RH Boarding Game: 6 formats to accelerate integration

The HRD of a scale-up tech of 380 people contacted us in 2023 with a hard observation: "We recruit 12 people a month, we lose 4 in the first 6 months. The direct cost of early turnover exceeds our training budget. We want integration that misses less." A boarding kit was delivered combining an internal culture card set, a memory product teams and a vocabulary quiz. 18 months later, the turnover to 6 months went from 33% to 14%.

Onboarding is one of the most critical moments in the employer-employee relationship. According to the Gallup, BambooHR and Glassdoor converging studies, 47% of new hires do not complete satisfactory onboarding, and a missed onboarding increases the risk of starting in the first year by 2.5. Direct losses (recruitment, training, loss of productivity) typically represent 50 to 200% of the annual salary of the position.

The HR onboarding game is based on three measurable levers: accelerated transmission of internal culture, sustainable memory of vocabulary and teams, early creation of social links. These three levers explain the results measured in our clients: reduction of time-to-productivity, decrease of early turnover, improvement of commitment at 6 months.

Format 1: Memory teams and products

Custom memory is the most effective format for fast transmission of faces, teams and products. 24 to 48 pairs of cards, duration 10-15 minutes per session. Handled alone or in pairs.

Typical content: the faces of the employees with their first name, logo of the teams, photo of the products, icons of the internal tools, offices. The memory format activates two powerful cognitive mechanisms: visual recognition and spaced repetition.

Production: 350g printing on cardboard, soft-touch coating finish, cardboard box packaging or fabric pouch. Time 4-6 weeks after the visuals are provided. Details on our memory B2B.

ROI measured: new recruits' recognition score increased from 23% to 71% at J+30 on one of our 200-person tech client cases. Reduction of HR solicitations for team identification by 40%.

Format 2: Internal Culture Card Game

The internal culture card game transmits what no home booklet transmits: implicit codes, internal references, lived values. 60 to 100 thematic cards grouped into families (values, rituals, vocabulary, cultural references, founding anecdotes).

Possible mechanics: sorting by families, collaborative quizzes, association game, debate game. Format playable in a team during an integration seminar or in autonomy with a rule book.

Critical content: involve historical collaborators in the collection of content. An authentic anecdote told by a founder has more weight than a corporate slogan plated. The collection phase typically represents 3 weeks of iterative work.

ROI measured: knowledge score internal culture to J+90 increased from 34% to 78% on a client case services B2B 800 people. Time to cultural integration reduced from 4 to 6 weeks depending on the profiles.

Format 3: Exploratory tray

The exploratory set of platforms represents the company's ecosystem: teams, products, processes, sites, suppliers, customers. The new hire crosses the plateau by carrying out missions that confront him with the various areas of the company.

Playable format on half a day of integration seminar in groups of 4-6 new hires. Hosted by an experienced manager or buddy who contextualizes and tells.

Production: large printed tray (40x60 cm typical), mission cards, pawns, animator booklet, learning booklet. 10-14 weeks time frame including the design phase. Format particularly suitable for medium and large companies where organizational complexity is a real challenge for new recruits.

Typical scenario: a multi-site industry group where new recruits took 6 to 9 months to understand the interactions between sites. With the exploratory plateau played the first week, the time spent understanding spent to 4 weeks on average.

Formats 4, 5, 6 : quiz onboarding, escape welcome, ice-breaker kit

Quiz onboarding : consolidation format, played at the end of the first week or first month. 30 to 50 questions on fundamentals (teams, products, processes, vocabulary). Individual or team format. Production time 2-3 weeks.

Escape welcome : immersive format played on the first or second day. 45 to 60 minutes, team of 4-6 new hires. Mission: "surviving the first week" via a series of puzzles that transmit the essential information. Popular format for the immediate cohesion that it creates between new hires. (more about our original team building)

Ice-breaker kit : first day pouch or box containing first day first name cards, magnetic badges, anecdotal cards, quick play between new recruits. Small production format therefore accessible to SMEs and scale-up.

For the choice of these 3 formats, the practical rule: quiz whether the objective is knowledge consolidation, escape if the objective is cohesion + transmission, ice-breaker kit if the goal is to break the ice from day one.

3 feedback onboarding HR

Case 1: Scale-up SaaS B2B (380 people). Combination memory teams + game of cards culture + quiz onboarding distributed in a kit on the first day. Results 18 months after deployment: turnover to 6 months increased from 33% to 14%, commitment score to 6 months (eNPS) increased from +12 to +47, productivity time reduced by 5 weeks on average on tech profiles.

Case 2: Multisite industrial group (4,200 persons). Exploratory plateau played on the first or second day of integration, in groups of 6 led by a manager. Results at 12 months: Intersite knowledge score increased from 28% to 74%, average time before first interaction with a remote site reduced from 4 months to 6 weeks.

Case 3: ETI B2B services (800 persons). Internal culture card game distributed to each new recruit + collective game session at the quarterly integration seminar. Results at 18 months: knowledge score culture increased from 34% to 78% at J+90, 38% decrease in questions addressed to HRD on internal codes, 67% quote of game review of end of trial period as a successful integration factor.