Would you say that disorganized onboarding is a sign of an employer not wanting to employ you?

Anonymous

January 31,2023 at 1:18AM UTC

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Would you say that disorganized onboarding is a sign of an employer not wanting to employ you?

I am trying to discern if this has some merit, as from my previous and most recent experience with companies. Whenever I have had a negative experience with an employer where they have made me feel that they "begrudgingly" employed me due to me fulfilling their diversity quota. It has always started with the onboarding process being disorganized such as, not receiving orientation information ahead of time with room to spare ( e.g. a day before the orientation date.), lack of communication on the day when one comes on site ready for their first day, etc.

All of these bad onboarding starts have always ended in negative departure experiences.

Currently, I accepted a volunteer position within an organization that is in the mental healthcare field which is a passion of mine outside of Technology. The first day of orientation which was virtual felt very unpolished despite being able to access the systems seamlessly. I received all the access information the morning of my start date. I didn't receive the meeting information email that contained the link for the meeting causing me to have to reach out to request it again and be late as a result. During the meeting when I touched base with the employer who hired me to ask them if they could confirm how one was expected to receive the meeting invite. They confirmed that it was supposed to be sent via email through a group email they sent. They then checked their emails and quickly confirmed that my email wasn't on it and uttered, " that's strange...your email is not on here...Im usually good with this...I don't kn---" and trailed off not offering any apology. I reassured them that it was alright and just wanted to make sure that I had done my do - diligence in checking where I needed it.

The conversation remained smooth and friendly but my subconscious asked the question at the beginning of this post and now I'm wondering if I should just quit to save myself the potential aggravation. Or write the initial onboard experience as a slip and focus on accruing the skills that this volunteer position has to offer to boost my resume and appeal to prospective employers?

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Mary LetiziJanuary 31,2023 at 2:36AM UTC
I can relate to a degree. I was hired with a group of newbies and the onboarding process was disjointed. A couple of the forms I was trying to fill out wasn't retaining my information. I couldn't get anyone to return my calls or emails and when I finally got a response I was told I would be starting the following week instead of that week. They never addressed what I told them about the the two onboarding forms. When I contacted them three days later I was told that they had started all the ones who had finished their onboarding and I would not be able to start. This didn't make sense and was really upsetting. I tried getting ahold of the recruiter and that was a pointless. So I contacted the person who interviewed me and she gave me the POC of the operations manager. He explained that they had over estimated the workload and hired too many people so some of us were cut. The job market has new landscape and rules that most of us don't know about until we go through it. There is a communication gap between the recruiters, HR and managers. Last, but not least many recruiters lately are ones that do not have any experience or knowledge about the hiring process, so a lot of things fall through the cracks.
AnonymousJanuary 31,2023 at 2:50PM UTC
A lot of this depends on the company. Companies that do not have a lot of turnovers are generally not good at onboarding because they don't do it all that often, so that is a consideration. Chaotic onboarding when they should have the process ironed out because of hiring upticks or rapid turnover is a warning sign. That said, I would suggest getting through the onboarding process before jumping ship.
AnonymousJanuary 31,2023 at 3:27PM UTC
Disorganized onboarding, in my experience, is a result of too many people thinking "not my job" when it comes to communicating.
For example, in my organization, HR sets up interviews, and sends out offer letters, but once the offer letter comes in, they pass the hiring process on to the hiring manager (or the admin for that department), and what little standardization from department-to-department that does exists is because the IT department requires it.
Peggie Arvidson * Career Consultant | Adoptee Advocate | RecruiterJanuary 31,2023 at 10:03PM UTC
No, I'd say it's a sign of a disorganized company.
BeaBoss750792February 2,2023 at 4:40PM UTC
In my experience, disorganized onboarding is a sign of a disorganized organization, not that they don’t really want you there (although it can certainly feel like that at times). Usually, it’s a sign that no one person “owns” the onboarding experience, so things fall through the cracks.
AnonymousFebruary 2,2023 at 7:17PM UTC
Many companies especially non-profits don't have the budget or the resources for quality onboarding. Startups the same. Let it go and find the way yourself as a professional and ask the questions to get what you need. Sometimes your participation and real feedback can help make it better for the next person that comes through. Maybe not yourself but for others down the path.
AnonymousFebruary 3,2023 at 1:37PM UTC
My onboarding experience at current employer, basically, sucked. But...I knew what I was getting into and one of the projects I've taken on is fixing it.
Paula Manczuk-HannayFebruary 3,2023 at 1:58PM UTC
It’s been my observation after an entire career in the nonprofit world that the onboarding of volunteers is hit or miss. This sounds like it could be an unintentional oversight. I’d give it a chance but keep an eye open.
AnonymousFebruary 18,2023 at 3:03AM UTC
Unfortunately every experience in onboarding I have had has been less than desired.
I would not judge based on onboarding experience. That’s usually an area that needs Mega improvement but due to resource allocation, usually falls to last inline. It’s only recently that companies have been providing more attention to it.