Onboarding is a process, not a one-off event.
The minimum time you should spend onboarding new employees depends on your company’s needs. The SHRM recommends at least 3 months for most roles, but if you want to maximize retention and productivity, it can take much longer.
Onboarding is the process of helping new employees get up to speed with their new jobs. It involves things like introducing them to the company culture, giving them training, assigning mentors, and so on.
There are some general guidelines about how long this process should take, but there’s no one-size-fits-all answer. How long you need to onboard someone depends on several factors:
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Your company’s size
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The complexity of the role
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Whether or not you’re using an outsourced onboarding provider
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How experienced your hiring managers are
But there are also some hard minimums that must be met. If you don’t meet those, you risk losing good talent before they’ve even had a chance to learn what they need to know to do their job well.
In this article, I’ll explain what those minimums are, and why they matter. I’ll also talk about what affects how long the onboarding process takes in practice, and what you can do to make sure yours meets all of these requirements.
What’s the Typical Onboarding Timeline?
According to HR professionals, “the average onboarding duration ranges from several weeks to a few months.” But there are definitely minimums that should be met. For example, SHRM says that “onboarding should last at least 90 days,” and that “many organizations will require a minimum of three months” for most positions.
However, there are some exceptions. For instance, “new hires who have experience in the field may require less time than first-time workers.” And “some companies may extend onboarding beyond 12 months.”
If you’re thinking about hiring someone, you might want to ask your prospective employer how long they think the onboarding process will take. This will give you an idea of what to expect when you start working for them.
What Are the Effects of Short Onboarding Periods?
One study found that only 58% of new employees felt comfortable in their new jobs after just one week. And even fewer — only 46% — felt confident enough to make decisions on their own.
These findings suggest that short onboarding periods aren’t effective. When people feel uncomfortable or unsure about their new jobs, they’re more likely to quit. And when they do quit, it costs employers money both in terms of lost productivity and recruiting expenses.
So while there’s no set minimum length of time that every employee should spend getting acclimated to their new job, there are definitely some hard-and-fast rules about how long the onboarding process should take.
First, it should never be shorter than one or two weeks. That’s too short to give new employees enough time to adjust to their new work environment and learn what they need to know to succeed in their new roles.
Second, strong onboarding often extends to six months or even a full year. That gives employees more time to get comfortable with their new jobs and become fully integrated into the team.
How Does Onboarding Duration Affect Retention and Discretionary Effort?
When it comes to retaining employees, research has shown that onboarding duration is a significant factor. One study found that programs extending beyond 30 days through year one increase engagement and retention.
Another study found that 51% of new hires who experience positive onboarding say they would go above and beyond their job duties.
Onboarding length significantly impacts how long employees stay at a company. Well-done onboarding improves productivity, loyalty, and early-career success.
What Factors Affect How Long the Onboarding Process Takes?
Several factors determine how long the onboarding process takes in practice. These include:
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Role Complexity: More complex roles typically require longer onboarding periods because they involve more responsibilities and tasks.
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Company Context: Companies with a strong culture often require longer onboarding periods because they want to ensure that new employees understand and embrace the company’s values.
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Experience Level: New hires with little or no experience in their field generally require longer onboarding periods than experienced employees.
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Training Needs: Employees who need extensive training will require longer onboarding periods than those who only need minimal training.
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Mentorship Needs: Employees who need a mentor will require longer onboarding periods than those who don’t need one.
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Career Mapping Needs: Employees who need help mapping out their career path will require longer onboarding periods than those who don’t need it.
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Competency Assessment Needs: Employees who need help assessing their competencies will require longer onboarding periods than those who don’t need it.
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Goal Setting Needs: Employees who need help setting goals will require longer onboarding periods than those who don’t need it.
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Performance Review Needs: Employees who need help reviewing their performance will require longer onboarding periods than those who don’t need it.
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Structured Process Needs: Employees who need a structured process to get up to speed will require longer onboarding periods than those who don’t need it.
These factors all contribute to making the onboarding process longer or shorter depending on the situation. However, there are also some common phases that are usually involved in the onboarding process, regardless of how long it takes:
Orientation: This phase involves introducing the new hire to the company, its mission and values, and other relevant information.
Training: This phase involves teaching the new hire what they need to know in order to perform their job effectively.
Mentorship: This phase involves assigning the new hire a mentor who can provide guidance and support as they transition into their new role.
Career Mapping: This phase involves helping the new hire map out their career path within the company.
Competency Assessment: This phase involves assessing the new hire’s competency level in relation to their job requirements.
Goal Setting: This phase involves helping the new hire set goals for themselves within the company.
Performance Review: This phase involves reviewing the new hire’s performance after they have been onboarded for some time.
Structured Process: This phase involves creating a structured process that ensures that all necessary steps are taken during the onboarding process.
Role Complexity: This phase involves determining how complex the role is, and how much time it will take to onboard the new hire.
Company Context: This phase involves determining how important it is for the company to retain its employees, and how much effort it is willing to put into onboarding new hires.
Experience Level: This phase involves determining how much experience the new hire has in their field, and whether or not they will need additional training.
Training Needs: This phase involves determining what kind of training the new hire will need in order to perform their job effectively.
Mentorship Needs: This phase involves determining whether or not the new hire will need a mentor, and if so, who that person will be.
Career Mapping Needs: This phase involves determining whether or not the new hire will need help mapping out their career path within the company.
Competency Assessment Needs: This phase involves determining whether or not the new hire will need help assessing their competency level in relation to their job requirements.
Goal Setting Needs: This phase involves determining whether or not the new hire will need help setting goals for themselves within the company.
Performance Review Needs: This phase involves determining whether or not the new hire will need help reviewing their performance after they have been onboarded for some time.
Structured Process Needs: This phase involves determining whether or not the new hire will need a structured process to get up to speed, and if so, what that process will look like.
These are just some of the factors that affect how long the onboarding process takes. There are certainly others as well, but these are some of the most common ones.
Why Should You Care About How Long Onboarding Takes?
There are several reasons why you should care about how long the onboarding process takes. First, it affects how quickly you can get your new hires up to speed with their new jobs. Second, it affects how long you can keep your employees. Third, it affects how much discretionary effort your employees put into their jobs. Fourth, it affects how much you spend on training and development.
If you don’t invest enough time and resources into your onboarding process, you risk losing good talent before they’ve even had a chance to learn what they need to know to do their job well.
What You Can Do To Make Sure Your Onboarding Meets All Of These Requirements
There are several things that you can do to make sure your onboarding meets all of these requirements. First, you should make sure that your onboarding process is long enough to give your new hires enough time to get up to speed with their new jobs. Second, you should make sure that your onboarding process is structured in such a way that all of the necessary steps are taken. Third, you should make sure that your onboarding process includes training, mentorship, career mapping, competency assessment, goal setting, performance review, and structured process. Fourth, you should make sure that your onboarding process is flexible enough to accommodate different types of employees. Fifth, you should make sure that your onboarding process is comprehensive enough to cover all of the necessary topics. Sixth, you should make sure that your onboarding process is engaging enough to keep your new hires interested and motivated throughout the entire process.
By taking these steps, you’ll be able to create an effective onboarding process that meets all of your company’s needs.
Effective Onboarding Across Its Full Duration Is a Shared Responsibility
Onboarding is a shared responsibility across HR, direct managers, leadership, and peers. Managers teach growth strategies, communication, authenticity, and how to be a good team player. A company connected first-week orientation to department-level onboarding — identified as key to new-hire productivity speed. Welcoming a new hire is not HR's job alone.