Onboarding Best Practices: How to Set New Hires Up for Success

The process of bringing a new team member into an organisation is one of the most critical elements of a successful business strategy. Far more than an administrative formality, onboarding represents the first opportunity to strengthen a new hire’s commitment, integrate them into the company culture, and set them on the path to high performance.

A great onboarding process is no longer a simple HR checklist; it's a strategic business driver that directly impacts productivity, engagement, and most importantly, retention. 

This comprehensive guide outlines the key stages, essential practices, and necessary adjustments for building onboarding best practices that truly set new hires up for success.

What is employee onboarding and why does it matter

Employee onboarding is a continuous process, the strategic induction of a new hire into your organisation. It encompasses everything from the initial paperwork and IT setup to cultural integration and the establishment of professional relationships. 

It is the bridge between the recruitment process and full productivity, ensuring the new team member is not only equipped with the tools for their job but also understands the company's mission, values, and how their specific role contributes to the bigger picture. In short, it is the deliberate cultivation of an employee’s early experience to maximise their engagement and long-term commitment.

The difference between orientation and onboarding

• Orientation is a single, event-based session (often on the first day) focused mainly on administrative tasks, legal compliance (e.g., I-9 forms), and an overview of company policies and benefits. It’s transactional and short-term. Its primary functions are documentation and setting basic employment expectations. It is typically completed within a single day or a couple of hours.
• Onboarding is a strategic, continuous process that integrates the new hire socially, culturally, and professionally. It involves structured training, mentorship, goal setting, and regular check-ins to ensure the employee is fully prepared and connected to the company's mission. This process can span from three months to a full year, focusing on the employee's long-term success and cultural integration. It is a dynamic journey designed to turn new hires into fully productive, engaged team members.

How a strong onboarding process boosts retention

A structured and supportive onboarding experience is one of the most effective ways to combat early turnover. Studies show that 69% of employees are more likely to stay with a company for three years if they experienced great onboarding. When new hires feel confused or unsupported, they are more likely to start looking for a new role almost immediately.

A well-designed programme reduces feelings of anxiety and isolation, allowing the employee to focus on learning and contribution. By clearly demonstrating the company’s investment in their future, it creates loyalty and quickly builds a crucial sense of belonging. This sense of belonging is key, as employees often leave during their first few months due to a poor cultural fit or a lack of clarity.

The cost of poor onboarding in 2026

Failing to invest in a strong onboarding programme has a tangible financial impact. Early turnover (within the first few months) can cost a company 50-200% of the employee’s salary in recruitment and replacement expenses. This figure doesn't even account for lost productivity, which is delayed when employees take longer to "ramp up" and become fully productive. In 2026, the focus is on automation and personalised experiences to mitigate these rising operational costs and turn onboarding into a strategic advantage.

Key stages of a successful onboarding process

A world-class onboarding process is segmented and intentionally designed to provide support across different time horizons, ensuring the new employee feels supported as they transition from a learner to a valued contributor. This phased approach shifts the focus from logistical necessities to cultural integration and, finally, to performance enablement, building competence and confidence at a manageable pace.

Preboarding (before day one)

The period between a candidate accepting an offer and their official start date, the preboarding phase, is a critical retention strategy. During this time, the goal is to convert excitement into sustained engagement and ensure all logistical barriers are removed before the employee walks through the door (or logs online).

• Administrative prep: Complete as much paperwork as possible digitally, including employment contracts and benefits enrolment. Utilise secure digital signature platforms to make this process smooth and legally binding.
• IT setup: Ensure all necessary equipment (laptop, monitors, software access) is delivered, set up, and tested before day one. Provide clear, simple instructions or a dedicated point of contact for any technical issues that arise during initial setup.
• Personalised welcome: Send a welcome kit with company swag and a personal video message from the manager and team. Introduce the new hire to their assigned buddy or mentor. Set up a brief, informal chat between the buddy and the new hire to help them connect before the official start date.
• Logistics: Share the first-day schedule, dress code, and parking information to ease anxiety. Send a final communication 24 hours before the start date, confirming all details and expressing excitement for their arrival.

First day essentials

The first day should focus on making the employee feel welcome, connected, and inspired, rather than overwhelmed by paperwork. It’s about creating a positive and memorable entry point into the organisation.

• The "wow" moment: Focus on a warm human connection. Have the team ready to greet them. A small gesture, like a handwritten note on their desk or a digital welcome message in the team chat, makes a significant difference.
• Essentials ready: The desk/digital workspace, computer, and access logins should be functional. Verify that all system permissions are granted and that the employee can successfully log in to essential tools before they arrive.
• Manager check-in: A dedicated, non-rushed meeting with the manager to discuss the high-level role, company mission, and immediate priorities. Use this time to review the 30-day goals and answer any initial questions the new hire may have about the business.
• Team lunches: Facilitate a team lunch (in-person or virtual) to begin building social connections. If virtual, consider ordering lunch or sending a voucher to encourage everyone to eat together "face-to-face" on camera.

First 30, 60, and 90-day integration plan

A structured plan ensures the employee's focus evolves from learning to contributing. This framework provides clarity on expectations and a roadmap for successful integration into the role and the team.

Period	Primary focus	Key activities
First 30 days	Learning & compliance	Complete essential compliance training. Gain full access to tools/systems. Deep dive into team processes and company culture. Establish initial one-on-one meetings with key stakeholders.
First 60 days	Clarification & contribution	Begin taking ownership of small tasks/projects. Review and refine initial goals with the manager. Seek performance feedback and demonstrate basic competence in the role.
First 90 days	Performance & connection	Achieve performance milestones and full productivity goals. Conduct a formal 90-day review. Build cross-functional relationships and contribute to team strategy.

Onboarding best practices for remote and hybrid teams

With a significant portion of the global workforce now operating remotely or in a hybrid model, onboarding requires intentional adjustments to ensure connection and support are not lost in the digital space. The best remote onboarding best practices deliberately replicate and enhance the informal interactions and proximity benefits of an office environment.

Digital welcome kits and introductions

Ship physical equipment and swag well in advance. Create a "digital welcome hub" (a dedicated folder or internal site) with all necessary links, contact lists, process documentation, and an FAQ section. A virtual office tour or welcome video can also help new hires orient themselves.

Setting clear goals and expectations

Clarity is a top success factor. Remote employees can easily feel lost without clear direction, as they lack the constant, visible cues of an office.

• Define "time-to-productivity" metrics specific to the remote role.
• Ensure all role responsibilities, reporting structure, and team goals are documented and easily accessible.
• Schedule frequent, structured manager check-ins to discuss workload and well-being.

Using collaboration tools for connection

Go beyond using tools just for work. Create non-work-related channels (e.g., #pets, #hobbies) to encourage informal social interaction that remote employees miss out on. Implement scheduled, non-agenda "virtual coffee breaks" to foster genuine connection.

Assigning a mentor or buddy

A buddy system is critical for remote success. This person serves as a peer contact for non-managerial questions ("How do I request time off?" or "What's the team's policy on X?") to help the new hire feel safe and connected, acting as a friendly, familiar face in the digital landscape.

Onboarding compliance and documentation

Compliance is the critical foundation of any onboarding best practices, ensuring your hiring practices are legal, ethical, and that the organisation is protected against potential liabilities. This often complex area requires meticulous attention to detail, particularly when dealing with global teams.

Employment contracts and legal forms

This covers standard forms such as employment agreements, non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), and local tax documentation. For global teams, these documents must be compliant with the specific country’s labour laws and translated or presented in the appropriate language where necessary.

Payroll setup and tax registration

Ensure timely and accurate payroll setup. This includes:

• Gathering necessary banking and personal ID information.
• Enrolment in company benefits and retirement plans.
• Proper tax withholding registration based on jurisdiction.

Country-specific compliance for global teams

If hiring internationally, you must comply with local labour laws, benefits, and tax systems. Utilising an Employer of Record (EOR) service can simplify this by handling local legal employment, contracts, and compliance in countries where you don't have a local entity, shielding your business from compliance risks.

Measuring onboarding success

Onboarding is a strategic investment; therefore, it requires rigorous measurement and continuous improvement to ensure the process is delivering a return on investment in the form of productive, engaged, and long-serving employees.

Feedback surveys and engagement metrics

Collecting feedback directly from new hires is essential for identifying friction points and improving the experience.

• Pulse surveys: Conduct short, anonymous surveys at 1-week, 30-day, and 90-day marks to gauge satisfaction with the process, access to information, and feeling of integration.
• Engagement metrics: Track platform usage, participation in team activities, and early eNPS (employee net promoter score) to measure cultural fit and connection.

Performance milestones and retention rates

These are the hard metrics that demonstrate the business impact of your onboarding best practices.

• Time-to-productivity: Measure how long it takes for a new hire to meet the agreed-upon 90-day performance milestones for their role. A shorter ramp-up time indicates a more effective onboarding process.
• Retention rates: The most critical metric. Track 3-month, 6-month, and 1-year retention rates for new hires to assess the long-term impact of your onboarding programme versus the company average.

How Native Teams makes onboarding simple

For businesses scaling globally, managing localised onboarding, contracts, and payroll can be overwhelmingly complex, creating problems that hinder growth. Native Teams provides an end-to-end global employment and payments platform that automates and simplifies these processes, allowing companies to focus on welcoming their new talent.

Streamlined onboarding workflows for global teams

Native Teams' Employer of Record (EOR) solution simplifies the process of hiring full-time talent in over 85 countries without the need for you to set up a local entity. Our EOR process guides both the employer and the new team member through the entire hiring and onboarding journey, which can take just a few days, dramatically speeding up the time to hire.

Integrated contract, payroll, and compliance management

The platform automates the most complex, administrative tasks, ensuring accuracy and mitigating risk:

• Compliant contracts: Automatically generate customised, fully compliant employment agreements tailored to local laws in the respective country.
• Global payment: Manages accurate multi-currency payroll, tax deductions, and benefits administration across multiple countries from a single dashboard.
• Compliance: Ensures continuous adherence to local labour laws and regulations across all countries of operation.

Tools for remote employee support and documentation

Native Teams supports the remote employee experience by providing essential financial and documentation tools:

• Centralised management: A single dashboard to monitor contracts, track payroll, and manage compliance for your global workforce.
• Financial tools: Multi-currency wallets and expense cards to simplify payments and financial management for remote team members.

Conclusion

Onboarding best practices are the critical steps in the employee lifecycle and a powerful lever for business success. By shifting from a simple administrative checklist to a strategic, continuous process that prioritises connection, clarity, and compliance, and by leveraging modern, automated tools like Native Teams for global scale, businesses can dramatically improve employee satisfaction, accelerate productivity, and boost long-term retention. Investing in an exceptional onboarding experience is not a cost; it is an investment in your people and your future.