Lower the Churn and Turn Up the Learn

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Does this scenario sound familiar? You interviewed for months and found just the right candidate for an open position. Your team is excited about the new addition. You quickly make the offer, complete the stacks of paperwork, and set up the work area. Then this amazing new hire unexpectedly leaves after only a few months. “Well,” you say to yourself, “That was waste of time and energy.  Oh wait, now I get to do it all again.”

As every HR manager will tell you, employee turnover (churn) is expensive. A conservative cost of hiring and onboarding the average employee is around $40,000 per hire.  Much more if the position was hard to fill.  But the good news is there are ways to fight new hire churn. The Aberdeen Group says that 90% of new hires make their decision to stay with a company in the first six months.  That means the onboarding experience is key to employee retention.

 

What’s going wrong? Many new hires state in exit interviews they never felt comfortable in their new role. They were unsure about expectations and did not feel they were contributing. That has everything to do with training. New employees want to feel productive and know what’s expected.

How Blackbaud can help. We’ve created a new series of classes—called Fundamentals--to get new users up to speed quickly. So for Raiser’s Edge (and shortly for Financial Edge), there will be a clear path to achievement and comfort with the software.

Online or in-person: You choose. To take a look at the new Raiser’s Edge Fundamentals series, check out Blackbaud University’s training page .  For those who prefer an in-person classroom environment, we offer the Fundamentals in a three-day format.  Not only is it great for the new hire to know their organization is willing to invest in their skills, but the chance to network with new Raiser’s Edge users is invaluable.  And attending with peers from the same organization can add a social component and make training a teambuilding event. To find dates for the next Raiser’s Edge in-person Fundamentals class, access Blackbaud University’s  training calendar  and filter by the locations closest to you.

There are many ways to measure the effectiveness of your onboarding program.  Here are a couple of questions you can ask yourself:

  • Did the new hire complete the prescribed training in the agreed upon timeframe?
  • How many weeks did it take the new hire to reach minimum productivity?

From the new hire, you’ll want to know:

  • How would you rate your onboarding experience? What roadblocks did you encounter as you began to learn your new role?
  • What can your manager do to help you eliminate the barriers?
  • How many weeks did it take before you felt you were productive?

As the economy picks up and the job market improves, onboarding becomes a critical factor in ensuring new employees feel valued and part of the team. Employees want to feel productive and effective, and you need them to contribute in the shortest possible timeframe.  Providing a clear and prescriptive training plan can go a long way to jump-start employee loyalty and satisfaction.

If you have questions about training or training plans, please Email traininghelp@blackbaud.com or call 800-468-8996, Option 3.

For more great information on training as an investment, check out this npENGAGE article by Jody Johnson.   http://npengage.com/nonprofit-management/the-one-cost-your-organization-cant-afford-to-cut/
News ARCHIVED | Financial Edge® Tips and Tricks 01/30/2015 11:45am EST

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