Don't Miss The Opportunity To Do Employee Preboarding -- Best Practices & A Helpful Checklist

What Is Employee Preboarding?

Employee preboarding is the process of preparing new hires for their first day before they start work. This includes sharing company culture information, providing workspace tours, and communicating organizational values. Preboarding begins when a candidate accepts a job offer and continues until their first day. The goal is helping new hires feel engaged before starting.

The Difference Between Preboarding And Onboarding

Preboarding begins when a candidate accepts a job offer and continues until their first day. Onboarding is the acclimation process that occurs after employees begin their jobs.

Preboarding Activities to Include

• Employee handbook distribution
• Benefits guide sharing
• Company introduction videos
• Virtual office tours
• Cultural information
• Professional development opportunities
• Company swag
• Hiring process feedback requests
• Information about upcoming onboarding programs
• Organizational charts

Activities to Exclude From Preboarding

• Tax forms
• Handbook testing
• Form signing
• Company policies
• Administrative tasks

These items should be automated after the employee's start date.

Employers Often Overoptimize The Hiring Process

Recruiters actively promote positions to candidates, who feel highly valued after signing contracts. However, communication often ceases until the start date, making new hires feel like commodities rather than valued team members.

The Underoptimized Preboarding Process Problem

A significant portion of new hires report that their new job falls short of expectations: 61% of new hires state that their new job does not live up to expectations, creating early disengagement despite substantial hiring investments.

Put Yourself In The New Hire's Shoes

Before starting, new employees experience natural anxiety and nervousness. They create expectations about their roles, potentially researching the company and contacting future colleagues online. The pre-first-day period is powerful for forging ideas about how the new job will unfold. Without positive preboarding experiences, negative feelings intensify while positive ones diminish.

How To Reduce No-Shows And Create Excitement

An airline industry client reduced employee no-shows by 75% by implementing two key changes. They initially had sophisticated automation for tasks and training but neglected employee experience. Their process focused on tasks rather than engagement and connection. They automated reminders for HR and hiring managers to call new hires, congratulating them and asking about questions.

Other clients reduced no-show rates through asking new hires to connect with teammates on LinkedIn, requesting they listen to company culture podcasts (CEO episodes recommended), and arranging buddy calls.

It Takes A Village To Onboard A New Hire Properly

Successful onboarding requires company-wide adoption of an onboarding mindset. Rather than managers checking boxes, the focus should be facilitating employee success through tools that enable all stakeholders to be onboarding champions. Organizations should communicate their success, story, plans, and mission while positioning new hires as heroes. The first days should prioritize confidence, connection, clarification, and culture -- not information overload.

What The Research Says About Preboarding

Research by Dr. Talya Bauer (Preppio's Chief Scientific Officer) reveals significant findings: Organizations judged as best onboarders achieved 91% retention after year one, compared to 30% for worst onboarders.

New hires with good onboarding experiences achieved 71% first-year results versus 17% for poorest onboarders.

Your Preboarding Program -- Checklists or Software?

Without systematic checks and balances, managers forget checklist tasks and critical items like equipment ordering fall through cracks. Just as customer success teams use CRM tools for customer onboarding, employee experience teams need systems ensuring new hire success. We recommend research-backed onboarding software over checklists, spreadsheets, or emails -- solutions that personalize the new hire experience while simplifying hiring manager responsibilities.