All Aboard! Here Are Five of the Best Employee Onboarding Tools Out There

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to discover the value of treating employees well. While we all love a free lunch or gym membership, there’s so much more to a fulfilling work culture than VIP perks (although those can definitely help towards a happier workplace). There’s also the little matter of actually preparing them for the role so they're set up to thrive — and that is a job for a savvy onboarding process.

It’s one of the most critical steps of the hiring process, and it’s worth all the effort it may take for you to put together something truly effective. When you prioritize onboarding, you’re putting your new hires’ needs first. That’s crucial not just to helping them become familiarized with their responsibilities, but also introducing them to the company’s ethos and mission.

Fortunately, there’s a lot that business owners, human resources professionals, and recruiters can do to rev up the energy in the workplace — and it all begins from day one of employment. Cultivating a smartly designed, thorough onboarding program is simply crucial to every team member’s success, which contributes to the long-term success of your company.

At its core, the right onboarding process makes life easier for your new employees because it equips them with the knowledge they need to succeed. Or it at least gets them started. That’s not to say their job will be easy — most people want to be challenged in the workplace! — but you want their introduction to the company to be as smooth and straightforward as possible.

When you prioritize onboarding, you convey the right message from the start — that your employees matter to you, and that you’re willing to go the extra mile for them from day one to ensure that their needs are met. People want to feel like they belong, and a big part of that is baked into your onboarding process.

It's a matter of engagement. Your new hires should feel that they’re part of the company right from the start. That means you need to do more than create a stellar employee handbook — you need to immerse them in your company culture through a dynamic approach to onboarding that focuses on their success. Good onboarding minimizes turnover, supports a happier environment, and makes your company more appealing to prospective hires, too.

In fact, the statistics are pretty sobering: turnover rates can be as high as 50% within the first 18 months of hire in organizations where onboarding isn’t made a priority. And a study conducted at the University of Warwick found that happier employees are simply more productive. A solid onboarding program is an efficient way to welcome new hires to the organization and help them feel right at home from day one — leading them to feel happier and more positive about a role that they will feel even more committed to in the long-term.

The right onboarding tools can make all the difference to your team’s experience. And yours. They help you put your people first, supporting their growth and success — which benefits the business itself both immediately and in the long term.

“Tools” involve so much more than your standard onboarding software, though. In today’s tech-savvy workplace, you can find plenty of useful apps that will simplify onboarding and even make it a more enjoyable experience for everyone involved. Here are our top picks:

Goosechase

Introducing Goosechase to your workplace is a great way to take your onboarding experience to the next level. Use this app to transform ordinary onboarding activities into truly exciting, engagement-centric experiences that your new hires will actually enjoy — and remember. You can customize these Experiences to include everything from photos to question/answer challenges. Goosechase is even useful from a practical perspective! Use the app to collect everyone’s contact info, make note of important details (like allergies), and keep track of scheduling preferences.

Goosechase aims to help everyone feel welcome and excited. You can use the app to have new employees introduce themselves to everyone, for example, or to share a picture of themselves during downtime doing something that brings them a dose of joy. It’s these little things that make the onboarding process more personal and, hopefully, more effective at the same time. Plus, onboarding becomes a more seamless experience with Goosechase — you can easily reuse each Experience every time you hire a new employee.

Organimi

Organimi makes it easy for your new hires to gain an understanding of one of the company’s most critical components: its structure. Giving new employees a transparent look at your company org chart is an underutilized way to help them feel more comfortable in their new role by showing how their role relates to others on the team. With a better understanding of exactly who’s on the team, your employees are likely to feel a sense of familiarity as they grow into their roles.

Zenefits

Automation is a key part of any growing business (it gives you time to focus on what you can’t mechanize), which is why Zenefits is such a useful addition for onboarding. It connects directly to the HR system, so you can closely manage everything from payroll to employee benefits — and streamline your processes, too. That will save valuable time, especially since the app also allows your new hires to begin the self-onboarding process the moment they access it. The app does it all, from sending offers to sharing specific details about the job.

FactoHR

FactoHR offers onboarding software that automates your system for a more streamlined approach from start to finish. It can create offer letters, create checklists for day one of employment, and allow new hires to upload their documentation in advance to speed up onboarding. Using an app like this can help you avoid mistakes that might otherwise occur due to human error.

Monday.com

You can onboard everyone remotely using monday.com, which makes it easy to create a detailed schedule for your new hires. Use it to break down every step of the process, from setting up an email account to checking out the employee portal to selecting health benefits. You can also upload important forms on the app, so your employees can complete everything in advance of their first day (and, again, save plenty of time).

Post-onboarding, monday.com is a great project management tool that the team can stay on to keep all their geese in a row.

Advancements in technology have made it easier than ever to automate your professional systems — and to make the once dry onboarding experience far more engaging. But you can’t forget the human element: a warm welcome goes a long way in making your new hires comfortable. That’s key to fostering an enjoyable environment that appeals to your team and establishing a company that earns rave reviews for the way it celebrates its new hires. When you make this an integral part of your practice, you can be sure everyone will be on board!

What is Goosechase?

At Goosechase, experience is everything. Originally inspired by scavenger hunts, Goosechase is an online platform that enables organizations and schools to engage, activate, and educate their communities through delightful interactive experiences. Sign up and try creating a free recreational Experience, or check out our Pricing!