The Five Phases of Onboarding

There’s a world in which new hires move seamlessly through the onboarding process, electronically signing their offer letters and breezing through the necessary digitized forms (I-9, W4, benefits, direct deposit, etc.). Sadly, this isn’t the reality at most organizations. Instead, overwhelmed HR teams are drowning in paperwork. A recent HR Daily Advisor study found that more than 25% of HR leaders spend between 25-50% of their time on document process management.

These professionals shouldn’t be stuck rekeying data between multiple systems and chasing down missing forms. Instead, they should be ensuring that new hires are successfully settling in to their new roles. Creating this kind of positive experience within an employee’s first few days is paramount: Organizations with strong onboarding processes improve new hire retention by 82% and productivity by more than 70%.

With effective digital processes in place, HR teams can make sure this happens. Beyond better serving new hires, the members of the HR team can also use their reclaimed time to address important workplace initiatives that focus on the human aspect of their job, including diversity/inclusion efforts and mental health policies. Let’s take a look at the key phases of the onboarding journey and how various DocuSign products can improve each step of the process, getting HR departments closer to an efficient digital experience.