It's your first day at a new job.
Your manager hands you a list of training videos to watch, company policies to read, and names of people to meet. "Get through these when you can," she says with a smile.
Three months later, you quit.
Not because you can't do the job, but because you never really felt like you belonged.
If this sounds familiar, you're not alone.
Most companies try to do onboarding right.
They create checklists, schedule some introductions, maybe even prepare training videos.
But many new employees end up lost in a maze of meetings and paperwork, with no clear understanding of how it all fits together.
New employee onboarding is the process of integrating new employees into a company, helping them acclimate to their roles, the company’s culture, and the tools they’ll use day-to-day.
Onboarding goes beyond introductions and paperwork, and is about setting employees up for long-term success.
When done right, onboarding is a strategic process that connects new hires to the company’s values and goals, accelerates their productivity, and strengthens their commitment to staying with your company.
Despite its critical role, onboarding is often overlooked.
A common mistake many companies make is that they hire someone with years of experience and expect them to hit the ground running. "She's been in marketing for 10 years - she'll figure it out!"
But knowing your craft isn't the same as knowing how to apply it in a new environment.
Even seasoned professionals need time to:
This is why having a solid onboarding process matters for everyone.
The numbers paint a clear picture. 70% of new hires decide within their first month whether a job is the right fit. Only 29% feel fully prepared to excel after their onboarding. Most employees need about eight months to reach full productivity.
A recent HR Norge study from 2024 revealed something important.
While 63% of employees need more than 6 months to fully master their job, 82% of companies stop onboarding by month 3.
This gap costs companies money. And when employees leave early, replacing them costs between 6 to 9 months of their salary.
At my previous company, onboarding consisted of a two-page checklist. Watch these videos. Read these policies. Meet these people.
Simple, right?
I spent weeks chasing busy colleagues for meetings.
When I finally met with key stakeholders, they would ask, "What do you want to know?"
How could I know what to ask when I didn't even know what I didn't know?
At another company I worked with, onboarding meant sitting through a week of presentations about strategy, products, and culture. The sessions were intense, the dinners were great, but by Friday, nobody remembered much.
And that was it - no follow-up after that week.
According to leadership expert Keith Ferrazi, most companies admit they don't put enough focus on onboarding.
This disconnect between what new employees need and what they get creates real problems for both companies and their people.
Successful onboarding needs two key ingredients - human connection and efficient systems.
Onboarding expert Talya Bauer advises companies to balance six key areas for successful onboarding:
Looking at data from HR Norge's latest survey, we can see how companies prioritize these different elements:
The trend hasn't changed much over the past two years.
Companies still put most of their energy into rules and procedures (96%), while the human elements lag behind. Only about half of companies focus on building confidence (56%), creating networks (55%), or strengthening culture (46%).
What's particularly concerning is how companies track progress. While 77% say they do follow-up conversations with new employees, over half admit they don't really know if their onboarding efforts are working.
This is where smart automation becomes crucial. When you automate the routine tasks, you free up time for what really matters: helping people connect, grow, and succeed.
Research shows us that most companies spend too much time on paperwork and not enough on people.
We help fix this imbalance by making the basic parts of onboarding simple and automatic, so HR teams can focus on what matters - helping new employees succeed.
Here's how:
The first few days at a new job should cover the basics like payroll setup, communication tools, and company policies. This might sound obvious, but these essentials often get missed or buried in long documents.
You probably already have a Code of Conduct, policies, and procedures in document format. Instead of making employees read through manuals, create engaging e-learning modules instead.
Upload documents like Codes of Conduct or employee guidelines, and AI creates full courses, individual lessons and interactive quizzes.
Once the course is created, you can adjust text, refine the tone, or add new visuals to keep courses fresh and relevant.
You save hours on manual work and can focus on what matters - your people and projects.
Your new employees need different ways to learn and connect.
Some topics work well as self-paced e-learning. Others need face-to-face discussions or team activities.
Schedule different types of training that work together:
XtraMile connects these pieces automatically.
With a learning automation platform, you can automate training paths that combine different formats, then let the system handle enrollment and scheduling.
XtraMile sends automatic reminders and lets participants reschedule themselves if needed.
When someone completes an online module, they can be automatically enrolled in the next relevant live session. This keeps learning flowing naturally, without manual coordination from HR.
Everyone loves a good game.
Even topics like compliance and company policies become interesting when you turn them into friendly competition. Research shows that gamifying the learning process increases long-term memory retention.
XtraMile Games make it simple to add excitement to any training:
You'll increase participation and help people remember what matters.
When was the last time you had time to properly welcome new employees?
Most HR teams are too busy with administrative tasks - manually enrolling people in courses, sending reminders, tracking completion.
XtraMile puts these routine tasks on autopilot:
This gives your HR team time to do what they do best - helping new employees feel welcome, building connections, and ensuring long-term success.
The first few months shape how employees view their future with your company.
Most need 6-8 months to fully master their role. Yet many companies stop supporting them after three months, hoping they'll figure things out on their own.
This approach costs both time and talent.
Strong onboarding combines smart systems with proper support.
When you automate the basic tasks, your HR team can focus on helping people build confidence, create networks, and understand your culture.
At XtraMile, we believe HR teams deserve better tools and more time for people. Our experience shows that companies with solid onboarding programs see higher engagement, better productivity, and lower turnover.
By moving beyond basic tasks, you turn onboarding from a simple to-do list into a foundation for long-term success.
Ready to improve your onboarding process?
Sign up for a free demo to learn how XtraMile can help you create experiences that work for both your HR team and your new employees.