“We do not stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing.” - Benjamin Franklin
As you read the title of this article, do you remember your onboarding day? How did it go? Do you wish to relive it differently? Would you recommend it to future recruits?
The onboarding day is a crucial step in the employee experience process. It represents a day of exchange and the transmission of key messages from management to new hires.
However, often the program of this day turns into an information overload about the company, its goals, its organizational structure… At best, a few minutes are allocated for questions and answers.
This static program leads participants to adopt a passive posture. The result is low engagement and motivation among employees 😕.
So, if you are responsible for organizing such an event, here are some tips to make this day memorable for your employees 😍 and create a great impression from the start!
💡 1. INCLUSION.
Create inclusion to engage participants from the first minutes of the seminar
From the very first minute, even before introducing the seminar and announcing the agenda, you can involve participants. How? Here are some suggestions we recommend:
1. Assess the mood and expectations of each participant for the seminar
Using tools like Slido or Beekast, ask participants
- How they feel (quiz with emojis)?
- What their expectations are for the day (word cloud)?
- Where they come from or which departments they represent (word cloud or quiz)?
By the end of the quiz, you will see word clouds or statistics that you can comment on to illustrate the atmosphere and general expectations of the group.
2. Give employees a voice to create closeness with them, make them feel heard, and promote open dialogue
- Through an icebreaker: for each group of 5 to 10 people, you can ask them to choose a picture that represents the group's values.
- Later, give each group the opportunity to speak up and explain why they chose that picture.
💡 2. STIMULATION.
Add quizzes to wake up sleepy participants
- Never exceed 30 minutes of presentation without engaging your audience! If a presentation takes longer, break it up.
- This allows you to add quizzes that refresh engagement and provide a virtual break before moving on to the rest of the program.
- Ideally, add quizzes related to what has been presented in the last 30 minutes.
- By using Slido or Beekast, setting up these quizzes is very easy.
Moreover, these tools also allow you to collect questions as they arise. So, you can take advantage of this break to ask new questions.
- Using digital tools allows maximum participation, often anonymously.
- Don't forget to ask people who want to speak up, those comfortable with a microphone, to pose questions.
💡 3. CHALLENGE.
Create a competitive atmosphere with a leaderboard and digital Q&A
As participants answer various quizzes or ask questions, they earn points. With this technique inspired by games:
- The desire to win will motivate participants to stay engaged and focused on the messages being conveyed.
- Using a leaderboard that updates throughout the day encourages participants to step out of their comfort zones by asking as many questions as possible.
💡 4. SURPRISE.
Add a surprise element and maintain suspense by inviting a 'special guest'
You don't have to reveal the entire program during the seminar agenda presentation. Instead, announce that there will be a surprise visit at some point during the day.
This technique will:
- Create suspense among participants.
- The surprise guest could be a highly recognized and sought-after personality within your organization, or an inspirational figure who can share their experience.
- You can also announce a surprise activity that participants will discover later.
💡 5. GAMIFICATION.
Add fun with a digital or physical team-based game
Adding enjoyment to your onboarding day doesn't necessarily mean an activity without added value or unrelated to your business.
Here are six reasons why we recommend harnessing the potential of games for your onboarding day:
- Games bring dynamism to your onboarding day, making it more interactive and stimulating.
- Games add a playful touch to a day rich in information. After the formal presentations (very serious 🤓), it's time for challenges 💪 and team games!
- Games provide valuable elements 💎 to your employees, especially in terms of relational skills: teamwork, problem-solving, decision-making, communication, data analysis, etc.
- Games offer a different way of learning. Employees will experience situations in the business world that teach them that failure is not final, that trying until you succeed is important, and that agility is key in the corporate world.
- Games break down silos and allow employees to make connections beyond their teams.
- Games create a desire to succeed and motivate employees to give their best to win.
To choose a game for your next onboarding, you have several options:
- At NowEdge, we have developed a range of gamified and digital experiences with our clients that combine entertainment with added value and adapt to different audiences.
- If you opt for a 100% physical game, we recommend experiences like Lego Serious Play.
🛠 Tools:
For facilitation (leaderboard, questions, quizzes, ...)
- Slido, Beekast, or Klaxoon
For serious games:
- NowEdge: a platform for gamified solutions for training and onboarding 👉 https://nowedge.io
- Lego Serious Play
- Evvive by Mohsin Memon 👉 https://evivve.com
📕 Further reading:
Book: 'Onboarding, Attract, Integrate, and Retain Your Employees': In this book, rich in practical experiences, you will discover methods for creating your own onboarding program.