Evaluation of the New Employee Onboarding Training Program

Abstract

The current literature on onboarding suggests that for onboarding to be effective, three processes need to happen: welcoming, preparation, and socialization. For universities, the human resources department should lead the onboarding process by developing checklists to distribute to various department heads. The current evaluation takes a close look at a mid-size four-year public state university’s onboarding process to determine the process’s effectiveness. A total of 6 new hires and their corresponding department heads (7 onboarders) participated in interviews regarding the current onboarding process and how it can be improved. Results indicated that having effective welcoming, preparation, and socialization practices made new hires feel onboarded. It was also found that those hired during “nontraditional” times had a less complete onboarding experience than those hired during “traditional” times. The findings of this study warranted a few recommendations for the university along with future directions for the field.