New hire onboarding survey questions can help you understand and improve a new employee’s early experiences with the company. According to BambooHR, employees’ biggest frustrations with onboarding include insufficient training on company products/services (62%) and the lack of an onboarding guide (50%).
Also, while 50% of new hires plan to quit shortly after starting, that number climbs to 80% among those who feel undertrained from poor onboarding. A well-designed new hire onboarding survey can help you pinpoint and tackle such issues early. This will lower the risk of turnover, increase engagement, and show new hires the company’s commitment to job satisfaction.
Contents
What is a new hire onboarding survey?
Why is a new hire onboarding survey important?
35 onboarding survey questions to ask new hires
Preparing a new hire onboarding survey: Best practices
What is a new hire onboarding survey?
Also called a new hire orientation survey or onboarding questionnaire, a new hire onboarding survey is an HR tool for evaluating and improving new hires’ onboarding experience. You would usually send it out within the first weeks or months of employment to gauge if employees have successfully transitioned into the organization.
Onboarding surveys evaluate the effectiveness of the onboarding process, training, and initial support. They also measure new hires’ satisfaction and understanding of their role, team, and company culture.
Why is a new hire onboarding survey important?
The key benefits of a new hire onboarding survey include:
- Understanding the new hire’s first impressions: Their responses shed light on their onboarding experience—do they feel confident in their new role or understand the work culture? These factors can directly influence their decision to stay with the company.
- Identifying gaps in the onboarding process: Reviewing onboarding survey results can help you spot any underlying issues early so you can address them promptly.
- Encouraging honest feedback: Urging employees to share their opinions freely opens a line of communication between you and them, setting the foundation for a positive working relationship.
35 onboarding survey questions to ask new hires
Here is a list of new hire onboarding survey questions to ask at different points after they’ve completed their onboarding. Doing so ensures you check in with them regularly and stay updated on how new and recent hires are doing.
Questions to ask one week after onboarding
At this stage, your questions should focus on the new hire’s first impressions of the company, their role, and their team. The goal is to find out if they feel welcomed and supported and have the essential tools and resources to do their job. This helps you address any immediate concerns so they can transition as smoothly as possible into the job and organization.
- How well was your role explained to you?
- Did you receive enough information to understand the company’s expectations of you?
- Did you receive the necessary equipment, logins, and resources to start your job?
- How clear were the instructions for setting up your work environment?
- Did you feel welcomed and supported by your team and manager?
- Did you find the onboarding schedule well-planned and manageable?
- How well did the onboarding session cover the company’s mission, values, and culture?
- Do you feel comfortable asking questions or getting help from your team?
- On a scale of 1-5, would you rate the overall onboarding experience?
- What improvements would you suggest for the onboarding process (if any)?
Questions to ask two weeks after onboarding
At this point, the new hire would have already completed their initial onboarding and started to engage more with their role. The survey questions should focus on gauging how well the training has prepared them for their job, how comfortable they feel with their duties, and whether they’re integrating well with their team.
This feedback helps you and the new hire’s manager understand if the onboarding process has provided sufficient support and helps identify any gaps in resources or training.
- Are you starting to feel more comfortable in your role and responsibilities?
- Do you have enough access to the tools and resources you need to do your duties?
- Do you think your role aligns well with your team’s goals?
- Has your manager provided enough guidance and feedback so far?
- Do you feel you now understand the company’s culture and work environment better?
- Are there any additional resources or support that would be helpful at this point?
- Do you feel prepared for your role’s next steps or upcoming responsibilities?
- On a scale of 1-5, how would you rate the training materials and sessions provided?
Fine-tune your onboarding process to increase retention and satisfaction
A strong onboarding process shapes how new hires feel about their role, team, and future at your company. With 80% of employees who feel undertrained considering early exits, effective onboarding isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s essential for retention and engagement.
In AIHR’s Talent Management & Succession Planning Certificate Program, you will learn the skills you need to create a positive experience right from the initial preboarding and onboarding stages and beyond.
This online, self-paced Certificate Program will also teach you how to use talent data and reports to optimize talent management practices.
Questions to ask one month after onboarding
After a month, the new hire should have settled into their new position and started cementing their place within the team and company. The 30-day onboarding survey questions should focus on understanding their level of job satisfaction, how well they know their role, and how well they align with the company culture.
These questions should also explore the new hire’s working relationships with colleagues and the level of support their managers offer them. The purpose of these questions is to determine the new hire’s level of engagement and job satisfaction.
- Do you now have a full understanding of your role and responsibilities?
- Have you been able to build positive working relationships with your coworkers?
- Was your initial training comprehensive enough to cover your role’s requirements?
- Is there anything you still need to clarify about your role or the company?
- On a scale of 1-5, how satisfied are you with your manager’s support and communication so far?
- Do you have a clear idea of the tools and resources you’ll need going forward?
- How aligned do you feel with the company’s values and culture?
- Is there any additional training or information that would improve your ability to succeed?
- Do you feel engaged and motivated in your role and team?
Questions to ask three months after onboarding
At this point, new hires should be more independent and fully integrated into their team. The employee onboarding survey questions you ask now should assess their confidence in performing their duties independently, their understanding of growth opportunities, and their overall satisfaction with the job and the company.
The questions should also seek feedback on the onboarding process and determine their level of engagement, alignment with company goals, and satisfaction with their decision to join the organization.
- On a scale of 1-5, how confident are you in your ability to do your job independently?
- Do you clearly understand your career path and growth opportunities in the company?
- Are you satisfied with the feedback and support your manager provides?
- Do you feel like a valued member of the team and organization?
- How well do you understand your role’s impact on the team’s and organization’s goals?
- Do you have any suggestions for improving the onboarding process for future hires?
- On a scale of 1-5, how satisfied are you with the company culture and work environment?
- Do you feel fully integrated into your team and familiar with company processes?
Preparing a new hire onboarding survey: Best practices
When preparing a new hire onboarding survey, here are some best practices to keep in mind:
- Make questions clear and relevant: The onboarding questionnaire must be clear, relevant, and linked to the specific stages of the onboarding journey.
- Ask straightforward questions: Avoid jargon or overly complex language. Focus on topics relevant to the new hire’s experience at that particular stage. Use close-ended questions to measure satisfaction levels.
- Protect respondents’ privacy: Make your onboarding surveys anonymous to foster trust and encourage honest feedback, and use aggregated data for reporting in order to maintain confidentiality.
- Establish a prompt follow-up process: Set a regular schedule to follow up on employee feedback and assign HR team members to review survey responses. This will allow you to adjust your onboarding procedures as soon as possible.
- Ensure accessibility and ease of completion: To maximize the response rate, design the onboarding survey to be mobile-friendly and accessible on different devices. Keep the survey length manageable (it shouldn’t require more than 20 minutes to complete).
- Time the onboarding survey strategically: Plan survey intervals that align with important onboarding milestones (e.g., one week, one month, etc.) and avoid over-surveying. ‘Survey fatigue’ may yield lower response rates and inaccurate answers.
- Tell employees how you’ll use their feedback: Tell employees you’ll use their responses to enhance the onboarding experience. Share survey results to demonstrate transparency and show their feedback matters to the onboarding improvement process.
HR tip
Pair close-ended questions with open-ended questions to see how new hires score different aspects of the onboarding process and why. Close-ended or quantitative questions offer an overview of satisfaction levels, while open-ended or qualitative questions put them into context. When combined, they offer a complete picture of the onboarding experience, helping you make more targeted improvements.
To sum up
A well-designed new hire onboarding survey can help improve the onboarding experience so new employees feel supported, welcomed, and ready for their roles. By collecting feedback during the employee’s first few weeks and months, HR can review how well new hires are taking to training, resources, and company culture and promptly make any necessary improvements.
A good onboarding survey also encourages open communication between new hires and HR. When employees know their feedback is taken seriously and acted upon, they are more likely to feel satisfied, engaged, and committed to the company.
