The High Cost of Poorly Onboarding Remote Engineers

Poor onboarding can be devastating to engineering teams. A Bamboo survey found that 33 percent of tech workers quit a job within six months of their start date. One-third reported that a lack of effective onboarding contributed to their departures.And this low retention is expensive. Onboarding software maker Edify found that the total cost to replace a $98,000/year junior engineer is a whopping $350,000.Replacement costs are just the beginning of the impact of bad onboarding. "The effects of employee onboarding last way beyond when a new person starts working and impact your whole company," said Status Page founder Steve Klein. "If your onboarding isn't effective, in just 1 or 2 generations of hiring, you're dealing with a team that's shockingly less productive than it could be — and costing you a lot of money."Getting it RightSo how do you onboard new engineers when there is no office? Onboarding takes on a different flavor with remote employees, and with millions of employees now working remotely for the first time, getting onboarding right for them is even more critical and challenging.We dove into how to onboard remote engineers in a live webinar (now recorded), "Thriving in the New Normal: Best Practices for Onboarding Remote Engineers." InVision Engineering Manager Liz Ojukwu and Andela VP of Partner of Engineering Wambui Kinya will share from their experiences building and growing remote development teams. Start EarlyThe most common onboarding mistake is to be unprepared for the new employee's arrival. It is very demoralizing for employees to show up on the first day of work, and no one knows what to do with them. It's even more demoralizing when the employee is sitting at home alone.Ship computers in advance, ideally preloaded with all necessary internal applications and programs. Assign an owner to welcome new hires in a video call and to make sure that they have everything needed to get started. You can find more detail on Day 1 and Week 1 guidance by watching the webinar.Information + InspirationSuccessful onboarding programs for remote employees immediately engage and educate new hires about team programming standards, culture, and performance expectations. Make sure that the information new team members need to be successful is documented and is practical and relevant.It is also essential for you to connect new employees to your team's aspirations. Information explains what you do and how you do it. Inspiration comes from understanding and connecting with the "why" of your work practices. Employees want to feel like valued contributors to a remarkable team working for a remarkable company. Don't assume that "you had them with the offer letter."Can't Afford Not To"It is a competitive advantage accessible to every firm willing to invest in the strategic design and deployment of a new hire experience," according to a report by Kronos and The Human Capital Group. "The monetary investment required can likewise be quite minimal, offering organizations with small talent management budgets the occasion to make a dramatic impact."Learn how to invest wisely in onboarding in the recorded webinar.