Unlocking The Secrets of Successful Employee Onboarding: Essential Insights and Practical Strategies
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.2478/subboec-2025-0014Keywords:
Employee onboarding, Organizational socialization, Successful onboarding Measuring employee onboarding, Successful Onboarding Outcomes, Employee integrationAbstract
Throughout the article we reviewed the present literature on successful onboarding to identify determinants, measurement models, and outcomes associated with its success, ultimately offering pragmatic implementation techniques for companies to attain successful onboarding outcomes. We have applied a systematic approach to analyze relevant articles, categorizing determinants, measurement models, and outcomes into various classifications founded on their presence throughout the literature. Key findings include the identification of eleven determinants, four measurement mechanisms, and nine outcomes associated with successful onboarding. Integration of these factors provides organizations with practical strategies to enhance successful employee onboarding. This research enhances the current body of literature by synthesizing key determinants, measurement models, and outcomes associated with successful onboarding, offering a comprehensive framework for organizations to improve their onboarding processes.
JEL Classification: O15, J24
References
Allen T., & Tammy D., T. D. G. and K. M. S. (2015). 1153 How Effective Is Telecommuting? Assessing the Status of Our Scientific Findings. DOI: 10.1177/1529100615593273. https://doi.org/10.1177/1529100615593273
Bauer, T. N. (2010). 451 Onboarding New Employees: Maximizing Success. www.shrm.org/foundation.
Bauer, T. N., Bodner, T., Erdogan, B., Truxillo, D. M., & Tucker, J. S. (2007). Newcomer adjustment during organizational socialization: A meta-analytic review of antecedents, outcomes, and methods. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92(3), 707–721. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.92.3.707
Bauer, T. N., & Erdogan, B. (2010). Organizational socialization: The effective onboarding of new employees. In APA handbook of industrial and organizational psychology, Vol 3: Maintaining, expanding, and contracting the organization. (pp. 51–64). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/12171-002
Bauer, T. N., & Erdogan, B. (2014). Delineating and Reviewing the Role of Newcomer Capital in Organizational Socialization. In Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior (Vol. 1, pp. 439–457). Annual Reviews Inc. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-031413-091251
Bauer, T. N., Perrot, S., Liden, R. C., & Erdogan, B. (2019). Understanding the consequences of newcomer proactive behaviors: The moderating contextual role of servant leadership. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 112, 356–368. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2019.05.001
Brown L. (2021). Two-thirds of HR leaders plan to continue virtual onboarding after Covid, research finds. Peoplemanagement.Co.Uk.
Cable, D. M., Gina, F., & & Staats, B. (2013). 154 Reinventing Employee Onboarding. MIT.
Caldwell, B. G., & Caldwell, C. (2016). 20 Ten Classic Onboarding Errors – Violations of the HRM - Employee Relationship. Business and Management Research, 5(4), 47. https://doi.org/10.5430/bmr.v5n4p47
Caldwell, C., & Peters, R. (2018). 102 New employee onboarding – psychological contracts and ethical perspectives. Journal of Management Development, 37(1), 27–39. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMD-10-2016-0202
Chao, G. T. (1997). Complexities in International Organizational Socialization.
Cooper-Thomas, H. D., & Anderson, N. (2006). 517 Organizational socialization: A new theoretical model and recommendations for future research and HRM practices in organizations. In Journal of Managerial Psychology (Vol. 21, Issue 5, pp. 492–516). https://doi.org/10.1108/02683940610673997
DR Pranita Sonar. (2021). Virtual Employee Onboarding need of the hour. Vidyawarta Online Journal 2021.
Dufour, L., Escribano, P. I., & Maoret, M. (2021). (How) will i socialize you? The impact of supervisor initial evaluations and subsequent support on the socialization of temporary newcomers. Organization Science, 32(3), 881–908. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2021.1468
Ellis, A. M., Nifadkar, S. S., Bauer, T. N., & Erdogan, B. (2017). Examining managers’ perception of newcomer proactive behavior during organizational socialization. 2017 Annual Meeting of the Academy of Management, AOM 2017, 2017-August. https://doi.org/10.5465/ambpp.2017.282
Gherardi and Perrotta. (2010). Where is induction? Profession, peer group and organization in contention. Society and Business Review .
Gruman, J. A., & Saks, A. M. (2011). 64 Socialization preferences and intentions: Does one size fit all? Journal of Vocational Behavior, 79(2), 419–427. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2011.04.006
Gupta, P., Prashar, A., Giannakis, M., Dutot, V., & Dwivedi, Y. K. (2022). How organizational socialization occurring in virtual setting unique: A longitudinal study of socialization. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 185. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2022.122097
Hartanto Ferdiana Pratiwi, Sathāban Thēknōlōyī Phra Čhō̜mklao Čhaokhun Thahān Lātkrabang, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Indonesia Section., & Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. (2018). Proceedings of 2018 the 10th International Conference on Information Technology and Electrical Engineering : “Smarter Technology for Better Society” : Ramada Bintang Bali Resort, 24th-26th July 2018, Kuta, Bali.
Haueter, J. A., Macan, T. H., & Winter, J. (2003). Measurement of newcomer socialization: Construct validation of a multidimensional scale. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 63(1), 20–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0001-8791(02)00017-9
Heimburger, L., Buchweitz, L., Gouveia, R., & Korn, O. (2020). Gamifying onboarding: How to increase both engagement and integration of new employees. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, 970, 3–14. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20145-6_1
Klein, H. J., & Polin, B. (2012). 169 Are Organizations On Board with Best Practices Onboarding? In The Oxford Handbook of Organizational Socialization. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199763672.013.0014
Klein, H. J., Polin, B., & Leigh Sutton, K. (2015). Specific Onboarding Practices for the Socialization of New Employees. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 23(3), 263–283. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijsa.12113
Klein, H. J., & Weaver, N. A. (2000). The Effectiveness of an Organizational-level Orientation Training Program in the Socialization of New Hires. Personnel Psychology, 53. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.2000.tb00193.x
Kowtha, N. R. (2018). 18 Organizational socialization of newcomers: the role of professional socialization. International Journal of Training and Development, 22(2), 87–106. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijtd.12120
Lee, A. S. (2023). Supervisors’ roles for newcomer adjustment: review of supervisors’ impact on newcomer organizational socialization outcomes. In European Journal of Training and Development. Emerald Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1108/EJTD-10-2022-0107
Maanen, J. Van, & Schein, E. H. (1977). Toward a Theory of Organizational Socialization.
Mawritz, M. B., Capitano, J., Greenbaum, R. L., Bonner, J. M., & Kim, J. (2022). Development and validation of the workplace hazing scale. Human Relations, 75(1), 139–176. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726720957058
Morrison-Smith, S., & Ruiz, J. (2020). 173 Challenges and barriers in virtual teams: a literature review. SN Applied Sciences, 2(6). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42452-020-2801-5
Mulders et al. (2010). Dynamic capability and staff induction practices in small firms. Society and Business Review, 155–169.
Nifadkar, S. S., & Bauer, T. N. (2016). 128 Breach of belongingness: Newcomer relationship conflict, information, and task-related outcomes during organizational socialization. Journal of Applied Psychology, 101(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000035
Perrot, S., Bauer, T. N., Abonneau, D., Campoy, E., Erdogan, B., & Liden, R. C. (2014). Organizational Socialization Tactics and Newcomer Adjustment: The Moderating Role of Perceived Organizational Support. Group and Organization Management, 39(3), 247–273. https://doi.org/10.1177/1059601114535469
Saks, A. M., Uggerslev, K. L., & Fassina, N. E. (2007). Socialization tactics and newcomer adjustment: A meta-analytic review and test of a model. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 70(3), 413–446. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2006.12.004
Schein E.H. (1968). Organizational socialization and the profession of management. Industrial Management Review, 9(1), 1-16.
Sharma, G. G. J. of S. and S., & Stol, K.-J. (2020). 54 Exploring Onboarding Success, Organizational Fit, and Turnover Intention of Software Professionals.
Sharma, G. G., & Stol, K. J. (2020). Exploring onboarding success, organizational fit, and turnover intention of software professionals. Journal of Systems and Software, 159. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jss.2019.110442
Shufutinsky A. Cox R. (2019). Losing Talent on Day One: Onboarding Millennial Employees in Health Care Organizations. Organization Development Journal 37(4):33-52.
Simon, L. S., Bauer, T. N., Erdogan, B., & Shepherd, W. (2019). Built to last: Interactive effects of perceived overqualification and proactive personality on new employee adjustment. Personnel Psychology, 72(2), 213–240. https://doi.org/10.1111/peps.12297
Skeats J. (1991). Successful Induction: How to Get the Most from Your New Employees.
Song, Z., Chon, K., Ding, G., & Gu, C. (2015). Impact of organizational socialization tactics on newcomer job satisfaction and engagement: Core self-evaluations as moderators. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 46, 180–189. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2015.02.006
Spagnoli, P., Livi, S., & Farnese, M. L. (2018). How do newcomers and full member employees conceive organizational socialization? Measurement invariance and construct validity of the newcomer socialization questionnaire in italy. TPM - Testing, Psychometrics, Methodology in Applied Psychology, 25(4), 485–502. https://doi.org/10.4473/TPM25.4.2
Stratone, M. E., Vătămănescu, E. M., Treapăt, L. M., Rusu, M., & Vidu, C. M. (2022). Contrasting Traditional and Virtual Teams within the Context of COVID-19 Pandemic: From Team Culture towards Objectives Achievement. Sustainability (Switzerland), 14(8). https://doi.org/10.3390/su14084558
Sweet, K. M., Sturm, R. E., Zare, M., & Valenzuela, M. A. (2023). Control-Trust Dynamics during Socialization: Lessons from Workgroup Hazing. Journal of Management Studies, 60(8), 1962–1985. https://doi.org/10.1111/joms.12879
Wang, M., Kammeyer-Muelle, J., Liu, Y., & Li, Y. (2015). Context, socialization, and newcomer learning. Organizational Psychology Review, 5(1), 3–25. https://doi.org/10.1177/2041386614528832
Wanous, J. P., & Reichers, A. E. (2000). NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION PROGRAMS.
Xu, J., Xie, B., Yang, Y., & Maharjan, D. (2019). Facilitating newcomers’ work engagement: The role of organizational socialization and psychological capital. International Journal of Mental Health Promotion, 21(2), 69–80. https://doi.org/10.32604/IJMHP.2019.010708
Zung, R. (2020). The Longtail of the Pandemic on Onboarding and Orientation, HR Daily Advisor, available at: https://hrdailyadvisor.hci.org/2020/07/29/the-longtail-of-the-pandemic-on-onboarding-and-orientation/
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Studia Universitatis Babeș-Bolyai Oeconomica
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
