then hit the ground running. The new hires usually hit the ground, all right, but not running.

So, as a hiring manager what is the solution? As in most business situations, the best strategy is to be prepared.

Here are five tips to prepare for a successful onboarding of your new hires:

1. Talk to her before her start date. Do not let there be a void of communication from the offer to Day One. Stuff happens in the meantime--communicate it!

2. List the top things that the new hire needs to do in her first months on the job. Make sure that they are "on the job" learning activities that also contribute to the team's objectives.

3. Identify people in the organization who can make this person successful. Create the list then reach out to them and tell them why you need their support in building the right relationships with your new hire.

4. Work with your HR partner. Get input from your internal resources on how to build an onboarding plan, what organizational support is available and ask them to support you in the delivery of the onboarding process.

5. Give feedback early and often. This is the most overlooked and most critical component of an effective onboarding experience. New hires cannot change what they don't know, and they usually don't ask. You as the hiring manager are the best person to give feedback and allow them the opportunities to adjust before it's too late.

Read more on our website at www.connectthedotsconsulting.com

Onboarding-It's all about the Branding

2010-01-19T10:27:00.006-05:00

I am not a marketing person, so I googled "history of branding" and learned a few new things. The modern version of what most of know as "branding" products, services, companies, people, etc. has really only been around since the 1950's. It was a post-war response to a mass-production of consumer goods and a somewhat frugal consumer base who still remembered the Depression.

Interesting. I can't help but draw some paralelles to today.

We are in a time when consumer goods are plentiful and affordable to pretty much all of the industrialized countries and we are still recovering from the worst economic crisis since the 30's. So, branding was born to differentiate the plethora of products that were now available to the masses via "super-center" shopping.

This was made possible only by the mass communication that television provided. Sort of a "perfect storm" of sorts about products and communication. Again, not unlike the communication strides we have experienced over the last 2 decades. Mobile communication devices and the internet have joined television in communicating to the masses and companies are forced to participate in these technologies wheter they like them or not, just to stay relevant.

Staying relevant. Isn't that really what branding is all about anyway? Staying relevant and meaningful to your customers, audiences, niche market, whatever you call it. So what does this have to do with leadership onboarding?

Consider if you will that your newest leaders are a subset of your customers, or niche market. When you offered them their new roles and they accepted, they were, at least for the moment, your biggest fans. Now, if you didn't immediately start the process to keep them engaged, excited and ready to hit the ground running, you have missed a huge opportunity. Your brand is weakened because a relocation detail got missed, there were no phone calls or emails before the new leader started. The office wasn't set up properly and access to the company's network was delayed.

All these onboarding experiences are negative ones for your new leaders and your brand. Think about that as you build or refresh your process for 2010. What brand messages do you want to deliver to your newest leaders? How can you help them understand your brand so that they may reinforce it in their parts of the organization and to the customers they touch?

By creating as much passion and energy into your internal experiences as you do your external ones, you can create a culture that is authentic and sustainable.

Besides, sometimes it's easier to change when you start with the new people!

Day One--Your Onboarding Continues

2010-01-06T10:28:00.005-05:00

It's the first day of your new job. You probably didn't sleep much last night and checked your alarm clock 30 times to make sure it was set.

Now, you are on your way to the new office with excitement, anticipation and no doubt, a little anxiety. How do you make a good impression? What are the things you should not do to make a bad impression? Do you know enough about the culture of your organization to be able to decide?

If you have planned and prepared appropriately, you will be able to answer these questions for yourself and be way ahead of the learning curve when you hit the door on your first day.

Many new hires sit back and wait for this first day before doing research, asking questions and learning everything possible about their new organizations and the people with whom they will be working.

But let's assume you have done the right prep. (See last post, 12-16-09, below for more "prestart tips.) What are the keys to a great first day?

1. Be flexible and open. Unfortunately, not all organizations are as ready for you as they should be, so you may need to get creative and figure out how to make your "down-time" productive. Set up your office, load your address book, walk around and introduce yourself.

2. Make friends with your manager's assistant. This will be critical to your on-going success and ability to get in to see him or her, link with key people and generally know what's going on.

3. Meet your team. You would be surprised how many new leaders are so focused on meeting those above them, that they forget about their direct reports. You don't need to have in-depth meetings on Day One, but at least have a brief conversation with each one to start to get to know them personally. It will keep them from wondering and making up their own information about you.

4. Meet your peers. Again, you would be amazed as to how many people neglect to look "beside" them on the org chart and see who could help them in their new roles. Peers are usually the people who can be objective and have a much different perspective to offer than your boss or your direct reports.

5. Listen, listen, and listen some more. It is fine to give everyone you talk with a brief overview of your background and some personal information, but use the "60 Second Rule". Don't talk about yourself for more than 60 seconds without asking a question about the other person and then listening to her response. You will be "off the hook" for your opinion of things early in the game, and the information that you will gain will be tremendous. And, everyone will have the impression that you are great listener!

Follow these 5 simple steps during your first day on the job and you will set the tone for the next week and months. It can be overwhelming, but with planning, preparation and careful action, you will hit the ground running!

Taking a job in 2010? Now is the time to prepare during PreStart

2009-12-16T11:04:00.006-05:00

Maybe you are one of the lucky ones who is starting a new job in January?

Congratulations!

Now, it's time to work! The preparation for starting a new role is as important as finding your way to the office on the first day. During the onboarding process, this period between the time you accepted the job and your actual first day, is called "PreStart".

As onboarding consultants, we see this PreStart time becoming more and more important for a smooth transition. This is the time when you are becoming less engaged at your old job and more excited about the new one.

How can you take advantage of this energy and focus? Here are a few tips:

1. Read everything you can about your new organization. This may seem painfully obvious, but you would be surprised how few people actually do it. Use not only the organization's website, but other sources to get a more balanced perspective.

2. Talk to your recruiter or HR partner. Ask what has changed since you last met with someone in the organization. Continue to probe for any information that will help you better understand why they hired you, and what your focus should be.

3. Talk with your hiring manager. It's important to stay connected and start to build your relationship very early. You will begin to learn how she communicates, where her strengths lie, and how you can support her.

4. Identify and meet with key stakeholders. Who are the people that are absolutely essential to your success? Was there an internal candidate who didn't get the job? Are there important board members, clients, or team members who could "make or break" your success? Find them and meet with them, preferably in a casual, conversational setting.

5. Start a plan. What did you hear during the recruiting process? Does the organization want change or stability? What specifically were you hired to do? How can you strategically build relationships to support your goals? You can start to lay out a 90 Day Onboarding Plan with what you already know, but realize that it will need to be adapted as you learn more.

Searching for a job and finally landing one is hard work, but don't think it's over once the offer letter is signed! But your time and effort during the PreStart period will pay off exponentially with a smooth transition.

Follow these 5 simple steps during PreStart, and you will blow them away in your first 90 days!

Hiring in the new year? 4 critical steps for making your team successful

2009-11-30T10:32:00.005-05:00

I was talking with a client last week and he mentioned that he was planning to add several new associates to his team in early first quarter. I asked him how he was planning on integrating them to the existing team. He answered that he hadn't really thought about it, but wanted to know what I had in mind.

I told him that adding one person certainly affects the team, but adding three people will significantly impact the team, and without preparation and intentional onboarding, he may not get the results that he hoped for.

This is a pretty common event. Hiring managers get so caught up in the "selling", budgeting, and recruiting of their new staff, that they forget to plan for their smooth onboarding. By the time they get the positions approved, it gets through HR and they then finally get the people hired, they are "done". The new associates and the team are supposed to integrate seamlessley and figure out how to work together on that huge backlog of work that accumulated during the last weeks and months.

Well, that smooth transition doesn't usually happen and the new people may not be able to make the "positive cultural changes" that the hiring manager had in mind. Why? Because a formal onboarding plan was not created and the right communication was not shared with the existing team.

Hiring managers who are thoughtful and prepared for their new hires will be the ones with the most successful teams. It is not an option in most very lean organizations for the team members, even the new ones, to not be able to pull their weight. However, in order to hit the ground running, the organization must set up the new hires for success.

Here are the four critical steps to making your new team successful:

First, have a plan. Clearly identify the roles and responsibilities of each new position, as well as any changes to the existing ones. Restate the team's purpose and how it supports the overall organization.

Secondly, put objectives in writing. This leaves nothing to assumption or interpretation.

Thirdly, communicate both the above to everyone on the team. This includes existing staff and new hires.

Lastly, allow for discussion, questions and input of the team members. They just might have some ideas that you didn't think of--and they are probably right.

Interviewing? Ask for Onboarding

2009-11-18T15:29:00.005-05:00

Are you one of the many job-seekers out there interviewing for those precious-few positions? Do you want to stand out from the crowd of candidates vying for the same position?

Try this. Next time you are blessed with an interview, (yes, blessed, even interviews are hard to come by these days) ask about the organization's onboarding program. Is there one and what's it like?

This will not only suggest that you are well-informed on the latest talent management practices, but it will also tell you a lot about your prospective employer.

From this one question you will learn--

-how well do they value their new hires?
-how much do the invest in the development of their people?
-is there culture supportive and open?
-do they plan to contribute resources to your success?

This information can be extremely helpful in making your decision whether or not this organization is a match for your values and objectives. It may also provide you some leverage when discussing an offer on the table. You will have a chance to ask for support and resources that may have been missing.

Onboarding may not be an intergrated part of every organization's talent management but every new hire deserves support from the organization to make a smooth transition and to be set up for success.

It's better to know what's in store for you sooner rather than later.

Back to Basics: Leadership Onboarding Unplugged

2009-11-09T10:16:00.005-05:00

I guess it's the rising unemployment rate, the still unsure banking and financial industries and the general "wait and see" mode that everyone seems to be in now. But what we are hearing from our clients is pretty much the same thing--it's "back to basics" as the approach to their talent management strategies.

We thought this would be a great opportunity to again define and position leadership onboarding in the scope of the talent management cycle.

We wrote a white paper, titled, "Back to Basics: Leadership Onboarding Unplugged" to do just that. We also have quoted some recent stats about the "failure rates" of the current talent management practices and how a well-aligned onboarding experience can address these gaps.

To read the white paper, click on "articles" in the navigation bar above.

Let us know what you are doing to get back to basics with your talent management strategy.

Downsizing and Expanding Roles: Use Onboarding to Smooth the Transition

2009-09-15T10:44:00.005-04:00

I recently posted a question on Linked In to one of the onboarding groups that I belong and got some interesting responses.

The question was "Is anyone doing onboarding of leaders whose roles have grown/changed during the recent downsizing?"

One of the first responses that I got was "No, we are not, but what a great idea!" The writer went on to say that her organization's leaders had experienced quite a bit of increase in "span of control" due to staff reductions.

Several other contributors mentioned that they too, had experienced this in their organizations. Some of these leaders had been successfully led through thier transitions, while others had struggled due to a few keys barriers.

These barriers were things like--

no role clarity
not building key relationships
not understanding or making assumptions about the culture
doing too much too fast

Other things that trip up these leaders with expanded roles are that their bosses, their peers and their teams often expect them to perform without a learning curve. Research has shown that an internal move can take the same amount of transition time, or more than an external hire. And, according to an Alexcel Group study, 21% of these internally transitioned leaders are still not performing up to expectations after 2 years!

Your current leadership onboarding process can be adapted and used effectively to assist these leaders with expanded roles. Rely on the same resources that you would to help them understand their new roles, their teams, and the organization's expectations, just as you would for an external hire.

The pay-off to the time invested is significant and it will start to take hold in your culture. All your "new" leaders will come to expect this formal support and will give the organization an opportunity to reinforce behaviors and leadership messages deep into the organization.

Onboarding and the Current Job Market

2009-08-14T11:49:00.004-04:00

The job market continues to lag behind the other economic indicators, so it’s more important than ever to focus on a successful search and onboarding process.

The National Employment Report published and released last week by ADP, Automated Data Processing, a business services firm, provided an improving, but still declining job market from the month of June to July 2009. They found that the employment decline in this timeframe was the smallest since October of 2008.

Good news? It could be worse, but according to ADP, jobs are a “lagging indicator” of the health of the economy and they expect to see further decline before the labor market actually starts adding jobs.

However, this does not mean that hiring has stopped. Organizations in certain sectors are growing and hiring while others are just trying to keep up with attrition. According to Forbes.com, during their last fiscal years, Wal-mart, the retail giant, hired 100,000 new associates, while Randstad, the international temporary staffing company, hired 59,000, and IBM hired 31,000 new people to fill existing and growth-related positions.

So in this type of climate, how can the job seeker be successful and what role does the organization have in his or her success? Because the selection process is now longer and there are more candidates in the pool, it is more important than ever for these new associates to “hit the ground running” in their new positions. The primary responsibility is on the new hire to manage his or her own transition, but the organization must also step-up to support the onboarding process.

What an Individual Can Do to “Jump-start” the Onboarding Process?

Even though it may seem like it, the “work” is not done once a candidate has accepted the job. Time and attention to the transition is critical because so many people, particularly the ones in the managerial positions tend to have difficulty in the first few months on the job and can derail, costing the individual and the organization time and money.

Here are some key things that all new hires must do to cement success in a new role:
• Create a plan
• Identify key stakeholders; build relationships
• Be clear about the role and what is expected
• Be patient
• Ask questions
• Listen, observe

So again, the work is not over when the job is accepted--it's just beginning.

Next blog--What can organizations do to support onboarding in this climate?

Organizations and Onboarding: The 5 Biggest Mistakes

2009-07-21T11:30:00.004-04:00

(Our story continues with Alex still trying to navigate her new organization and role, without much support from her manager or Human Resources. If you missed the first 2 installments, see blog entries below.)

As Alex begins to have more meetings with the key stakeholders in the organizations, it is clear that they were not prepared to talk with her. Most are polite and ask about her “former life” and work, how she likes the organization, her team, etc. Some have a few complaints and issues that have carried over from Alex’s predecessor, and want quick resolution. Others do not have much information to share and are very unclear as to why Alex would have them on her list as a “meet and greet” because they have very little interaction with each other. The meetings are scheduled in the first few weeks, and Alex knows very little about the organization and cannot ask meaningful questions. It is difficult for her to discern which of these stakeholders may be the ones with whom she needs to build strong relationships.

Frustrated, Alex meets with her manager to get some sense of how she is doing and what her priorities should be for the coming weeks and months. Her manager is late for their meeting and distracted by his email and other messages. He tells her that she is doing fine and that everyone “takes awhile to figure things out here”. Alex asks him for some additional clarification on her role and the objectives for her next 3-6 months. He tells her to “keep doing what she’s been doing” and “keep the customers and the employees happy”.
He says that he will be talking with his boss in the next couple of weeks to get a better picture of what the whole function is going to look like and he will get back to her.

He doesn’t, and Alex is gone after only 7 months on the job.

Did Alex fail or did the organization fail her?

What often happens in situations such as our case study is that the organization blames the turnover of the position on a “bad hire” or a “non-fit” to the organization and takes little or no responsibility for the failure of the individual. The assumption is that the full responsibility is on the individual for her transition and that part of a new leader’s job is to “figure it out”. Our experience and work with clients has proven that a more holistic approach which blends the responsibility of the new leader and the organization yields the best results. Both must have clear roles and actively participate in the new leader’s onboarding process for maximum results.

Summary

Organizations that avoid these 5 biggest onboarding mistakes are the ones which will have new leaders who integrate better and experience smoother transitions. Even if other parts of the onboarding process are not executed properly or activities are not timely, if these 5 critical areas are addressed, the new leader will still experience a higher level of success than he/she would have if they had been ignored.

As a result, organizations can still experience some level of onboarding success if they pay attention to a few critical details,the "5 biggest onboarding mistakes" even if they are lacking a complete and consistent process.

Organizations and Onboarding: The 5 Biggest Mistakes (continued)

2009-06-23T16:45:00.003-04:00

(When we last left Alex, our new leader, she was excited and a bit anxious to start her new position--if you missed this, read the blog entry below...)

On her first day, Alex reported early to the office to get her space set up and organized. She is greeted at the front desk by the security officer who doesn’t have her “in the system” so she must wait in the lobby for her manager’s assistant to come and escort her to the work area.

Once there, she discovers that the assistant thought that Alex was starting the next week, so her computer, phone and office supplies are not there and have not yet been ordered. Alex also needs a Blackberry and Amex card, so the assistant has to fill out extra forms to get those items in process. Alex asks the assistant when she will be able to meet with her manager to start her onboarding process. The assistant tells her that the manager is out of the country for the next 2 weeks, but she will put her on his calendar the first day that he is back in the office. Alex would be spending the next day and a half in orientation and has a few “meet and greet” meetings set-up.

Alex begins to try to piece together what she believes her onboarding plan is and what the deliverables should be for her first few weeks and months on the job. She does her best to meet with her team members, peers and other stakeholders. She also uses the information that she obtained during the selection process to make decisions and process information, but she makes mistakes without the context and feedback of her manager.

People are starting to wonder why she is making changes in her department and her team, and are forming perceptions about her not really “fitting in” to this culture.

She starts to think that maybe taking this job wasn't such a great idea after all.

(to be continued)

Organizations and Onboarding: The 5 Biggest Mistakes

2009-06-08T11:00:00.004-04:00

What are the 5 biggest mistakes that organizations make when they onboard their new hires? And why do they make these mistakes repeatedly?

The interviews went smoothly. Alex felt great about the company, her new role and team, and she wasn’t relocating, so how tough could it be? But after she accepted the offer, her new organization let Alex down, in a big way—actually, 5 big ways.

Organizations start out with the best of intentions. They don’t usually set out to fail. But when it comes to onboarding their new employees, they unfortunately, are making the 5 same mistakes over and over again, and it is costing them time, money, productivity and some really good people.

The following are the worst (and the most common) mistakes that organizations make when onboarding their new hires:
1. No contact between the acceptance and start dates
2. Not providing the basic set-up and resources
3. Lack of a structured onboarding plan with clear expectations
4. Key stakeholder meetings lack preparation and focus
5. Hiring manager does not give feedback nor role clarity

Alex (our case study) received her offer and accepted within a week. However, after she had officially accepted and the recruiter faxed back a signed offered, no one else contacted her. She had several questions, and wanted to contact the recruiter or her new manager but didn’t want to be perceived as “high-maintenance” so she decided to wait. She called her hiring manager, left a voice mail and received a brief email in return that said he was looking forward to her starting and that he would answer all her questions on her first day.

Find out what happens to Alex in our next blog....

Onboarding Feedback: Why Don't New Leaders Get It?

2009-05-20T10:01:00.000-04:00

We all say that we want feedback and most of us believe that we are good at giving feedback.

However, a recent informal poll tells us that most leaders want more feedback from their own boss and admit that they have not given specific, constructive feedback to a team member in the past 30 days.

Feedback is especially important during the onboarding period for a new leader.

Key areas the new leader should be getting feedback around are:

-How are they integrating into the culture?
-Are they meeting expectations of their boss and team members?
-Do they listen and gather input before making decisions?
-Do they respect the culture?

What often happens is that new leaders do not get direct feedback. Bosses and HR partners ask them how they are doing and if they need anything; however, they do not gather and share feedback in a meaningful way. At the same time, impressions are being formed and everyone around the new leader has made decisions about his/her effectiveness, whether or not he/she will “make-it” in the organization and role. They are also deciding whether or not they will support this new leader.

Without this feedback, the new leader is truly “hamstrung”. He/she is working in the dark and is moving forward based on his/her own understanding of how things are going.

Providing feedback to new leaders is not difficult if you have the right tool. Once you give key stakeholders a structured and straight-forward way to provide the feedback, they appreciate the opportunity and gladly share their perspectives. By providing feedback to new leaders you give them the opportunity to understand where they truly stand and make any course corrections needed.

Visit the feedback section of our website to learn more about providing early feedback to your transitioning leaders.

www.connectthedotsconsulting.com/feedback.htm

The First 100 Days: Onboarding for all new leaders

2009-04-29T09:47:00.005-04:00

As we mark the first 100 days of the Obama administration, we have the opportunity to compare the publicity of this event to that of new leaders in an organization. The origin of marking of the first 100 days goes back to the Eisenhower administration.

Although the recognition of this milestone has been termed a “Hallmark holiday” by those trying to down-play the event, we not only measure early success of a new president, we use the 100-day mark as a measuring stick, of sorts, for all new leaders in our organizations.

So, whether or not a new leader wants this type of attention and pressure or not—--it is there and it is real.

Here are 5 tips for new leaders to use to manage the expectations of the first 100 days and make sure it is a “celebration” and not a “failure”.

1.) Build a foundation of knowledge base about the organization,your business, unit, function and role.

2.) Identify your key stakeholders and build relationships with these individuals.

3.) Gather feedback from your boss and a few key stakeholders regarding how well you are integrating into the organization’s culture—-“What’s the word on the street” about you?

4.) Identify “early wins” and accomplish a couple visible objectives.

5.) Observe and learn the culture—what are the “unwritten rules of the road”.

It’s all about making, implementing a plan, and managing expectations.

Don’t be a victim of the marking of your first 100 days!

Using Onboarding to Close the Deal

2009-04-17T16:44:00.007-04:00

A family member of mine has recently completed a long, and rather challenging job search. He was laid off in July from a director-level position at a large, internationally-owned company with whom he had worked for 12 years. The "happy" ending is that he did find a position and is now working.

However, this new position has not started out as well as it could have. Unfortunately, this organization has not used onboarding to close the deal for him. As matter of fact, it hasn't done much onboarding at all.

Because of the current economic climate and job market, employers may think that they can skimp on the investment of time and resources in the selection and onboarding processes. They are in the driver's seat, after all, but this is temporary. The best talent will always be in demand and will still need to be wooed, engaged and retained. The onboarding process is a key way to do this.

My partner and I were at a conference recently and heard an author speak about how customers are at their most loyal right before they become actual customers. It occured to us that that is exactly what happens with new hires. They are energized and engaged during selection, and often become disillusioned after the "honeymoon" period ends. For my family member, the honeymoon ended during the first week!

Organizations that want to keep their competitive edge and attract and retain top talent, even in this economy, would be wise to tune up their onboarding processes.

A warm welcome and a well-delivered onboarding process will not only get the new hires up to speed faster and more productive, but also get them engaged and retained.

Isn't that that how you want to close the deal?

Onboarding Takes Too Long

2009-03-27T10:39:00.003-04:00

We recently met with some HR leaders at a large organization (which is still hiring new leaders) and they told us that several of their new hires who were onboarding said that it took too long. There were too many "meet and greet" meetings, introductory receptions and lots of information about the organization to absorb.

These new leaders were anxious to get to their "real jobs" and saw the onboarding process as getting in the way.

So, one of the HR leaders had a bit of a revelation as we talked and said, "But isn't onboarding what they are really supposed to be doing?!" We continued to talk about how new leaders cannot be effective at all at their "real jobs" until they have learned the culture, built the relationships and understand the processes of their new organizations. And then throw in, how do they know where they are hitting or missing the mark? (getting feedback!)

The challenge for HR is to present onboarding to new leaders in such a way that it doesn't feel like "extra" or "instead" of the real work at hand. They need to be able to effectively communicate to the new leaders that the process is essential for their success and really non-negotiable. If presented in a coaching model between 2 business leaders, this should be fairly seamless.

New leaders will not only actively engage in the onboarding, they will be asking for more.

"Re-board" Your People During Tough Times

2009-03-04T16:41:00.004-05:00

As organizations are experiencing lay-offs and restructuring, it is important for human resource leaders to pay close attention to their high performers and high potentials. A new trend is to leverage the key components of the existing leadership onboarding process to “re-board” this key population of employees. Re-boarding is defined as connecting with the key employees in an effort to engage and retain them.

Elements of your leadership onboarding process that can be applied to “re-boarding” are:
(a) Providing knowledge regarding the current strategy of the organization, impact of changes on the leader’s role and team
(b) Coaching leaders about who their key stakeholders are in the “new” and how to build and develop relationships with the key stakeholders
(c) Give the high performers and potentials actionable feedback regarding what they need to: start doing, stop doing and keep doing to be successful and move forward

By leveraging these key elements you will increase the engagement level and likelihood of retaining your high performers and high potentials.

Even in a recessed economy, the star performers have a choice as to where they work. Make sure that they choose your organization.

President Obama, Financial Fatcats and Feedback

2009-02-16T10:51:00.005-05:00

So far, the president has figured out what the financial institutions' leaders have not. Feedback, whether solicited or unsolicited must be heeded. President has done a fairly good job of using his feedback (called in the political world, mandates, approval ratings and poll responses) and converting it into action that is supported by a vast majority of the country.

The financial fatcats, on the other hand, cry for aid, then hand out bonuses and buy jets. The feedback, or in this case, backlash, from the American people did not dissuade them much from business as usual. In fact, some even suggested that cancelling elaborate recognition events "punished" the hard-working people of their organizations.

What?

I am all for reward and recognition, but only in the context of what is appropriate for the work results and the economic environment--or for any unsubsidized company that is celebrating success and profit.

But back to feedback. The president and these financial leaders' current state is a glaring contrast of how feedback can, and should be, used and the result of what happens when it is ignored.

What can the leaders of your organizations take-away from this current situation?

Hopefully, they will recognize that it's always better to ask for feedback, then wait until it catches up with you. By that time, it may be much more negative than positive and hard to swallow.

Next, when it's given--acknowledge it! Nothing can back-fire more than candid feedback that a leader tries to "defend" or "explain away". Accept it, you don't have to agree with it, but it is extremely important to understand the source and why that feedback was given.

Then, make a plan. Identify the most compelling or most reoccurring feedback that has been given and figure out how to change the behaviors associated with it.

Lastly, communicate and ask others to hold you accountable. This is an important step in the proces because it keeps you honest, and it helps the people who gave you the feedback have "some skin in the game".

Let's hope for our country and its economy that the financial leaders start to "get" this and the president continues his example.

I'm good! (yeah, right) Getting Feedback to New Leaders

2009-02-02T14:03:00.012-05:00

Yes, there still are some companies who are bringing on new leaders. Whether they are filling open positions, promoting or transitioning people within a company, new leaders are still in need of help. This help should be in the form of a formal onboarding process.

By now, most organizations "get" that new leaders need access to critical information and also need help identifying with whom they need to forge relationships. BUT--do these new leaders really know how they are being perceived and experienced in the first few weeks and months on the job?

Probably not.

Most HR professionals agree that they need feedback, but they do not gather and provide it during the onboarding period. Of course, most HR partners ask the typical questions like, "How are things going?" or "Do you have everything you need?" or "Do you have any questions that I can answer?" The new leaders typically respond with "Great!", "Yes, everything is coming together." and "I will let you know if I have any questions. Thanks."

This type of surface exchange does not give the HR partner the information that he/she needs to understand how the new leader is really doing. Nor does it give the new leader a real opportunity to ask for specific help.

Often, the new leader does not receive structured feedback until a 360 process is offered--usually around the 12-month mark. This is TOO late and does not provide the leader with feedback about how he/she is fitting into the culture of the organization or managing his/her onboarding process.

We have identified a set of key indicators that predict a new leader's onboarding success. If you gather feedback from the new leader's key stakeholders: the boss, direct reports, peers, the HR partner and him/herself around these key indicators, the new leader has a "snap-shot" of how his/her network views those ever-critical early behaviors in a new role.

How early? We recommend gathering this feedback at about 45 to 60 days, then again at 90 to 120 days. This feedback is invaluable and allows the new leader to understand what he/she should--
--stop doing
--start doing
--change
to successfully onboard and integrate into the role and organization.

The easiest way to gather and analyze this data is by using web-based tool that provides anonimity for the stakeholders and gives qualitative and quantitative feedback. The Return on Investment for this type of exercise is almost immediate and highly impactful.

Leaders can actually do something about their behaviors before it's too late.

How Long Will Obama's Onboarding Honeymoon Last?

2009-01-19T15:45:00.000-05:00

I was having a conversation about the impending inauguration (who isn't, right?) and the question came up, "Just how long do you think that Obama will have for his onboarding honeymoon period?" Typically, new US presidents are given the 100-day grace time to get up-to-speed on the pressing issues, make staffing appointments, get briefed on national security and figure out what needs attention and its priority.

Well, things aren't typical these days, as we all know. President-elect Obama has appropriately been managing expectations since he won the election, but as he continues to learn the current state of our country's affairs, he could still be suprised.

How much time will the American people give him to deliver some sort of results? How will his team come together and work toward common goals? What circumstances will present themselves that will test his resolve and/or his decision-making ability?

These are all yet to be seen, but one thing is pretty clear--Obama's first 100 days probably started on November 5, 2208, not January 21, 2009.

What about your organization? How long is a new leader "new"? How long is he or she given to listen and learn before being expected to deliver? And probably more, importantly, how is the organization supporting those individuals during this time?

No one will understand this better than our new president--how important that support can be. Let's all hope that his support is in place and he has the tools to make the right decisions at the right time for our country.

Leadership Onboarding in 2009

2008-11-24T14:29:00.006-05:00

What's ahead for leadership onboarding in 2009? With all the dreary economic news, it seems that organizations will typically cut discretionary spending and focus their time and money on what will successfully drive their businesses into the next year and beyond.

A survey that I just read today, published by the International Association for Human Resources Information Management (IHRIM) reports how human resource leaders said that they would spend their information technology dollars next year. The findings say that of the companies making investments in software, 12% will be spent on core HR management systems, 25% will be spent on benefits management solutions and the most will be spent on onboarding tools at 28%.

This result indicates that more and more HR leaders are recognizing the business need and competitive advantage to providing a formal onboarding process. How many of these will have a dedicated focus to leaders is unclear. But the numbers are encouraging.

The article goes on to report that there is still an indication that companies will continue to cut budgets and staff in the slumping economy. These cuts will probably include development-like programs such as leadership coaching, team development and leadership onboarding. I was at a conference this fall and a key-note speaker from Home Depot said the their leadership onboarding was "suspended indefinitely" to save cost as their sales declined.

Unfortunately, this is a big mistake. Top talent will go to companies with these types of programs and organizations risk losing their competitive edge.

Now, more than ever, is the time to protect your biggest investments, your leaders.

Read the full article about the survey

Can't Afford Not to Do Leadership Onboarding

2008-11-20T10:20:00.001-05:00

The talking heads on CNN and Fox News are telling us to "Hang on, it's going to get worse." The economy, that is, by way of tightened credit markets, crumbling financial institutions, big lay-offs and shaky consumer confidence. It is the typical reaction to hunker down, not spend any money and "wait and see" what happens next.

That might work for individuals and families, but not organizations who have to figure out how to keep and grow their competitive edge. Strong leadership is needed now more then ever and organizations are still paying big bucks to get it.

So, if your organization has sunk several thousand dollars into recruiting, interviewing, assessing and relocating a key leader, why would you leave their onboarding up to chance? Wouldn't you think that a small additional investment of time and money to insure that he or she "sticks" and does what he or she was brought in to do would be worth it?

We are continually surprised that operational and human resources leaders will agree that a leadership onboarding process "makes sense" or is "nice to have" but not a necessity. We beg to differ. Statistics in study after study prove that failure rate of newly hired or promoted leaders is in the 40 to 60% range.

The platform is on fire! Look down!

HR Tech Show and Leadership Onboarding

2008-10-20T11:36:00.003-04:00

Connect the Dots participated in the HR Tech Show that was held in Chicago last week. It was great to talk with several HR professionals that understand the need to provide onboarding support to new leaders! At the same time it is surprising to learn that many organizations are not providing the support they know new leaders need.

The business case for leadership onboarding speaks for itself:

enables new leaders to "hit the ground running"
allows for faster recruitment ROI
provides platform for building relationships with key stakeholders
increases engagement early on

It can be easy to over-complicate the leadership onboarding process. A successful leadership onboarding approach is based on three key elements:

provide the right knowledge at the right time
identify key stakeholders with which the new leader needs to build relationships
give timely and actionable feedback

So don't over-think it--get started!!

5 Strategies for Effective Meet and Greets

2008-09-11T09:24:00.012-04:00

No one in any of the organizations that we talk to would disagree with the importance of building relationships as part of a new leader's onboarding process. They nod their heads and add that in their organizations it is not only important, but critical, for a new vice president to get to know and build real relationships with the people (sometimes called stakeholders) who can make or break his/her success.

But what is the plan to create those relationships? How does the new person know who the important players are and how they affect their function's objectives? What does the organization do to support these budding relationships? If your organization is like most, there is little formal support and the new leader is often left to "figure it out" on his own. After all, you pay them alot of money to know these things, right?

The Research

In a March 2007 study by RHR International, they found that the biggest challenges for onboarding new leaders are--

Adapting to the culture 45%

Building relationships 29%

Role clarity 19%

One out of three new leaders said that meeting the right people and building the relationships that help them achieve their objectives is their biggest challenge.

The Typical Stuff
A pretty common way that organizations handle the "relationship-building" part of a new leader's onboarding is by making a list of several (or a lot!) of people with whom the person needs to meet in his/her first few weeks or months. Unfortunately, this list is not always reviewed strategically and the participants are not chosen with purpose. The other mistake that is made is that there is little or no structure given to these conversations; there is poor communication about the meeting's purpose and usually no follow-up actions are required. This is a recipe for failure and both the new leader and his or her stakeholders are frustrated and off to a rocky start.

Missed Opportunity
The impact of these weak "meet and greet" meetings is really missed opportunity. Missed opportunity for the new leader to experience the organization's culture through its people. Missed opportunity for stakeholders to get to know the new person and his or her thoughts and observations about the organization and how they could work together. Losing that window of a new leader's first few weeks can make it extra difficult for both the new leader, his or her team and the other stakeholders to form solid working relationships.

5 Strategies for Effective Meet and Greets
Here are five strategies that you can implement in your organization to avoid the pitfalls of ineffective or non-existent "meet and greet" meetings:

1. Gather information from the hiring manager.
-Why was this person hired?
-Whom should they get to know and why?
-Consider their own team, internal and external stakeholders.

2. Create a strategic list of stakeholders.
-Shrink the list to the critical few.
-Determine action items and follow-up strategies for each.

3. Schedule the right meeting at the right time.
-Ensure that the meeting is timely with the business cycle.
-Calendarize the meetings so that the new leader has context.
-Too much too soon, can be too much too soon.

4. Consider the audience.
-Who are the key people in each area?
-What influence do they have over the new leader's success?
-What demographic do they represent?

5. Develop and implement a communication strategy.
-Tell participants what is expected and when.
-Send separate anouncements with suggested agendas to participants.
-Encourage that meetings be kept as scheduled by holding participants accountable.

With the implementation of these 5 simple strategies, you will see your new leaders and their key stakeholders benefitting almost immediately. Although this process is largely intuative, most organizations do not take the time to implement a formal strategy.

The numbers don't lie. Relationships are critical, and developed the right way, lead to not only individual success for the new leader, but the organization.

For more information on how to put together a comprehensive leadership onboarding process, email us at info@connectthedotsconsulting.com

"Mastering Onboarding"

2008-05-30T12:57:00.002-04:00

We have reached the point that HR professionals feel pressure to "master onboarding" for their organizations.

In the past six months we have seen a flood of conferences, webinars, teleconferences, articles and studies around the topic of onboarding. Each offers to help HR professionals relieve the pressure they are under to develop a program that is right for their organization.

Before we can "master" we should first focus on the basics by defining the following:

the business case for onboarding in your organization

objectives for onboarding

the audience for whom the onboarding program is intended

roles and responsibilities of the three primary participants; new employee, hiring manager and human resources for both creating and implementing the program

how your will measure progress and success

If we jump to designing a "solution" before these basic building blocks are in place, the onboarding process will likely fall flat and become another HR program that misses the opportunity to add value.

So, take the time to build a solid foundation by defining the basics and you will "master onboarding".

Mastering Leadership Onboarding

2008-05-07T14:38:00.002-04:00

Mastering Leadership Onboarding Webinar

Onboarding Senior Leaders:
A Different RoadMap

Wed May 21st 12:00 PM EST
Register today!

We are launching a webinar focused on developing and implementing a leadership onboarding program.

Leadership onboarding surfaced on the human resources landscape about 8 years ago. The first “scary statistics” published, stated that 64% of new leaders FAIL within their first 18 months on the job. While not all organizations have experienced this staggering number, most talent managers recognize that a purposeful onboarding process will address “avoidable” turnover, get new leaders up to speed faster and align new leaders with his/her new culture faster and “smarter”.

Our webinar will provide you with the most recent research and best practices and how to put them into practice in your organization.

Here is what you’ll get from the webinar:
· Why senior leaders need a different roadmap
· What is in the roadmap
· How to deliver the roadmap
· Ways to measure success

Onboarding Senior Leaders: A Different Roadmap
May 21st 12 noon to 1pm EST
$95.00 per participant

To register click here

Orientation vs Onboarding: What's the Difference?

2008-03-24T10:24:00.001-04:00

Every organization needs both.

My partner and I attended and presented at a conference in January dedicated to the topic of onboarding talent. The interesting take-away for us was the lack of distinction between orientation and onboarding. Most of the organizations presented their orientation programs as "onboarding processes" even though each have distinctly different purposes, activities and, in some cases, different audiences.

So, we thought it would be helpful to clearly define each process and build context for when and how they can be used effectively in any organization.

The purpose of orientation is to manage the "new hire paperwork" in a way that represents the organization’s brand and confirms the individual's decision to join the organization. It also provides a "captured audience" to which the organization can communicate general information that is needed by all new hires, regardless of position.

By contrast, the purpose of onboarding is to provide a supported process that provides new employees with the opportunity to gain knowledge; build relationships; and act on feedback for the purpose of successfully and quickly integrating into the organization, taking into account thier unique positions and job functions.

Timing:

Orientation is a single event that usually takes place in the first week or so on the job and lasts for a few hours up to a few days.

Onboarding usually begins when the new hire accepts the job and continues for between 3 and 6 months, and sometimes up to a full year. During this time, the new associate is not exclusively "onboarding" but learning and delivering work according to a structured plan that was prepared by the hiring manager, the HR partner and the new hire.

Delivery:

Orientation delivers information to a group that is common to all new hires. This allows for efficient use of the HR facilitator's time and organizational resources. It is usually in a classroom-style setting and more of a "one-size-fits-all" format. Organizational culture information can be presented in this format, but it doesn't allow for any real-world application for the new associate.

An onboarding process allows for information to flow through several channels, including to and from the new hire. It also provides a scalable method to deliver consistent organizational information, while delivering customized content by function and by role. So instead of an "information dump", onboarding gives the new associate what he/she needs to know and "just in time" so that it can be used on the job as needed. A more blended learning approach is used to deliver the information, so that the new associate also gets feedback as to how he/she is doing in the new culture and can make appropriate adjustments.

Results:

Orientation programs' results are rather limited to the processing of new-hire paperwork and the exposure of new hires to general organizational and cultural data. The associates are still considered "new" after their orientation experience and usually need quite a bit more assistance from their hiring manager and functional peers to be able to start being productive in their new roles.

Onboarding takes a longer view and allows the new hires to "learn and do" during their first weeks and months on the job. The process builds a plan that provides resources and tools that the new associates can draw on to support their transitions. When onboarding is complete, the new associate is fully integrated into the organization and has begun to contribute and "payback" the investment that the organization has made in him/her.

These associates are usually more highly engaged in their roles and the organization and have a higher likelihood of staying after 6 months, according to the most recent study by The Aberdeen Group.*

So, the question isn't really orientation or onboarding, it's how can organizations do both effectively? One is not a substitute for the other. In the world of the shrinking talent pool, no organization can afford slow productivity and/or high turnover of their new associates. A relatively small investment of time and money in the first few months of a new hire's tenure will provide high impact to the organization through an engaged and productive work force.

If you would like more information about orientation and onboarding, contact us at info@connectthedotsconsulting.com

*All Aboard: Effective Onboarding Techniques and Strategies, January 2008

Five Steps to Shape-Up Your Onboarding Process

2008-01-25T15:22:00.000-05:00

This time of year always seems to be that time when the topic of “fitness” is everywhere. Magazines, newspaper articles and morning news shows are crammed with ideas for getting our bodies into shape for the New Year. Increasing concerns for health and well-ness tend to drive this focus, but so does the looming swim suit season!

Borrowing from the fitness frenzy, it is also important to take a look at our business processes and identify where they can be improved and “shaped up” as well. If your onboarding program has not been reviewed in the last year and updated, it is one of those processes that can definitely benefit from a shape-up.

If your organization is like most, you have had some type of process to integrate new leaders and new associates that has been developed over the last 2-3 years. The Aberdeen Group, in its August 2006 report on onboarding states that in 2005, 60% of all organizations did not have a formal onboarding process, compared to 24% who do not have them today. So the good news is that more companies understand the need for a more deliberate integration process and are actually doing something about it. But, most are probably not reviewing their metrics and results from their onboarding processes and making the appropriate adjustments. The original program may no longer be meeting the needs of the organization, and possibly may not being used or followed at all!

Five Steps to Onboarding Shape-Up:

Step One: Find out what is working and what isn’t. Ask some of your newest hires about their onboarding experience, and if it was timely and relevant. Take care to include those new hires that are in your target audience for onboarding. If your process is fairly new, you may want to include both new hires who have participated in the onboarding program and some who have not. You will get data about the impact of your process on the individuals as well as on the organization. Validate that each participant in the process is fulfilling the roles that were outlined. Check out simple things like making sure that all the new hires’ logistical needs were met. Document this information, or send out a simple email survey to capture the data.

Step Two: Review current best practices. Do some research on-line. There are a number of websites and blogs that give information about what companies are doing and what thought-leaders are saying about current trends and practices in onboarding. It may also be helpful to contact peers at other organizations to ask what they are doing. Articles in trade journals often include the author’s email address, so it may be beneficial to drop a note to one to get more information on the topic. Onboarding is also a popular conference topic these days, so there may be some information out there from conferences that have already occurred, or some upcoming events that may help provide more best practices data.

Step Three: Make recommendations for changes based on data. This cannot be overstated. Too many organizations decide to implement changes to a process or program with anecdotal information and not hard data. They may respond to one or two individual’s experiences without regard to the whole population affected by the process. By making changes based on real data, you also have a much greater chance of having a larger impact with those changes. For example, if you find that most of your newly onboarded associates are not feeling connected to the new community and are having difficulty finding personal transition support, you may recommend adding these resources. However, if you have isolated incidences of these issues, you may not want to take the time or commit resources to a change that could have little impact.

Step Four: Balance the three critical components for onboarding success. Look at your onboarding process to make sure that it includes and balances the critical three components for success:
1. Knowledge
2. Relationships
3. Feedback
Many onboarding processes are “knowledge-heavy”. They bombard their new leaders and new associates with information about the organization, its history, its purpose and immediate goals. Some do a good job of extending that knowledge to include functional and role information like, “how does my role fit within this company?” while others leave that piece a bit more to chance. It is important to continue to “hone” the right amount and right type of information that a new associate needs in his/her first months on the job.

Secondly, providing a method for building key relationships is extremely important to successfully onboarding someone, regardless of level. In a recent study by Deloitte, titled “It’s 2008: Do You Know Where Your Talent Is?” reports that people learn the most (67%) when working with a colleague on a task. The report continues with “people also learn from those they trust: bosses, subordinates, peers and mentors.” So it is critical that the organization create a structure to support such relationships if they want to see these results.

Thirdly, the organization’s ability to give timely feedback to a new hire and create a process to support acting on that feedback is essential. This is the most common missing component of the onboarding process. Without such feedback, a new hire (and particularly one with leadership responsibilities) can be making serious cultural mistakes without knowing it and creating damage to him or the organization that may not be repairable. Timely feedback, given in a way that the new hire can understand, process and create a plan to address is what sets apart a great onboarding process from an adequate one.

Step Five: Measure, Measure, Measure! Both quantitative and qualitative data are important to collect from your onboarding process. It is fairly easy to track the number of new associates and how many have engaged in onboarding. It can be a little more challenging to measure the effectiveness of the process, but it’s not impossible. Ask the same questions to each person or group—that way you will have consistent data. Use existing measures like retention information and employee engagement information to augment your results and show impact. Tracking the “time to performance” will be easiest while collaborating with your hiring managers and pre-determining a success profile for each position. That way you can benchmark the new hire’s performance against a standard. Comparing this data for those associates who were on-boarded versus those associates who were not, gives you impact data of your onboarding process on your associates and your organization.

While thinking about taking on a comprehensive review and assessment of your entire onboarding process may seem daunting, you can start with these first five steps to either “jump-start” your initiative or make a few changes that have greater impact. Either way, jumping in and doing something is better than nothing. You will get some results and the more you work at it, the better the results.

At least that’s what they say about exercise. Start small and make it a habit. You’ll wonder how you did without it.

Why Do New Leaders Fail?

2007-12-06T11:19:00.000-05:00

Turnover for chief executives has doubled since statistics began to be complied in 1999, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas. In 2004, 663 chief executives left, and then in 2005, the number doubled to 1332. CEOs are now lasting only 7.6 years in office, down from 9.5 in 1995, according to Booz Allen. And an Havard Business Review article reports that two out of every five new CEOs fail in the first 18 months on the job.

Here are the major reasons for new leaders' failure*:

There is no process to assismilate executives into the firm.................22%

The new leaders don't have the required internal political savvy.......25%

They are unclear about what their bosses expect..............................33%

They fail to build relationships with staff and peers............................52%

They fail to establish a cultural fit…........................................75%

*from the Wall Street Journal, Nov 2006

Culture is what gets you everytime.

A wise Ford executive once was quoted as saying, "Culture eats strategy for breakfast", so you can only imagine what it does to new leaders coming into complex organizations with high expectations from shareholders, board members and employees.

"Because most organizations usually do not include any type of culture data in their leadership onboarding programs, (that is, if they have a leadership onboarding program) the new leaders start out with a significant disadvantage. True, they can talk to their bosses or peers, but this information can be biased at best, and wrong, at worst.

New leaders are prone to making common mistakes while attempting to communicate “big ideas” or determining how conflict is resolved. This not only slows their integration into the company, but taints how they are viewed by others. They will be accused of “not getting it” or “not being the right fit” for the job. This can result in lost time to productivity, team dysfunction, and general opposition to whatever changes they are attempting to implement.

Smart organizations capture that information, summarize it and present it to their new leaders in a way that is understandable and doable. They can immediately “get” how to behave in meetings, the most effective communication methods and where the power centers are in the
organization.

With this critical information, new leaders are equipped to more quickly produce the results for which they were hired. They are also more likely to express satisfaction in their work and their relationships if they have fully absorbed this cultural information. This translates to their performing at a higher level and increases their likelihood of staying with the organization, while not regretting their decision to join it."

-Excerpt from Leadership Culture: Impact on Strategy, November 2007

To get this whole whitepaper on the impact of culture on strategy, email us at info@connectthedotsconsulting.com and we will add you to our email distribution.

Onboarding: A Tool to Becoming a Business Partner

2007-11-06T14:05:00.000-05:00

At a recent conference the presenter told the audience (made up of VPs and Directors of Talent Management) that "we need to improve our practioners of Talent Management and be solid business people" This has been a common theme for HR conferences and articles--made more timely by the Fast Company 2005 cover story-- Why We Hate HR. Many articles and studies support this by describing the lack of business knowledge and savvy in HR functions in companies of all sizes.

During the Q and A of the conference presentation, someone actually asked, "How do you/we develop our Talent Management teams to have and demonstrate Business Acumen?"

I was shocked and embarrassed for this person. It is bad enough that the Talent Management function does not possess these skills, it is worse that they do not even know HOW to possess or develop these basic skills. This is even more bothersome considering that the Talent Management group is responsible for creating and implementing strategies to support the business people in the organization!

Partnering with hiring managers and new leaders, as well as newly promoted leaders, is an excellent opportunity for talent management professionals to show value. By coaching both the hiring manager and new leader on: establishing objectives, building knowledge about the organization and role, building relationships that will support objectives, providing cultural context and direction, and gathering and sharing feedback, the talent management partner can get the new leader up to speed more quickly and help him/her avoid derailment. The talent management partner can also provide the hiring manager with valuable insight and coaching on how to help his/her new team member be successful. To be a successful onboarding partner the talent management partner needs to be an expert on the organnization, how it works, as well as the market place it is in.

Hopefully, leaders in Talent Management will wake-up soon and realize that to be successful (in the eyes and minds of the business leaders they support) they need to dive in and truly understand and enjoy the business they are a part of. This is the only way they will gain respect and have a place at the desired table!

Onboarding Advice in the New York Times

2007-10-10T12:56:00.000-04:00

If you found yourself on the "Career Couch" of the New York Times on Sunday, as I did, you would have gotten some sound advice as to how smart people start new jobs. Eilene Zimmerman, in her article titled, "How Wise NewComers Find Their Way" sights several career and staffing experts while giving the reader specific and straight-forward examples of what to do when you are new on the job.

I liked the Q & A format of what sometimes seem to be obvious things to which to pay attention when starting a job, but the author notes common mistakes that get people off track within their first months.

Zimmerman focuses on the key themes of --

Building knowledge about the organization and how it works

And forming the relationships that support your role

These two components are indeed critical for a new hire's success, but I would add it is missing one additional piece: feedback.

Organizations are not usually that good at delivering feedback to a new hire that is both timely and constructive. Often, perceptions are created by mistakes that the new person makes because he doesn't know yet what is acceptable or expected in his new culture. His manager may or may not even know about these perceptions, and by the time she does, the damage is done. The new hire becomes ineffective, or disconnected and may be thinking about whether his decision to join the organization was the right one.

The responsibility of onboarding a new hire should not be completely left to the individual. Yes, the new folks need to take active roles and manage their onboarding, but it is also the responsibility of the organization to put in place a consistent process with support from the hiring managers and HR partners for at least a 90-day period.

So, if I may add to Zimmerman's advice--if you are new, and are not getting feedback about how you are fitting in and meeting expectations, ask for it. Better yet, ask for an onboarding process that helps you build knowledge, create relationships and get the feedback you need to make you successful. Read NY Times article

Onboarding Conference

2007-09-13T14:00:00.000-04:00

For immediate release

Connect the Dots will present at Onboarding Conference--January 2008

Connect the Dots Consulting will present a pre-conference workshop, a keynote presentation, and an exhibition booth at Onboarding Talent: Proven Strategies for Onboarding and Retaining Talent from America's Best Employers Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. The conference will be held at the Omni Hotel at the CNN Center from January 28th through 31st.

The keynote will be a joint presentation with Connect the Dots' client, TJX Companies, on the impact of their leadership onboarding process on their business.

Connect the Dots presenting:

Onboarding 101: Building the Bridge from Recruitment to Engagement

Executive Onboarding: What Your New Leaders Need But Don't Know to Ask For

Other presentations include:

The Gold Standard for Onboarding
Onboarding Technology
Retaining Talent Through Onboarding
ROI of Onboarding
Benchmarking Onboarding Programs

Organizations that will be represented:

TJX Companies
Ann Taylor
FedEx Kinkos
Starbuck's Coffee Company
Jet Blue Airways
Sun MicroSystems
General Mills
Blue Cross Blue Shield
The Coca-Cola Company
The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company
Texas Roadhouse
Hewlett-Packard

For more information and registration go to www.iqpc.com/us/onboarding or call 1-800-882-8684.

Hope to see you there!

New Leadership ROI

2007-08-29T20:55:00.000-04:00

The Cost of New Leadership

Time and money.

The two things that we can never have too much of and are constantly trying to save, make, maximize, or conserve. Organizations are no different than individuals when it comes to wanting the most out of their time and money.

And much of both is tied up in the process of finding and keeping great leadership talent.
Unfortunately, the state of corporate America’s leadership looks pretty bleak.

Here are some startling facts:
· McKinsey and Co. found that 40% of corporate officers in 77 companies said they can’t pursue business opportunities because they lack the right leaders.
· The Corporate Leadership Council reported that more than 50% of newly hired leaders were fired in the first three years.
· Harvard Business School reported a 40-60% failure rate of executives.
· In a Conference Board report, only 36% of employees rated their companies’ leadership as good or excellent, down 50% from 5 years ago.
· A 2005 Corporate Executive Board Recruiting Roundtable survey found that 89% of new executive hires across enterprises indicated they did not have the optimum level of knowledge and skills to do their job.
· Consultant Bradford Smart estimated that the cost of senior executive turnover was 40 times the base salary. A similar study by Sibson and Company found that executive and manager replacement costs have reduced earnings and stock prices by an average of 38%.

What is New Leader ROI?

When an organization has spent thousands of dollars and dozens of hours in finding, recruiting and hiring the right person for one of their leadership positions, expectations for that new leader are very high. The expected Return on Investment (ROI) for that new hire is great, and the time to deliver it is often short.

Michael Watkins, author of The First 90 Days, defines new leader ROI as the point in time, at which the value created for the organization by the new leader exceeds the value consumed by that leader. This is also known as the “breakeven point”.

In a typical situation, the break even point occurs at just over the sixth month of a new leader’s tenure*. The new leader must not only learn the organization and its culture, but forge strong relationships and deliver the appropriate results given the amount of time on the job. This is often referred to as “speed to performance” and the emphasis is usually on “speed”.

*The First 90 Days,
Michael Watkins

Is New Leader ROI Measurable?

Some companies report that their return on new leader investment is something that they “know when they see it”. But is what does it look like? And how can you measure it’s existence, and. for that matter, what it’s impact?

Best-in-Class organizations are measuring these indicators as they transition new leaders:

1. Is the new leader accomplishing his/her onboarding objectives?
2. Are there “early wins” for the new leader and his/her team?
3. What is the feedback about how the new leader is “fitting in” to the organization?

It’s not just losing on an individual.....

Organizations that fail to pay attention to those first few months of a new leader in a new role are at risk. A recent study by Deloitte Research reports that “40 to 50 percent of senior new employees fail to achieve their desired results in new jobs. When a new recruits fail, organizations lose their investment in the individual. They also lose performance from the employees surrounding new recruits due to lost time, disrupted efforts, and damaged morale.”

—“Connecting People to What Matters”, Deloitte Research, June 2007, page 7

Relationships and Retention

In most cases, increasing retention rates of newly hired or newly promoted leaders is a key indicator of success for an organization. Forging key relationships has proven to be a key factor in leader ship retention. The same Deloitte report cites an example from BMW which appoints mentors “to help new hires adapt efficiently to BMW’s culture and to foster connections they need to perform.” The report goes on to say, “not surprisingly, newcomers who quickly form relationships with co-workers tend to be high performers and more satisfied with their jobs.”

The bottom line is this: Organizations have much to lose if their new leaders are not integrated successfully. The cost of a systemic and consistent new leader onboarding process is quickly paid back with the significant Return on Investment delivered to the company by an effective new leader.

To get more info about new leadership onboarding go to www.connectthedotsconsulting.com