Here comes maybe the least-controversial sentence ever typed about recent U.S. restaurant and retail employment trends:
It’s been a wild time for attracting and retaining frontline talent.
All sorts of factors have contributed to this chaotic market—inflation, COVID-19 closures and slowdowns, supply chain issues, minimum wage requirements, unionization efforts, the gig economy, work schedules, pay schedules, tipping policies, bad managers, etc., etc., etc.
The list could go on, but we don’t want to be held responsible for any eye damage caused by staring at a screen for too long.
The point is, getting good talent is hard enough these days. You don’t want to complicate things further by providing a less-than-stellar experience once employees join your organization. Frontline associates typically decide within a few shifts whether they’re going to stay long term—that doesn’t give you much time (or margin for error) to make a good impression.
The current state of onboarding (spoiler: it could be better)
The SMG employee experience (EX) team recently conducted a study focusing on the state of hiring and onboarding.
Perhaps the most relevant finding from the study, which collected responses from more than 25,000 panelists in a random sample across the U.S., was four in 10 new hires were not satisfied with their company’s onboarding process, and it significantly decreased their likelihood to stay.
Poor onboarding and high turnover rates won’t just hurt employee productivity and morale—they’ll also trickle over into how your customers feel about and spend money with your brand.
But along with examining onboarding woes, we also wanted to learn things organizations do right. Today we’ll share a few of the study’s key takeaways related to employees pleased with their onboarding.
1. Majority say a welcoming team makes the biggest difference
Of the study participants who said they were highly satisfied with their onboarding experience, a whopping 61% of them listed having a welcoming new team as the biggest reason. Which makes sense. Frontline employees spend a lot of time together, and cultivating a friendly environment is one of the most effective ways to build a foundation of engagement and camaraderie.
Managers also play an outsized role in making new employees feel valued. Scheduling regular time for connection and holding genuine conversations go a long way toward just that.
Simply put, new hires dig a team with good vibes.
2. Developing easy-to-understand training is worth the hard work
It is not likely to be a surprise that unseasoned team members aren’t thrilled when, rather than being presented in straightforward, comprehendible ways, training materials are convoluted, disorderly, and virtually inconsumable.
That up there? ↑ That was a wordy mess. And it could cause readers to get frustrated and leave this page, just as a new employee struggling through training may get frustrated and leave a job.
You need materials that present the important information while being as simple and engaging as possible. Even better if you can provide adequate time to become fully trained before assigning work, though that’s no simple task when understaffed or in markets where talent is scarce.
So let’s try this again: It makes new employees happy when training is good and easy to follow.
3. When it comes to expectations, clarity always wins
Prospective employees usually understand that any job, especially in a restaurant or retail environment, is going to come with its share of challenges. For some, that involves physical labor in kitchens and/or restrooms. For others, it may mean regularly forcing a smile while dealing with angry customers.
But it’s one thing to supply a bland and bulleted job description merely alluding to those realities. It’s another thing entirely to ensure team members know exactly what’s expected of them and to coach them toward success as they learn.
Vague expectations lead to lackluster performance, low motivation, and, ultimately, dissatisfied employees who either leave or—maybe worse—should leave but don’t.
Front-end focus leads to back-end stability
Companies that prioritize EX are rewarded. Not just with more engaged team members, but with more loyal customers and stronger bottom lines. As we’ve shared recently, the integration of customer experience and employee experience data is more than just a strategy—it’s the future.
By partnering with a provider that can help you:
- evaluate frontline engagement,
- pinpoint turnover spikes during the onboarding process,
- extract meaningful insights from your data,
- and make measurable improvements to your onboarding program,
you’ll be in position not only to hang on to your newest employees for longer, but also help them grow into true ambassadors for your brand.
Get in touch if you’re ready for employee data with direction.
