Onboarding Coaching

Organizations can spend months and significant resources searching for and interviewing a new senior executive. Yet, after the offer is accepted and the individual joins the company, the onboarding process often does not receive the same level of effort and energy as the hiring process. Executive failures can cost up to 40 times the base salary of leaders, according to some research. That could be a multimillion-dollar mistake for even a mid-level executive.

50-70% of executives fail within the first 18 months of promotion into an executive role, either from within or coming from outside the organization, according to research from the Corporate Executive Board. The good news is that companies with strong onboarding programs see 2.5 times the profit growth and 1.9 times the profit margin than those that don’t, according to The Boston Consulting Group.

Onboarding assimilation services are a natural extension of the executive search process. The deep level of understanding and trust built during the search process creates the ideal foundation for successful onboarding. Information gathered throughout the search process including references, and other valuable insights can be leveraged during onboarding assimilation.

Personal Onboarding Coaching

With an external onboarding coach, a personalized onboarding plan is created to address the needs of the incoming executive and to exceed the expectations of the hiring organization. While all companies have an established orientation process, a robust and personalized onboarding experience during the first weeks and months are critical. Getting it right can dramatically accelerate the transformation of a recruit into a fully functioning business leader.

By aligning strategic goals and expectations, effective onboarding helps to increase personal engagement with the organization, builds credibility for the new leader and creates a fast-track to optimal performance. The incoming executive will have a smoother transition and more quickly acclimatize to the new culture.

Having personalized onboarding coaching has been shown to reduce turnover by 50 percent, increase advancement by up to 75 percent, and significantly increase job satisfaction. Typically, the engagement spans six to nine months, with the executive and the coach working together to achieve the individual’s specific onboarding goals, while overcoming the challenges often faced by first-time executives.