Onboarding others does not work. Fortunately, you can help them onboard.
On the other hand, new employees can not onboard themselves by themselves. Fortunately, they can make great strides in partnership with their managers.
Onboarding well requires a partnership
The point is that onboarding well requires a partnership. No one can do it by themselves. No one can do it to someone else. Both partners need to engage in the process. Each partner needs to work with the other to leverage each other’s knowledge, skills and commitment.
In the best partnerships, the hiring manager gets out in front of the new employee by crafting a Total Onboarding Program and getting critical stakeholders aligned behind it. Then, once the new employee is identified, the manager and new employee co-create the new employee’s personal onboarding plan. From then on, the new employee is in charge, with the hiring manager providing the appropriate resources and support, largely behind the scenes.
Think team
Stop trying to onboard others. Stop trying to onboard yourself. Think team.
George Bradt, PrimeGenesis Executive Onboarding and Transition Acceleration
