Your new recruits arrive highly motivated. More so than you might think.
According to the Qualtrics 2026 report, 18–24-year-olds have an engagement rate of 74 per cent, compared with 68 per cent for their older counterparts – a trend that has remained stable for the past six years. Far from the clichés about a disengaged youth, these figures show that the enthusiasm is there right from day one. The real challenge for businesses is therefore not to create motivation, but to sustain it during those first few months – those crucial weeks when everything is at stake.
And the same study identifies the key factor: listening.
📌 Key points to remember
- Young recruits are more committed than we realise: the challenge is to maintain that momentum.
- Organisations that make a point of listening to their teams double their level of engagement.
- A successful onboarding process is planned in advance and spans several weeks.
- The manager is the cornerstone of the onboarding process: they receive training for this role.
Why onboarding is a crucial moment
A new employee’s first few weeks have a lasting impact on their relationship with the company. It is during this period that they form an opinion of their team, their manager, the organisational culture and the consistency between what they were promised during recruitment and what they experience on a day-to-day basis.
A haphazard onboarding process sends out a negative signal: a workstation that isn’t ready, absent points of contact, vague job responsibilities… Initial motivation quickly wanes, and with it, trust. Conversely, a structured onboarding process values the new recruit, speeds up their settling into the role and lays the foundations for a lasting working relationship.
There is also an economic stake. An employee leaving during the probationary period represents a significant cost: lost recruitment time, the need to repeat training, and disruption to the team. Investing in onboarding means safeguarding the investment made in recruitment.
Listening: the key to engagement
The Qualtrics 2026 report is unequivocal: organisations that have stepped up their efforts to listen to their teams double their levels of engagement compared with those that have scaled back such efforts. For a new recruit, feeling listened to makes all the difference.
In practical terms, listening involves setting aside dedicated time: a ‘check-in’ after the first few days, regular discussions with the manager, and the opportunity to ask questions without fear of being judged. A newcomer’s fresh perspective is, in fact, a valuable asset: they spot inconsistencies, suggest ideas and challenge established practices. Welcoming them with curiosity rather than suspicion strengthens their sense of being valued.
What do new recruits expect above all else? A manager who listens, who explains their roles and objectives, and who helps them develop their skills. Three simple expectations, but ones that require a genuine managerial approach.
Step 1: Preparing for the new employee’s arrival
Successful onboarding begins before the first day. A few simple steps can make a big difference:
- Prepare the working environment: equipment, IT access, ID badge, workspace.
- Inform the team of the new employee’s arrival and role.
- Draw up a schedule for the first few weeks: key meetings, training sessions, initial tasks.
- Appoint a contact person or mentor to answer day-to-day questions.
- Maintain contact between the offer acceptance and the start date: a welcome message, some practical information.
This preparation shows the new employee that they are eagerly awaited. It allows them to focus on what matters most from day one: getting to know their role and their team.
Step 2: Clarify the role, responsibilities and objectives
Uncertainty is the enemy of commitment. A new recruit who does not know exactly what is expected of them will doubt themselves, hesitate and lose confidence. The manager must therefore clarify the following from the outset:
- The role: the position’s place within the team and the organisation.
- Tasks: what the employee will actually be doing, and why it is important.
- Objectives: what is expected after 1 month, 3 months and 6 months, with agreed criteria for success.
Explaining the ‘why’ behind the tasks is essential. Understanding the purpose of one’s work and how it contributes to collective results fosters motivation far more sustainably than isolated instructions.
Step 3: supporting skills development
Onboarding does not end at the end of the first week. It continues until the employee is fully independent in their role, which often takes several months.
To support this skills development, the manager can draw on:
- Regular check-ins to review progress, make adjustments and offer encouragement.
- Frequent and constructive feedback, which recognises progress and offers guidance without demotivating the employee.
- Progressive objectives, which deliver quick wins and boost confidence.
- A development plan: training, mentoring, and sharing best practice.
An end-of-onboarding review helps to bring this period to a close, assess how far the employee has come, and set out the next steps.
The manager: the cornerstone of successful onboarding
Listening, explaining, supporting: these skills cannot be improvised. Many managers, tied up with day-to-day operations, lack the time or the methodology to integrate new recruits effectively. Training them in this role means giving them the tools to turn initial motivation into lasting commitment.
A training programme dedicated to onboarding enables you, in particular, to:
- prepare for the arrival of a new employee and structure their first few weeks;
- clarify their role, responsibilities and objectives from the outset;
- support their skills development right through to the end of the onboarding process.
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