Dive Brief:

• Forbes Coaches Council reveals the 7 trends in employee onboarding for 2017 on Forbes, including mentorship and welcome buddies. 
• Other new strategies that companies can use when onboarding employees include offering more external support, setting clear goals for new hires and providing coaching and a team-like environment. 
• In a study from Equifax, more than half of employees who left jobs last year did so in the first 12 months on the job, indicating that it's a candidate market. Employers must do all they can to make the onboarding experience a pleasant one.  

Dive Insight:

When new hires feel supported in the first year of employment, they will tend to stick around longer. Today's talent is more willing to job hop, meaning retention has been a pain point for quite a few organizations. Onboarding is a good place to communicate company culture and values straight away, as well as integrate new hires socially.

Corporate training of new hires is also impacted by onboarding, as onboarding is the first experience that new hires have with a company's internal systems. Moving from long iinstructor-led training sessions to more interactive and real-world scenarios can make onboarding fun and more effective.