Onboarding Survey

Why measuring your onboarding process is a must

Most new hires leave because of crappy onboarding processes—so you need to find out what works and what doesn’t.

Onboarding surveys will help you:

• Freshen-up your onboarding: Figure out what’s hot and what’s not to make sure new team members are given a warm welcome every time.
• Think about the individual: Different employees have different needs to help them settle in.
• Boost your retainment metrics: Uncover employee issues so you can resolve them with the right resources and guidance.

Onboarding survey questions

Who did you meet during your first day? Where did you meet and how friendly were they?

What would have made your first day even better?

• An office tour
• Computer support
• A welcome lunch
• Other __________

How well did we describe the role before you started?

• Awesome, I understood everything.
• Pretty good, I understood most of it.
• OK, I understood the basics.
• Pretty bad, I didn’t understand most of it.
• Terrible, I didn’t understand anything.

Were you given everything you needed? (Think: tech, stationery, guidelines.)

• Yup, I had everything I needed in advance.
• I was given most of what I needed.
• I was given some resources, but had to ask.
• Nope, I didn’t have anything I needed.

Was your initial training helpful?

• Yup, I was well-prepared for the role.
• Sort of. I understood most of the role.
• Not really. The training wasn’t great and I didn’t learn anything.
• Not at all. I didn’t get any training or my training was totally off the mark.

Was the orientation process long/short enough?

• Too long. I could totally have aced my tasks earlier.
• Too short. I had no idea what I was doing.
• About right. I was given enough time and guidance to ace it from the offset.
• There was no orientation. 

What would have helped before your first day? Select all that apply:

• Company policies
• Organizational chart
• Dress code
• Team members’ names and roles
• Other: _______

Do you understand how your job performance will be evaluated?

• Totally.
• Sort of.
• Not really. 
• Not at all.

What would you tell a new colleague to expect during their first day and week?

How to ace an onboarding survey

• Be open: Get genuine and unbiased feedback by explaining the purpose of the survey, and how it can help future new hires settle in better. Make sure to note that their answers will not be used against them.
• Choose your methods: 1:1s are great for an in-depth conversation, but remember some employees might hold back. Online survey tools like Typeform and Google Forms are a great way to collect anonymous feedback.‍
• Be quick: Don’t wait until your employee has forgotten what  their experience was like. Ask within the first 2-3 months of their employment so it’s still fresh. ‍
• But not too quick: Give new hires time to settle into their role and then ask for feedback. Check in with new employees after their first week, 30 and 60 days to get a complete understanding of their onboarding experience.‍
• Act: The whole point of these surveys are to improve your systems, so look out for frequently mentioned issues so you can act on them.‍
• Focus on improvement: Target your questions on how to improve your process to encourage open answers. Positivity is everything. ‍
• Follow up: Show you value employees’ opinions by reaching out to ask follow-up questions. That way you can learn what went wrong, make up for what they missed and thank them for their feedback.