Digital onboarding gives new employees a confident start

Things are busy in the IT business. There are many exciting jobs and there is a huge demand for and fight to attract the best IT professionals. In Central Denmark Region, they are conscious of and focused on attracting, developing and retaining staff because they play an important role to ensure the digital development and innovative improvements in the region.  

Tina Guldhammer, Head of Organizational Development, IT in Central Denmark Regions says:

- We must make successful onboarding – this improves our chances to retain our staff. We must give new employees a great and safe experience and that experience should start already when they apply for a job with us. When the employment agreement has been signed, we must get them onboard - and why? Because their motivation and commitment at this point in time are high. We make synergy - a great experience which results in higher efficiency.

Successful onboarding is an important tool to retain competent new staff in Central Denmark Region. Part of the strategy is to strengthen communication with new staff from the time when they have signed the employment contract until they meet the first day. During this exact period, their motivation is high and their enthusiasm to get to know the organization is high; we must try to keep this momentum. 

Adapting existing solutions

The department had heard about Emento and the Patient Guide from colleagues at Aarhus University Hospital. They believed this could be the solution to deliver information over time to realize their vision of establishing a good communication with new colleagues already before their first day in the office. A digital app-based onboarding providing new employees with relevant information about their new workplace, the culture and an introduction video with their future colleagues etc. 

Instead of designing an app for onboarding, the existing solution from Emento was selected and adapted to quickly realize the vision and create value for staff and the department.

Tina Guldhammer elaborates:

- It is a small investment which has created a huge value for the Individual and for us as a department. Our strategy was "to think big - start small" as we aimed for this to be a learning process. This is how our collaboration with Emento started.

Positive feedback from new employees

When the employment contract is signed, the new employees start their onboarding and get information about their future workplace. It is an exciting new perspective on strengthening the dialogue and creating a confident start for new colleagues. We use the momentum when motivation is high to get to know your new workplace.

The new solution has been tested and implemented, and employees who have been through the new onboarding are positive. The app strengthens communication and dialogue with new colleagues in the IT Department in Central Denmark Region. It gives new employees the possibility to get to know their new workplace before they start, and they can use the app whenever it fits their schedule. It is also possible for the HR Department, manager and mentor to write messages to their new colleague and build a good relation before the first day in the office. 

Tina Guldhammer about the experiences so far:

- The feedback on the digital onboarding app from new employees has been extremely positive. The feeling of being taken seriously, being a part of the team and the opportunity to dive into information about your future workplace have been reported in the positive feedback. We have reached the goal of supporting a confident start for new employees. Our new colleagues feel more confident about their first day at work because they know what we expect. They have also been given an answer to many of their questions when using the app.