EVERY NEW HIRE needs to go through an Onboarding Program – even veteran salespeople.  They may not need the basic training in how to sell (sometimes they do!), but the newly hired veteran salesperson still needs to be made to feel welcome, to feel he or she made the right decision to take this job, to establish a relationship with his manager and co-workers, to learn who does what, to be shown how things work, and to have the structure and comfort of knowing there is a plan in place designed to make the transition to this new job a success.

The Aberdeen Group research found that 86% of new hires decide to stay or leave a company within their first six months and new employees are 69% more likely to stay longer than three years if they experience well-structured onboarding.

Not sure how to put together an Onboarding Program?  Follow these steps to get you going and to maximize those new hires’ talents.  To get started you need to decide two things:

1.  OBJECTIVES – Your Onboarding Program needs to be developed around the objectives you want the new salesperson to achieve in the first few months of employment.  What is it that you want the new hires to have learned and understood after they have gone through it?  Make a list of all of those objectives.

2.  IMPLEMENTATION – Then you need to outline what steps the person will take to accomplish those objectives.  Next, start assigning timelines for accomplishing each of those objectives.  You then must decide how each objective will be learned and who will oversee that process.

It should not be a “one size fits all.”  For each new hire the Onboarding Program needs to be individualized according to that person’s experience, skills, previous training, and talents.  But you can put together a format and then tweak it for each new hire.

Be sure to include time each morning and at the end of each day for one-on-one time with your new hire, EVERY DAY that first week.  The relationship you establish will likely decide if the person stays and is a success or leaves.  Schedule the time and keep to it.  This is the time you will use to touch base with how the person is doing and feeling about the onboarding process.  Feedback from the new hire to you and you to him or her, is critical.  You are the most important person when it comes to whether or not the new salesperson will succeed.

One of the main reasons employees either leave or are a success in an organization is a direct result of their relationship with their manager.  “In the end, turnover is mostly a manager issue,” Gallup wrote in its survey findings.

A great way to jump-start your relationship with the new hire is to do a “Salesperson Questionnaire.”  

Solicit feedback early and often.  Feedback is not a one-way street.  It should be flowing in both directions.  You should be proactively asking questions of new hires on how they feel they are doing, how the onboarding process is going, and if there are any issues to address, in order to encourage the new hire to give you feedback.  And you should be giving feedback as well.  Let the new hire know how you think things are going, what you are observing and hearing and any issues or concerns you have.  The most important part of feedback is remembering to ask for it!  In your meetings with the new hire, ask several specific questions (see sample questions below) each time and take notes.

• Are we delivering on what we promised?
• What do you like about the job so far?
• What’s been going well? What are the highlights of your experiences so far?
• What do you need to learn to improve? What help do you need to become successful in this job?
• What are the things that you don’t like or feel could be improved?
• What have you found to be the most rewarding?
• Compare your job to what we explained it would be like – how is it accurate or different?
• Whom have you found to be the most helpful when you have questions?
• Am I being clear in setting expectations and goals for you?
• Is there anything I am not doing that I could be doing better to help you?
• Is there anything I am doing that you wish I wouldn’t do?
• Am I giving you the feedback that you need?  How could I improve upon that?
• Do you feel that you fit in and are an important part of the team?
• Have you had any uncomfortable situations or conflicts with co-workers or clients?
• Do you look forward to coming to work or do you have concerns that are bothering you?
• Are there any things that you would change about your job if you could?  What are they and why?

Asking these types of specific questions within the first few weeks will also create a culture where your direct reports feel comfortable coming to you with ideas or concerns.  They will see you as a valuable resource in their growth and development as successful salespeople.

Here’s a great Onboarding Infographic from the folks at MindFlash.