As a manager, when you see that resignation letter cross your desk, what thoughts go through your head? Is it a gift you’ve been waiting for, finally seeing that problematic employee headed out the door? Or is it your worst nightmare signed, sealed and delivered on your desk at 8:00am on a Friday morning? Here are a few reasons why employees leave a job too soon (and ways that you as the employer can prevent it from happening at your organization!)

1. Changed his or her mind on job type (new hire wasn’t clear about the job duties to begin with…or maybe unsure of their own career path)

2. The work didn’t accurately match their expectations (the job ad was not clear or left too many “duties as assigned” unanswered until the job began)

3. Boss was a jerk (don’t be a jerk!)

4. Didn’t receive enough training (don’t throw new employees to the wolves too soon!)

5. The job wasn’t fun (aka the job wasn’t what they expected – job description unclear or the interview team sold the new hire on a job that doesn’t exist)

One way to avoid this type of early departure is to make sure your employees are provided with onboarding from start to finish. We specialize in new hire orientations, onboarding, and fun seminars to get your employees excited and involved. But, if you aren’t ready to give us a call, we’ll offer these tips to all of our blog readers because we like you.

1. Provide on-the-job training – do not tell a new employee to do something without showing or explaining or supervising or shadowing. Training means a supervisor or trainer is present. Be there. Answer questions. Don’t leave the newbie alone for too long. It scares them.

2. Take the time to review your company policies and handbook with each new hire. This can be done as a group orientation or one-on-one with the manager.

3. Take the new hire on a walking tour of the company. Introduce him or her to team members, the front office staff, security guards, and the bathrooms. These are important pieces to feeling welcome and comfortable in a new environment.

4. Make sure the equipment for each new hire works. Email set up, telephone extension in proper working order, etc.

In a nutshell, invest in your investment to reap the rewards!

Onboarding is often forgotten with the excitement of a new hire, because the recruitment and screening process itself can be so demanding and time-consuming. Instead of taking a break after you sign the offer letter, take the proper steps to make sure your new hire is set up for success plans to stick around, otherwise you’ll be back to the drawing board much sooner than you’d like.