Getting new people in the door and putting them to work is one of the most critical parts of the sales onboarding process. So much goes into this transaction though that organizations might miss out on. Hitting all the important landmarks and providing a fast, efficient experience will create a positive outcome for both the new staff member and the company itself, specifically when it comes to profitability and retention.

Aiming for results
This is also one of the primary areas of focus at the upcoming Franchise Operations Performance Summit. The best method for getting a significant return on investment from all sales onboarding with partners and employees alike is to give them the support and resources they need to get up to speed quickly. Minimizing downtime during training and integration ensures a rapid turnover from initial investment to realizing positive returns.

"Franchisors can dramatically improve the effectiveness of the initial onboarding plan by engaging new franchisees," said speaker Cordell Riley of Tortal. "[It's important to] engage franchisees from the get go so they are not only prepared to get their business off the ground on day one, but have resources from Day 2 on. The faster the franchisee gets into the program the faster the impact on sales and ROI for both the franchisee and the franchisor."

Building better relationships
The Society for Human Resources Management issued a study, "Onboarding New Employees: Maximizing Success," that stated the onboarding process should take at least three months. During that time, some of the most critical interactions between fresh employees and the organization will occur. These events set the groundwork for how successful and reliable the relationship between the organization and the individual will be. Businesses must quickly set the groundwork of building a positive engagement with the new hire, setting up formal and informal boundaries, creating a support system and teaching the rules and regulations of the position to the individual within those 90 days.

The source stated that it's best for organizations to take a proactive approach to the sales onboarding process. This method creates the greatest level of support and encourages fast, thorough integration into the work environment. It also provides other employees with a mindset that they should welcome new hires and generate opportunities to assist with their assimilation. Best of all, it creates ownership for onboarding success among managers, so that the latest addition to staff has all the necessary tools and teachers in order to get to work quickly.