Founded in 2019 and headquartered in Chicago, our client is a trailblazing talent development accelerator focused on driving systemic change in the workplace. With an emphasis on empowering women, the organization has grown steadily, offering impactful programs for professionals and organizations alike. But as their influence expanded, so did the need to ensure their internal teams experienced the same level of care and excellence they pride themselves on delivering to their members.
Here’s how we helped this inspiring organization transform its onboarding process, driving incredible results in employee engagement and retention.
The Challenge
With a tight-knit team of ten full-time employees, the client recognized the importance of maintaining a welcoming, supportive, and effective onboarding process as they grew. While their existing onboarding approach included the basic tasks, it lacked structure and consistency. This made it difficult to ensure all new employees, regardless of role or professional level, were set up for long-term success.
The primary goal? To build an employee experience that was just as exceptional as the one they delivered to their community.
Building a Better Onboarding Process
Partnering closely with the leadership team, we identified opportunities to refine their onboarding and employee engagement initiatives. By focusing on three critical elements, we built a strategy that would elevate the employee experience across the organization.
1. Check-In Implementation
We established a structured schedule for check-ins during the onboarding process. These milestones allowed leaders to regularly touch base with new hires, ensuring a seamless transition into their roles.
The check-in structure included the following touchpoints:
- 1 Week
- 30 Days
- 60 Days
- 90 Days
Each session featured pre-planned questions and fostered a virtual open-door policy, encouraging new employees to provide feedback and voice any concerns. Proactively identifying areas of improvement early on helped smooth out potential friction points and boosted team satisfaction.
The Result: By gathering consistent, meaningful feedback, these check-ins enhanced the onboarding experience and created a culture of support from day one.
2. Creating a Uniform Onboarding Checklist
The client already had some onboarding steps in place, but the process varied across departments and roles. We formalized it into a standardized checklist that:
- Outlined official onboarding steps for every hire.
- Assigned clear roles to manage specific aspects of the process.
- Included progress tracking to confirm all tasks were completed.
This structured checklist ensured that all employees, no matter their role or professional background, received comprehensive and transparent onboarding.
The Result: A formalized onboarding framework significantly improved transparency and ensured that every new hire felt equipped to succeed in their role. The uniform process also led to a marked improvement in employee retention rates.
3. Mapping Out a Future Roadmap
To sustain long-term success, we developed a detailed roadmap for ongoing improvement. This included strategies to nurture a feedback-first culture and establish a collaborative environment where employee concerns could be openly addressed.
This roadmap helps ensure the organization maintains its commitment to intentional onboarding practices, even as they scale their operations.
The Result: A more collaborative and intentional onboarding environment benefits both new hires and existing team members, fostering a workplace culture where everyone can thrive.
The Results
By addressing these key challenges and implementing strategic solutions, the talent accelerator program achieved measurable improvements in its employee experience. Key outcomes included:
- Higher Retention Rates: Formalized onboarding steps gave employees the confidence and clarity to succeed, leading to better retention.
- Enhanced Engagement: Consistent check-ins and a feedback-focused culture created a welcoming and supportive work environment for all staff.
- Scalable Processes: A structured onboarding framework provided a foundation for sustained growth, ensuring new hires continue to receive an exceptional experience as the team expands.
This case study underscores how a strategic and structured approach to onboarding and employee engagement can drive significant improvements in team satisfaction and overall organizational success.
Building the Future of Talent Development
At the heart of this transformation is the client’s commitment to fostering positive change—not just for their members, but also for their internal team. Their willingness to invest in creating an exceptional employee experience is an inspiring example of how thoughtful leadership and strategic processes can influence workplace culture for the better.
Looking to optimize your team’s onboarding process? Whether you’re a growing startup, a midsize business, or an enterprise organization, we’re here to help you refine your employee experience from day one. Reach out to learn how we can support your goals.
