Page 269 - Successful Onboarding

250 • Successful Onboarding

After creating a working list of design options, teams can prioritize them,
making sure that each activity, tool, and resource generated links to a spe-
cific phase objective; that it can be measured; and that it can be successfully
implemented. It’s also important to remember: Just because a “best prac-
tice” onboarding activity works for a leading-edge program doesn’t mean it
will conform well to another company’s culture or business system or satisfy
their specific highest priority onboarding objectives.
The prioritization exercise involves allowing for trade-offs between
impact and ease of implementation. Many teams choose program activ-
ities, tools, and resources whose initial implementation is possible but
that cannot likely be sustained over time. Booz Allen relied on a prior-
itization matrix to begin comparing the relative feasibility and value of
particular design choices. Many program redesigns look to combine
“low-hanging fruit” and more ambitious, high-difficulty/high-reward
elements. Other efforts focus on designing and implementing quick
wins and then move on to the more challenging program elements once
they’ve realized cost savings or gathered more organizational support.
Teams can benefit from determining which specific criteria to use
as the basis for prioritization. As Vince Gonzalez, Senior Employee
Development Manager at Booz Allen, notes, “Organizing our program
design elements, and collaborating on determining priority across our
variables, allowed us to balance quick wins, ease of implementation,
and high impact to create answers we not only felt good about but also
intuitively knew would have positive and lasting impact on the process
we were trying to improve.” Upon conclusion of the exercise, what
results is a series of “best bets” using the prioritization matrix, which
can then be selected for the program blueprint.
In determining priorities, it’s also often helpful to incorporate input
from a champion member of the organization’s broader leadership. Senior
executives have preferences when it comes to onboarding elements, and
including them when possible facilitates organizational support for the
entire effort. Political considerations aren’t the optimal criteria for mak-
ing prioritization decisions, but in the real world support from a top leader
can make the difference between the overall program’s success and fail-
ure. As a caveat, program designers should ensure that the team doesn’t
compromise and pivot priorities around an element that the diagnostic