First and foremost, a huge thank you to those of you who let me know the survey links weren't working properly. It means a lot to me that you not only take the time to read my missives but, when you encounter an issue, you take the time to reach out and let me know. When we try anything new, we're likely to encounter bumps in the road (another topic for another day, perhaps), it's always good to have friends that will help you see them and address them. With deepest gratitude, Lisa

With so much being written these days about the Great Resignation, it's made me think a lot about the importance of onboarding. I believe that how we treat our employees, from the moment they accept our offer through their first few months on the job, can have a significant impact on their engagement.

That said, these past two years have certainly seen a working environment like no other in our lifetime. In many companies, we went from being in the office to being remote seemingly overnight. Employers had to learn how to hire and train without meeting the candidate/new hire in person. Now, some 18+ months into the pandemic, we see employers struggling to determine their business model going forward - in-office, hybrid, remote, flex. Concurrently, we've got employees reflecting upon and reconsidering what they expect from their company.

Coming back to the concept of onboarding, I can see the frustration from both perspectives:

• as the hiring manager who is so understaffed that you feel you haven't got the time or, perhaps, the resources, to effectively help your new hire get up-to-speed, and
• as the new hire who feels they've been left adrift to figure things out for themselves

I've been wondering whether and how our initial impressions may be contributing to this turnover. And then I realized that I've got an amazing community that would be able to offer me their perspective on this issue. While I'm not going to make it a habit of making an ask of you in these newsletters, I'd really appreciate getting your take on this. To make it as easy for you as possible, I've created a quick, 5 question survey, to capture your perspective on this topic.

• If you are a manager who has brought on a new team member (or members) in the past 6 months, please click here.
• If you, yourself, have moved into a new position in the past 6 months, please click here.
• If both scenarios apply, in other words, you've both been hired and hired others within the past 6 months, I'd greatly appreciate your taking the time to complete both surveys.

I look forward to sharing the results with you in the near future.

with gratitude,

Lisa