In his article "7 Ways to Set Up a New Hire for Success," published on HBR.org (May 2019), Michael Watkins writes, "No one has a bigger impact on new employees’ success than the managers who hired them." Crucially, the hiring manager bears the responsibility for onboarding and integrating their new employee and according to Watkins, "It’s the deeper work of integrating new hires where the real work of bosses begins."
Despite organizations' increasing fluency with what we call "onboarding mechanics," research shows that it is the more nuanced area of integrating talent that continues to confound organizations and inbound leaders alike. In his article, Watkins outlines seven ways to approach integrating a new hire:
- Understand their challenges
- Accelerate their learning
- Make them part of the team
- Connect them with key stakeholders
- Give them direction
- Help them get early wins
- Coach them for success
Webinar on The Crucial Role of the Hiring Manager
If you are a hiring manager, a new hire, or an HR leader, you won't want to miss our Power Onboarding Webinar on June 19th, when Michael Watkins will be joined by Genesis Leadership Consultant Jan Thibodeau to explore "The Crucial Role of The Hiring Manager." Don't miss this opportunity to engage with two leadership transitions experts from your phone, tablet, or desktop. (Registrants receive a complimentary copy of the webinar recording.)
Executive Onboarding Effectiveness Assessment
If you want to find out whether your organization does a good job of integrating executive talent, take our Executive Onboarding Effectiveness Assessment. It's free, anonymous, and takes fewer than five minutes to complete. You can download your score and related findings and use it to start a dialogue with HR leaders in your organization about the cost-effective steps you can take to provide better support to leaders taking new roles.
How to Successfully Onboard and Integrate Your Executive Talent
Genesis conducted further research on the subject drawing on a sample of organizations who took our Executive Onboarding Effectiveness Assessment, the findings of which are summarized in our essential guide How to Successfully Onboard and Integrate Your Executive Talent. Written by leadership transitions expert Michael Watkins, the nine-page guide offers an in-depth look at the ways in which executive onboarding programs typically fall short, including insight into the types of support that exist in the marketplace and how transition advisors differ from developmental coaches in their expertise and approach. Download your free copy of our essential guide.
For further reading on the subject of executive onboarding and integration, you may be interested in "Onboarding Isn't Enough" (Harvard Business Review, June 2017), co-authored by Michael Watkins.
