How Long Does Onboarding Take? Plus 10 Powerful Tips

How long does onboarding take?

Most HR experts agree that onboarding for new employees should last at least three months. However, extending onboarding throughout the entire first year can positively influence and increase employee retention and engagement.

Up to 70% of employees decide within the first month whether the job is right for them, with 29% deciding in just one week. This means: a good start is crucial.

The key to retaining hard-earned new employees in the long term? A structured onboarding process. Seriously!

Effective onboarding ensures that new employees feel welcome and connected to the company and are more likely to stay long-term.

Despite the benefits of a targeted onboarding process, many companies fail to provide a positive experience. In fact, one in five employees reports that their new company did nothing to provide support and networking opportunities for new hires; 23% even admitted that they were so disappointed with their new job in the first week that they cried.

Developing effective onboarding plans and employee retention strategies takes time and effort, but retaining new and high-performing employees is worth it. Keep reading to find out how long onboarding should take and get ten tips on how to make it effective.

What is employee onboarding and how long does it take?

Onboarding is the process of welcoming new employees to your company. It should include training on the software used in daily work, company policies, corporate culture, payroll, benefits, and much more. With the help of onboarding technologies, you can create a standardized and efficient onboarding experience.

When companies use effective onboarding strategies to provide their employees with an optimal onboarding experience, it can make a big difference in employee satisfaction. While your onboarding process will be tailored to your company, onboarding programs that extend beyond the first 30 days and continue through the first year of a new employee's tenure increase employee retention and motivation.

Expert Tip: Offer On-Demand Support with Employee Self-Service Tools

Even the best onboarding plan cannot cover all your employees' questions. That’s why more and more companies are turning to HR self-service tools and onboarding software, allowing new employees to find the answers they need at any time.

Employee self-service tools are a modern alternative to printed manuals and time-consuming meetings. You can collect electronic signatures, distribute welcome packages for new employees, and create personalized onboarding plans – all in one app that new employees can use independently.

10 Steps in the Onboarding Process

1. Optimize the Process with Onboarding Technology

Technology solutions for onboarding can help your company streamline the onboarding process. Automated software tutorials and onboarding tips are excellent ways to use this technology.

These digital options allow new employees to go through the HR onboarding process more quickly and become familiar with more areas of the company and specific software in a shorter amount of time.

Technological advancements such as AI can significantly reduce the administrative burden of onboarding processes, such as paperwork, granting permissions, account setup, etc. However, software should not be mistaken for a replacement for personal or employee-led onboarding. By automating repetitive tasks, you gain time that can be better used for team building or individual, role-specific training.

2. Sharing company policies

Your onboarding program should always include information on specific company policies. Self-service platforms give new employees the opportunity to access the employee handbook, information on vacation, dress code, and other important documents – in a resource center that is easily accessible during onboarding and throughout their entire time with the company.

3. Offer on-demand onboarding videos.

Videos can optimize the process at all stages of onboarding and create a more engaging employee experience. They also promote social and formal learning. Additionally, they are a cost-effective way for companies to onboard new employees. A video that addresses multiple people is suitable for various topics covered during onboarding, such as health insurance, vacation, dress code, benefits, and much more.

In the first six months  

4. Form groups of new employees  

Effective onboarding strategies connect multiple new employees so that they can go through the onboarding process together from the very beginning.  

Learning together provides an intensive experience that encourages new employees to network with their colleagues, share experiences, and better understand their role in the company. Employees acquire the majority of their job-related knowledge from colleagues, and learning together allows them to learn from more experienced colleagues, thereby improving their skills.

You can create collaborative learning opportunities by onboarding new employees in groups and involving existing employees from different departments in the onboarding phases.

5. Support New Employees in Building Relationships

Better onboarding means providing each new employee with an onboarding buddy and an onboarding mentor. Integrating relationship-building into every step of the onboarding process helps support new employees and gives them an optimal start.

Your onboarding program should support new employees, clearly define responsibilities, and set expectations for their new role. By helping new employees build strong relationships with their colleagues and supervisors, they can integrate more quickly into the company culture and accelerate their learning process.

When new employees are assigned a mentor during the onboarding process, they receive additional information and training that cannot be covered in a standardized HR onboarding process. Mentors can network with other employees and learn about the company culture by accompanying their mentees during work hours.

Onboarding buddies are more informal contacts. An onboarding buddy can give new employees the opportunity to ask questions they might not want to ask their supervisor, or questions that go beyond the scope of training or orientation.

6. Complete the core HR onboarding process.

Employee retention increases when your strategy extends the onboarding process to cover the entire first year of new employees. Nevertheless, your onboarding process should highlight the most essential fundamentals so that new employees are fully capable within the first six months.

A more comprehensive and longer-term onboarding program helps employees become more productive. They feel comfortable in their work environment, know whom to turn to with questions, adapt to the company culture, and build better relationships with their colleagues.

Even though it may sound tempting to push new employees quickly through paperwork and training so that they can start work earlier, this is not the right way to achieve higher employee productivity and performance. Find the right balance between an onboarding program that integrates new employees and allows them to start quickly, and a program that also provides them with continuous learning opportunities.

After the first six months

7. Reuse onboarding checklists for reboarding

Onboarding employees is not only important for new hires. Integrating internal employees into a new role within the company is just as important as onboarding new employees.  
Depending on the company, the culture of one department can differ significantly from that of another. Employees who are transferred do not want to feel like newcomers in a company they have been working in for years.  

Instead, look for ways to adjust the steps of your onboarding process for new employees to create a reboarding process that provides internal employees with the training, feedback, and social integration they need to succeed.

8. Conduct regular surveys to measure employee engagement.

Companies that view onboarding new employees as purely a formal process and fail to connect employees with the company will not strengthen their emotional and intellectual commitment. When employees feel fully connected to their company, they enjoy their work, are committed to the company, and contribute more actively. Enthusiastic employees are more productive and create a positive work environment.

9. Offer opportunities for further training.

More time in the onboarding process creates room for improvements and also allows for more advanced learning content. Since employees have more time to absorb basic information, there are more opportunities to support them in building advanced skills during their first year. Continue offering training even if they already have a grasp of the basics.

Through continuous training in the first year of employment, employees can further develop their skills and contribute more to your company. Targeted training in soft skills and professional competencies opens up more promotion opportunities and provides employees with a clear career path and future prospects.

10. Monitor Employee Retention

Effective onboarding of new employees can significantly improve employee retention. The length of your onboarding program has a considerable impact on how long your employees stay with the company.

When new employees experience a positive onboarding program, 51% report feeling particularly engaged in their job. This is crucial when considering how much unmotivated employees cost companies – equivalent to 18% of their salary. Therefore, actively engage new employees during their first year to boost their commitment and employee retention.

The First Step to a Better Start

Hiring new employees can be expensive and time-consuming – and the onboarding phase can be crucial for long-term employee retention. With the right approach, you can increase employee engagement and productivity. Our comprehensive onboarding guide provides practical tips for a successful start.

Our award-winning software allows HR professionals and managers to create personalized onboarding templates, ensuring an optimal onboarding experience – without the need for advanced technical skills. This way, you spend less time on orientation and more on relevant training. Learn how onboarding technology contributes to a standardized and efficient onboarding process.

A strategic onboarding process extending through the first year is the single most crucial factor for retaining high-performing employees and ensuring productivity. Moving beyond the initial paperwork and orientation, successful onboarding focuses on relationship building (mentors/buddies), continuous training, and full organizational integration. The key challenge is balancing speed with comprehensive support. IceHrm's Onboarding module directly addresses this by providing HR professionals with the technology to streamline and standardize the process.By automating administrative tasks, facilitating the distribution of company policies, supporting the creation of personalized onboarding templates, and integrating features like employee self-service tools, IceHrm frees up valuable time for leaders to focus on the human elements—mentoring, team integration, and continuous skill development—that ultimately drive employee engagement and long-term commitment.