It’s your first day on the job. You’ve been asked to be at the office by nine. You arrive a little early so you don’t get off on the wrong foot, grab a coffee nearby, and start getting to know the neighborhood. As you approach the office, you see people arriving. How are they dressed? What are they doing? Where are they looking? What might they be thinking? What emotions can you sense as they begin a new day at this company?
It's nine o'clock. From this moment on—or rather, actually, ever since you started breathing just outside—you're experiencing what will shape your perceptions and make you wonder whether or not you made the right choice in accepting this new job.
Yes, we’re talking about an “unspoken” aspect of extreme importance, one that reveals a great deal about a company, its culture, and its values. It’s what speaks to our gut, and by now we know full well that we don’t have just one brain but three (along with the heart and the gut). Everything that happens—or doesn’t happen—at this stage—just like everything that has happened since the initial contact during the selection process—reveals extremely important aspects that should not be underestimated, as they serve as key indicators of what our life within that organization will be like.
- Did your direct supervisor greet you? (If not, run away immediately!)
- Have you been introduced to the team and the rest of the company? (If there isn't an introduction, you already have an idea of what teamwork is like...)
- What organizational and logistical information have you received, and how was it provided? (If there isn’t a clear procedure, you’re in for the first of many frustrating searches for information…)
- What did you receive to celebrate this new sense of belonging—a KIT? What’s inside? (If you weren’t given anything, it’s likely that there isn’t much of an effort to foster a sense of belonging, and it will be hard to imagine any other specific benefits.)
- What are the computers, workstations, and office furnishings like? (This can tell you a lot about the company’s culture and organizational structure, such as how much attention is paid to ergonomic considerations for its employees.)
- What are the walls, shared spaces, meeting rooms, restrooms, the intranet/company social media, etc., like? (From this, you can gauge the company’s level of innovation, its focus on the Employee Experience, and whether or not there is clear accountability for this area—if it’s lacking, as is often the case with internal communication, you’ll likely experience poor collaboration and certainly a constant sense of being uninformed and out of touch with the external market.)
- What do people's faces look like in the hallways? (If you see big smiles, you can be sure you're in a warm and welcoming environment.)
- Is there someone who is helping you understand—clearly and systematically—the tasks you need to complete, or are you left to figure things out on your own, hoping that someone will tell you what to do? (This also gives you insight into the management style and what to expect from your boss…)
- Have you been assigned a Buddy—a mentor, a “friend”—for your first few months on the job? (This shows that the company pays special attention to its employees; of course, it depends on who is assigned to this role and their interpersonal skills, which make all the difference. You can also learn more about the company from the choice of Buddies.)
- Is there an online coach who can guide you through all your first-time experiences at the company and with new tools? (If so, you’re at a particularly innovative company that’s committed to fostering a digital mindset.)
- How did your first lunch go? Do you eat in the cafeteria, use meal vouchers, or were you invited out to eat—and if so, by whom? (If they don’t eat lunch, you’ll know right away that, due to the “culture” here, work-life balance is just a theoretical concept and can’t seriously be pursued as a “battle” because nonstop work is a status symbol…)
- Are there any relaxation rooms, and if so, how are they set up? Is there water or any basic necessities—such as fruit or snacks? (If so, this also shows a commitment to people’s well-being.)
- Do we use informal terms of address, or do we use formal ones? And if we use formal ones, how? (Another cultural aspect to consider in light of your own personality)
- Did they announce your hiring online? (This demonstrates a focus on valuing people and, at the same time, a smarter approach to organizational communication.)
These are just a few of the questions whose answers offer many clear indications that I have limited myself to presenting as simple generalizations that—obviously—require a more in-depth analysis.
While, on the one hand, it is essential for anyone starting a new job to look around and understand where they fit in—grasping the organizational essence that is conveyed through unspoken cues, as in the examples mentioned earlier—on the other hand, for the organization, this means once again designing and revising the experiences of its people, who are no longer simply looking for a job (I spoke last time about “augmented human choice”).
In this specific case, we are talking about onboarding—that is, the process that follows hiring and involves integrating the new employee into the company, where “the new hire should acquire all the knowledge and skills and learn the behaviors necessary to become an integral part of the company, both at the organizational level and in terms of corporate culture. Only when all these elements are in place can we say that the integration of new employees into the company has been successfully completed” (cited in In-recruiting).
The strategic objective of this phase—as stated in the In-recruiting article itself—is “to provide the new employee with all the tools needed to become fully operational, integrated into the company structure, and productive, thereby ensuring strong performance over time.”
This is, in fact, the most important touchpoint in the Candidate Journey: it is essential that every new hire be engaged from the very beginning and feel like part of the company. As mentioned earlier, for this process to be effective, it must begin by focusing on the broader Candidate Journey—that is, the candidate’s “journey” starting from the very first contact.
Between the digital and the real worlds, there are various activities that can be offered to new hires (as well as to candidates and more experienced employees), but, as always, before thinking about innovation—which today offers a multitude of diverse solutions (just think of the many startups working in this field)— it’s essential not to lose sight of the fundamentals (which, in my view, are encapsulated in the initial questions) to ensure trust and pride right from the start. To sum up, I’ll emphasize this: there can be no innovation where the basics are lacking. And often the basics get lost in communication because many people take action but few communicate—and those who don’t communicate might as well not have done anything at all… Once again, let’s ask ourselves why internal communication is still perceived as a “nice-to-have,” something that raises eyebrows when it comes time to allocate the budget for communication… It’s a shame that organizational problems often stem from the same root cause: little or no communication. This is true for onboarding as well. “You cannot fail to communicate,” states the first axiom of communication—and this holds true here too: just how much is communicated through what is left unsaid right from the start…
.svg)
.png)