Onboarding with the intranet: 5 formats for quick familiarization

Onboarding via the intranet doesn't have to be boring. With an interesting mix of different formats, the familiarization phase can be made very lively and intensive. Colleagues also generally benefit from such measures, as they get in touch with new employees more quickly on an informal basis. Here, we present five formats that can also be implemented in digital onboarding via the intranet.

Onboarding Format 1: Online interviews for more depth

Employee satisfaction should be a top priority in a holistic HR strategy: Satisfied employees are loyal and committed to the organization's goals. That is why it is a must to ask about individual needs and wishes right at the beginning of the hiring process. An employee interview is perfect for this.

This format can be wonderfully implemented during onboarding via the intranet. In a scheduled appointment, someone from HR, supervisors, and other people in relevant roles can join in to learn more about the new employee. Perhaps the new employee has an older dog that tends to bark every now and then. She can take the opportunity to communicate these "peculiarities" and ask for understanding in online meetings. Likewise, a new remote employee might ask not to have any meetings before 8 a.m. because they have a small child who could be woken up by it.

In a job interview, very few would dare to express such wishes – and for later feedback discussions, this information is too informal. So create a space and an opportunity for it.

Onboarding Format 2: Lunch meetings for getting to know each other better

Onboarding via the intranet can be very lively if you use exciting formats: How about sending the new colleague to a virtual lunch with a different colleague every day during their first week of work? You can put some thought into the selection – or decide by drawing lots, which makes it even more exciting. This way, the new employee connects with new colleagues in a casual way – and if there isn't much to talk about, you simply eat together.

Onboarding Format 3: Intranet scavenger hunt for networking

A bit more elaborate, but a great idea to strengthen togetherness, is a virtual scavenger hunt. New employees are entrusted with a task that they now have to solve with the help of their colleagues. In other variations, they have to search for a specific employee and receive ongoing tips from other staff members for doing so. Certainly: The organizational culture should be somewhat open from the outset for such a scavenger hunt to actually spark the spirit it is intended to. In any case, it is a great and non-binding opportunity to get to know new colleagues and, in the process, to familiarize yourself with the intranet, software, and other tools that will also play a role in everyday work.

Onboarding Format 4: Conversation simulations for quick familiarization

Especially for people working in service, onboarding can mean: Less chatting and getting down to doing. Anyone who works in customer service or conducts B2B consultations needs to know above all: How do you approach these topics? What do you do when problem x arises? It can make sense here to provide new employees with conversation simulations. The top 5 questions/topics that employees in the respective role are confronted with can be presented scenically and authentically. The new colleague can quickly get an idea of how the employer communicates externally and can thus start immediately based on these examples.

https://www.keelearning.de/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Techniker-Krankenkasse-komprimiert.mp4

Onboarding Format 5: Quiz app for playful settling in

What are our organization's top products? What events do we hold annually? And who orders the office supplies? In a quiz, new employees can quickly and easily obtain important background knowledge. As part of onboarding via the intranet, they thus get a feel for the corporate culture and settle in much faster. To also get to know the people behind the job descriptions, employees as well as entire teams can compete against each other in an onboarding quiz app from keeunit.

Would you like to know how you can make your onboarding via the intranet more interesting? Then learn about our onboarding app here.