Why Training and Onboarding Must be Viewed Separately
Posted October 17th, 2016
The concepts of training and onboarding are often confused in the business world. They are treated as interchangeable terms that apply equally to all situations. In fact, training and onboarding are very different ideas. By taking the time to separate them, and focusing on each for what they truly are, you can create a more streamlined program that accomplishes more goals than managing them as if they are the same.
What is Training?
Most managers can describe the idea behind training fairly easily. Training focuses on introducing employees to how to accomplish the various facets of their jobs. It can be focused on particular software programs, tools and pieces of equipment, or various process that generate required deliverables.
While the term isn’t limited to new hires alone, it should be a part of every new hire’s introduction to the job and its corresponding expectations. Since this is the step where a new employee learns to actually do the job for which they were hired, some organizations rush to get the training process started as soon as possible so that the employee can begin contributing to the mission, and bottom line, now instead of later.
If the rush to get training underway leads an organization to delay, or entirely skip, the onboarding process it can cause new employees to feel as though they have been thrown straight into the fire, which may not be the kind of first impression you want to make as an employer.
What is Onboarding?
While training serves as an introduction to the job for which the new employee has been hired, onboarding introduces them to the company that hired them. It includes introducing them to their new coworkers and team members, as well as their supervisors and key members of management that are relevant to their position. This is where employees are directed to their desks and given a rundown of the tools and supplies that are at their disposal. It can include providing them with their user or network credentials, providing instructions for setting up voicemail, or confirming their new business email address.
Onboarding helps a new hire feel comfortable in an environment that currently feels foreign. It familiarizes them with key people who will be there to support them, and helps affirm that they will have the tools necessary to complete their job. It gives them the opportunity to observe the workplace for clues to cultural norms that exist, and gives them confidence that they can make it through the day in one piece.
By starting with the onboarding process, employees are likely to feel less stress during their first day. This can make them feel more confident as they begin integrating into the workplace, and may actually help them become productive employees more quickly. Onboarding can ease a lot of the fear and anxiety that can be associated with coming into an unfamiliar work environment, and can help the new hire feel more like a valued part of the team.
Here at Bayside Solutions, we understand the value of onboarding employees properly. Let us help you create an environment in which new hires thrive. Let us help you get there.
