UK 
United States
Engaging, supporting and inspiring hiring managers, so they can take ownership of onboarding, and deliver a consistently great experience every time, is a key challenge that faces every HR team.
Here at Eli Onboarding, we gathered a panel of experts to discuss the role of the hiring manager in welcoming new recruits to an organisation. We explored exactly what people managers’ responsibilities should be, and how they can best be supported to deliver an onboarding experience that boosts engagement and performance whilst decreasing first year attrition.
What role should managers play in onboarding?
“There are a number of people involved in embedding a new hire within the business, but the hiring manager plays a critical role,” says Ali Harker, Head of TA at Arcus Facilities Management. “They are responsible for making sure that the onboarding experience is a positive one for their new starter. There are a number of activities they support with, from making sure the new starter has everything they need on the first day and ensuring that they’re welcomed, to making sure they understand their role and how that fits within the organisation. If they do the job well, it will improve engagement – and increase the likelihood that that new starter is going to stay.”
Katie Noble, Resourcing Transformation Director at Omni RMS agrees. “Whatever industry we’re working with, whether it’s a quick hire and volume turnaround, or whether there’s 3-month preboarding, it is the manager role that is critical. Our goal when we’re working with clients is to get them to understand that the onboarding objectives have to be retention and productivity. We have the statistics to prove that if new starters have an onboarding experience that involves working closely with their hiring managers, they are going to be quicker to productivity, and they are more likely to stay. We need to get the line managers to own the personal experience, and HR and L&D to own the processes.”
