What Is Onboarding? Design and Examples

Onboarding is valued not only as an HR initiative that helps new employees settle into an organization quickly, but also as a customer success initiative for delivering value to customers in SaaS products and apps. This article clearly explains what onboarding is, the difference between its two meanings, why it is gaining attention, the key points (steps) for designing it, and representative methods and examples, in a way that is easy for beginners to understand.

What is onboarding?

Onboarding refers to the set of mechanisms and support activities designed to help newly joined people adapt smoothly to an organization or service and gain results or value early on. It derives from "on-board" (boarding a ship or plane) and carries the nuance of welcoming someone who has newly come aboard and guiding them until they can stand on their own.

It is used mainly in two contexts: the onboarding of new employees in HR and organizations, and the onboarding of customers and users in a service (customer onboarding).

Two meanings: HR and customer success

• HR and organizational onboarding: An effort to help newly hired members adapt quickly to their work, relationships, and company culture and become productive contributors. It is broader than traditional new-hire training and includes retention.
• Customer onboarding: An effort to help newly contracted or registered customers master the product and feel its value. Especially in SaaS, it is considered a crucial process for preventing churn and leading to continued use.

Difference from training and OJT

Words often confused with onboarding include "training" and "OJT (on-the-job training)."

• Training and OJT: Means of education and training focused mainly on acquiring job skills and knowledge.
• Onboarding: A broader concept that, in addition to skill acquisition, includes building relationships, adapting to company culture, and retention. Training and OJT are positioned as part of the measures that make up onboarding.

In other words, the defining feature of onboarding is that it captures not only teaching, but also getting people to settle in, become independent, and keep going.

Why onboarding is gaining attention

The reasons onboarding has gained widespread attention include the following factors.

• Preventing early turnover and early churn: The period right after joining or right after starting use is when dropout easily occurs due to anxiety or early stumbling. Support at this initial stage greatly influences retention.
• Rising talent and customer acquisition costs: As the cost of recruitment and customer acquisition rises, retaining the talent and customers you have acquired is becoming increasingly important.
• Spread of SaaS and subscriptions: In recurring-revenue models, whether people keep using the product after signing up determines revenue, so the experience design right after starting use directly affects business results.
• Emphasis on speed to ramp up: The faster new members and new customers can produce value, the higher the productivity of the organization or business.

Types of onboarding

The design approach for onboarding differs depending on the target. Here we organize two representative types.

HR and organizational onboarding

The target is new graduates and mid-career hires. In addition to providing the knowledge and skills needed for the job, it aims for early productivity and retention through mentor assignment, relationship-building with team members, and sharing the company's mission and culture. It is generally designed to begin before joining (during the offer period) and to look ahead over several months to about a year after joining.

Customer onboarding

The target is newly contracted or registered customers and users. Through initial setup support, usage guides, and suggestions on how to make the most of the product, it helps customers feel the product's value in the shortest possible time. Shortening the time until the customer feels value (Time to Value) greatly influences subsequent continued use.

Key points (steps) for designing onboarding

To design effective onboarding, keep the following steps and points in mind.

1. Define the goal and the moment of feeling value: Clarify the state you want the new member or customer to reach (activation). Decide at the outset how far they need to go to be considered independent or to have felt value.
2. Break down the steps to reach it: Divide the path to the goal into small, manageable steps. Rather than demanding a lot at once, design it so they can build success experiences gradually.
3. Anticipate stumbling points and prepare support: Identify common questions and places where dropout easily occurs, and prepare measures such as guides, checklists, and support desks.
4. Deliver small success experiences early: Prepare experiences in the early stage where people feel "I could do it" or "it was useful," so they can keep moving forward positively.
5. Follow up continuously through to retention: Rather than ending with the initial response, keep engaging while monitoring how much the product is used afterward, leading to retention.
6. Keep improving based on metrics: While reviewing data such as progress rates and retention rates, identify where stumbling occurs frequently and keep improving the design.

Representative methods and examples of customer onboarding

Actual customer onboarding can be divided into several types depending on the nature of the product and the customer segment. Here we introduce representative patterns.

Tutorial / walkthrough type

A type that guides users through the steps in order with on-screen guides (tooltips or pop-ups) at first login. Because users can learn the basic operations while actually using the product, it is adopted in many SaaS products and apps.

Checklist / progress display type

A type that presents initial tasks such as "set up your profile" and "register your first data" as a checklist and visualizes progress with a bar or similar indicator. A sense of accomplishment encourages the next action and raises the completion rate of the initial setup.

High-touch (hands-on support) type

A type in which a representative holds individual meetings and training and supports adoption according to the customer's goals. It is used in situations that require careful ramp-up, such as BtoB SaaS with a high contract value.

Email / in-app message type

A type that delivers usage tips and next steps in stages according to the time elapsed and the behavior since starting use. Step emails and in-app notifications nudge users who are about to drop off.

Metrics for making onboarding successful

The effect of onboarding cannot be tracked by feel; it must be tracked with numbers. The main metrics to watch are as follows.

• Activation rate: The proportion of new users who reach the initial milestone of feeling value, such as completing a key action.
• Time to Value: The time it took for the customer to feel the first value. The shorter it is, the more it tends to lead to continued use.
• Retention rate / churn rate: Measures whether people keep using the product after starting. A metric that directly reflects the quality of onboarding.
• Retention rate / early turnover rate (for HR): Measures whether new employees remain after a certain period, or whether they have left early.
• NPS / satisfaction: The satisfaction and recommendation level of customers and members toward the onboarding experience.

Getting people to reach value quickly, and getting them to keep using it afterward. Tracking both of these with metrics and connecting them to improvement is the condition for success.

Summary

Onboarding is a set of efforts to support newly joined people so that they settle smoothly into an organization or service and gain value early. It is used in two contexts, retention support for new employees in HR and customer onboarding in SaaS and similar products, both of which share the aim of early value realization and retention. The key to success is to clearly define the goal and the moment of feeling value, deliver success experiences step by step, and keep improving based on metrics. Start by putting into words what the state of independence and value realization means for your own organization.