Companies are spending more time than ever interviewing potential new hires. In fact, it’s fairly common for a candidate to interview with 8-10 people, prepare formal presentations, and then wait months for a decision. While a thorough interviewing process is prudent, the effort to assess candidates should be matched by an equal effort to onboard them. In some cases we’ve seen, when a new hire is terminated within 90 days, the interview process was robust and once the candidate was hired, they were left to fend for themselves. 

Fortunately, there are steps employers and employees can take to enable a successful start.

Employers should begin with a training schedule that supports their new hire’s first 2-3 weeks on the job. It’s also important to set-up a series of “meetings and greetings” for your new hire. Relationship building is a big part of settling into a new job. Help your new hire meet people and get the lay of the land in order to acclimate to the company and the position.

When it comes to performance, don’t wait for a formal review to sit down and talk to your new employee—invite conversation and establish a regular, open dialog from the start. And finally, if you’re working with a staffing agency, keep in touch with your recruiter even after the hire is made. A skilled recruiter will work with you to confirm expectations with the employee.

If you’re the employee, do your homework first. Have you screened your potential new employer? Do you have a beat on the hiring manager? What about the company culture? Find out all you can before accepting the job.

Once you’re hired, make sure you are clear on your priorities and performance expectations. If there’s any confusion, speak up. Ensuring that your first 90 days go smoothly takes communication on your part, as well as on the part of your employer. And if you need support, tap your recruiter. The staffing firm that placed you is a terrific resource—so in the same way employers should keep in touch with their recruiter, employees should too.

Recruiting and hiring can be time-consuming and costly; seeking and landing a job can be too. That’s why it’s essential to invest in a thorough onboarding process. Effective onboarding can make all the difference in the success of a new hire, increasing the likelihood of long-term, mutually beneficial employment.

For more on recruitment, hiring and onboarding, contact the specialists atCommunications Collaborative. We work with internal agencies, external agencies and client-side marketers. Because we are always networking and building our talent community, we have access to qualified candidates that other firms don’t have on their bench—with recruiters that have advertising and creative industry expertise.