70+ Best Employee Onboarding Survey Questions for New Hires

Want to improve your onboarding process and make it more fun, efficient and welcoming? Be it for building a structured employee onboarding program or redefining your current approach, asking the right new hire onboarding questions is how you know what’s working and what’s not.

In this guide we’ve put together over 70 of the best onboarding questions to help HR, hiring managers and team leaders get feedback from new employees. Well designed employee onboarding surveys can increase retention by up to 82% and new hire satisfaction and engagement in those first few days and weeks.

From first impressions to training effectiveness and cultural integration, these new employee survey questions cover the entire onboarding journey. Plus we’ve included an easy free onboarding survey template for you to get started today.

70+ Employee Onboarding Survey Questions to Gather Feedback On Your Onboarding Process

These questions smooth out the new hire’s transition period and increase their chances of sticking around. Review the best new hire onboarding survey questions for new hires, managers, and remote employees.

Onboarding Survey Questions to Ask after the First Week

Below we’ve grouped the best onboarding questions to ask at each stage for in-office, remote and hybrid employees.  This is your chance to build out a better understanding of who they are and why they decided to join your company. These questions are mostly about their recruitment and onboarding experience so far.

1. During the interview, I was able to communicate information about my skills, experience, and career goals.
2. The job description explained during the recruitment process was accurate.
3. Please indicate the reasons why you joined [company_name].
4. What were you doing before you began working here?
5. I received helpful organization history, product, and service information.
6. I found the orientation program interesting and interactive.
7. What aspect of your new job excites you?
8. Is there anything that concerns you about your new job role?
9. Name one thing about your new job that stands out for you.
10. Name one thing that could’ve made your first day at work better.

Before you read further, here’s a quick new hire onboarding survey template HRs can use to ensure a smooth onboarding process for new hires.

Employee Onboarding Survey Template

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Use This Template

11. Did the onboarding process meet your expectations?
12. If you could describe your onboarding in one word, what would that word be?
13. What do you like the most about our onboarding process?
14. Is there something that you don’t like about our onboarding process?
15. What’s one thing we could have done differently to improve the first week of your onboarding experience?
16. Have you received the help you need?
17. Has the mentoring process been adequate?
18. Is there something we could have done to improve the recruitment process?
19. Do you need more time with your mentor (or manager)?
20. Is there anything you need help with?

Onboarding Survey Questions to Ask after Two Weeks

Once they’ve spent their first two weeks at your company, you need to reach out to them and measure how well they’ve settled in. Use the questions below to gain insights into your new hire’s training expectations and challenges.

21. Is the assistance you’ve been receiving helpful or a distraction?
22. Has the training answered all your questions or concerns?
23. What’s the biggest obstacle you’ve encountered so far?
24. Do you feel like you’ve been well-equipped to do your job?
25. Have you got a handle on your responsibilities?
26. What’s still unclear to you regarding your duties and role requirements?

Questions to Ask a Month Later

At this point, your new hires will have more feedback on the experience they’ve had so far. And you’ll be able to tell whether your onboarding practices are paying off or not. These questions go into more detail on alignment and engagement.

27. Has the training been relevant to your job responsibilities?
28. Have you noticed any loopholes?
29. Do you have a clear understanding of what is expected of you in your role?
30. I rarely think about looking for a job at another company.
31. Has the onboarding time frame been adequate?
32. Is there anything you wish you’d been told?
33. Do you have the knowledge you need to succeed?
34. Have we missed anything, or have we covered all the necessary bases?
35. I am proud to work for [company_name].
36. I would recommend [company_name] as a great place to work.
37. Did we meet your expectations during this first month?
38. I see myself still working at [company_name] in two years’ time.
39. [company_name] motivates me to go beyond what I would in a similar role elsewhere.
40. I have a good idea about what I still need to learn to do my job well.
41. The organizational values of [company_name] align well with my own personal values.
42. I understand how my role contributes to the organizational goals of [company_name].
43. My experience with the organization has matched my expectations.
44. I am proud to work for [company_name].
45. I still think this is a great role for me.
46. My role so far matches the role description provided to me.
47. I feel welcome and part of the team.
48. I’m feeling productive.

New Hire Survey Questions to Ask after Three Months

Your recruits have fully settled in and are hard at work now that they’ve spent three months at your company. They should now have some solid opinions about your onboarding process and are ready to give you valuable feedback.

49. Was your onboarding successful?
50. Did your onboarding make you feel more or less confident that you could do your job well?
51. Did you experience any information gaps?
52. Would you tell a friend coming to your company that the early days are nothing to worry about?
53. How is your current role different from your previous one?
54. I understand my organization’s goals.
55. Do you see yourself spending a few more years at the company?
56. Is there anything we, as a company, can do to help you improve your performance?
57. I regularly receive useful feedback from my manager about my performance and progress.
58. I have supportive co-workers.
59. My manager is supportive of my development and work.
60. I understand how my work will be measured or evaluated.
61. I have a clear understanding of my objectives and tasks and what I am expected to accomplish.
62. My manager effectively communicates business goals and objectives to me.
63. I understand how my role contributes to the organization’s goals.
64. How else would you like to add value to the company aside from your current responsibilities?
65. I believe my ideas are valued.

Onboarding Survey Questions for Remote Employees

Here are some questions you can ask when onboarding your remote employees:

66. Is there anything that would help you feel more connected to the rest of your team?
67. Have you had any communication issues you would want us to fix?
68. Do you have access to all the information you need?
69. What’s one thing you would change about our current workflow?
70. Is there any resource you would need to do your job better?

Did you know that you can create a survey with SurveySparrow in just a few seconds? Yes! With the AI survey builder, all you need to do is enter a short prompt and hit send. AI will do its magic. 

You can edit the questions you like, remove the ones you don't like, or add any of the questions you wish from those listed above! That's not it! The platform also offers advanced analytics tools for you to draw meaningful insights from the data you collect. 

Why don't you take it for a free spin today? 

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Here's a bonus set...

Fun Onboarding Survey Questions for New Hires

While it is important to keep your survey straightforward, adding a bit of fun won't harm you. Plus, it will also help in breaking the ice and adding a bit of authenticity to the responses. Honest feedback is the ultimate aim, after all, right? 

Here's a set of fun onboarding questions for new hires:

71. What's your go-to karaoke song? We'd love to hear your masterpiece at the next team dinner!
72. Is there a skill that you've been hiding from everyone? Do share with us. We'll keep it a secret!
73. A sparrow told us you are a bookworm! Is there any fictional character you relate to the most?
74. What's your spirit animal? Have you taken the quiz yet?
75. What keeps you going? Do you have a motto you follow, or perhaps a quote that keeps you motivated?
76. Say you get a surprise holiday today. What's the first thing you'd like to do?
77. Are there any funny anecdotes you'd like to share with us?

Explore Employee Onboarding Survey Question Types

1. Likert Scale Questions

• A type of question that asks respondents to rate their agreement with a statement on a scale of 1 to 5.
• Likert scale questions can be used to measure overall satisfaction with a particular aspect of the onboarding process. Here's a Likert scale template for you to get an idea.
• For example: “I feel like I have a good understanding of my job duties.”

2.1-10 Rating Scale Questions

• Similar to Likert scale questions, rating scales use a scale of 1 to 10.
• They are mostly used to measure satisfaction with a particular aspect of the onboarding process, or to measure the importance of a particular aspect of the onboarding process.
• For example: “How would you rate the overall quality of your onboarding experience?”

3. Open-Ended Questions

• Open-ended questions allow respondents to provide their own feedback in their own words.
• It can be used to gather more detailed feedback about a particular aspect of the onboarding process.
• For example: “What did you like most about your onboarding experience?” “What suggestions do you have for improving the onboarding process?”

4. Additional Question Types

• Multiple choice questions: It helps to gather specific information about a particular aspect of the onboarding process.
• Rank-order questions: These can be used to gather information about the relative importance of different aspects of the onboarding process.
• Demographic questions: You can use them to gather information about the new hire’s background.

Tips for Creating an Effective Onboarding Survey

• Mix open-ended and closed-ended questions.
• Use clear, concise language.
• Keep the survey brief and focused.

By following these tips, you can create an onboarding survey that will provide you with the valuable feedback you need to improve your onboarding process and make it a more positive experience for all new hires.

What is the Significance of Implementing New Hire Employee Onboarding Surveys?

Starting a new job can feel overwhelming but what makes all the difference is showing you care by having a thoughtful onboarding process. They are not just another HR form to fill out, but is important for your new hires to feel supported and heard. 

By asking the right questions early on, you get valuable feedback straight from your newest team members. Are they clear on their role? Did they get the training they needed? What could have gone better? These insights from your onboarding survey help you spot gaps and smooth out the bumps in your onboarding experience.

By fostering a culture of continuous feedback, these surveys enable organizations to make data-driven decisions, improving HR policies and practices. Ultimately, a well-executed onboarding survey leads to enhanced productivity, as employees who are effectively onboarded are likely to become productive more quickly.

Final Thoughts

Employee onboarding surveys will help you improve your company’s onboarding process and retention rate.

The answers to the above questions will give you a pretty good idea of what needs to be done in order to onboard your new hires more effectively.

Employees who go through structured onboarding are 58% more likely to remain with the company after three years, according to a study by the Wynhurst group.

Yet, almost a quarter of companies say they don’t bother with onboarding programs, according to a report by Harvard Business Review.

Nearly 33% of new hires look for a new job within their first six months and some 23% leave before their first anniversary, according to the same report.

Another study shows that only 12% of employees say their company does a good job with onboarding hires. And one in every five new hires is unlikely to recommend their employer.

To make (and keep) your onboarding process as engaging and effective as possible, you need to survey your new hires and seek constant feedback from them.

New hire onboarding surveys help ensure the best possible employee performance, satisfaction, and retention rate.

Here are some related resources to help improve your onboarding experience:

How HR Chatbots Help Enhance Employee Onboarding

Tips for Improving Your Onboarding Experience

Do you have any questions about improving your employee onboarding process? Are there any interesting tips or techniques you use to gather insightful feedback on your onboarding practices? Let us know about them in the comment section below. Are you looking to create surveys your employees will love answering? Feel free to check out SurveySparrow.