A guide to seamless immersion in complex industries

Tech entrepreneur with a strong background in sales and a deep interest in business strategy, CEO and founder of Voyagu.

Company culture has a huge impact on long-term growth and success, especially in industries where specific technical knowledge is essential, such as travel, banking, aviation, e-commerce and renewable energy.

When it comes to hiring from outside the industry and integrating newcomers into the workplace, a challenge arises: learning industry nuances and jargon takes time and extra effort. This is where corporate culture comes into play. It can become a shortcut to expansion in these industries, and potentially contribute to it 33% higher turnover.

Since new hires lack “insider” knowledge, it is much more difficult for them to navigate and succeed in a new industry. On average it can take up to three years for newcomers to become fully familiar. Many end up leaving early, disappointed by the inability to show their achievements and feeling like they don’t belong.

As a result, companies often choose to promote current employees with existing industry knowledge, even if they are not strong performers, which is not ideal for long-term scaling plans.

The best way to onboard top performers from outside the industry faster is to create a welcoming culture using common language: explain jargon, industry-specific concepts and terminology in simple terms, and create professional glossaries to help newcomers learn. talk and feel involved. Building a company culture that prioritizes employee happiness can increase employee productivity 12%.

This is how you welcome newcomers to your corporate culture:

1. Simplify the Complex: Translate industry jargon for clear and easy communication.

Describing the specific terminology in clear, simple language is extremely important. Give them a “cheat sheet” of explained terms so they can refer to them instead of having to guess or ask a colleague every time they don’t understand something.

Airlines often do this with new reservation agents to help them integrate into the team more quickly. They provide lists of standard terms, abbreviations, and shortcuts for the new agents to use to make the booking process go smoothly, making nervous new hires feel more confident and capable.

2. Provide enough context.

Onboarding should be packed with context to facilitate the integration of people from outside the industry. This is a lesson I learned the hard way. I realized that not everyone who comes to us is a ‘travel nerd’, familiar with specific terms and abbreviations, such as ATB automated ticket and boarding pass, for example. That’s why we’ve shifted our communication style to simple language to help newcomers learn quickly and love the industry as much as we do.

Sometimes technical terms are unavoidable, so provide plenty of context in these cases. It is especially important for top management to lead by example by being someone who uses “normal people’s language” and encourages everyone to cultivate this habit as well.

3. Structure the onboarding process for faster adoption and business growth.

Onboarding is the foundation of your newbies’ knowledge of the company, so it should be comprehensive and aimed at people outside the industry.

Create a document with written processes and protocols for structured onboarding and faster adoption of your know-how. This part is not about bureaucracy and more paperwork; it’s a way to reduce onboarding time and have a system in place to scale the business.

4. Develop a custom training program.

A company culture of education is one of the best ways to promote growth, efficiency and overall employee satisfaction. Introduce training programs and consider hosting regular company-wide workshops to help employees learn, grow and feel more comfortable in the industry.

These training sessions are not a substitute for helping newcomers on board. They should be more complementary; simplified day-to-day communication is essential for a successful immersion.

5. Regularly evaluate the knowledge progress of newcomers.

While new hires shouldn’t feel like they’re back in school and given a pop quiz, giving them tests or assessments early on can be a valuable resource for both you and them. These quarterly tests should cover all specific technical knowledge that needs to be acquired during their work.

It’s worth noting that offering consistent, constructive feedback to all your employees increases engagement, lowers the turnover rateand leads to profit increases 23%so reviews and helpful, actionable feedback are incredibly useful tools.

Corporate culture as a powerful tool for growth in complex industries

Creating a corporate culture of inclusive, straightforward communication is critical for businesses. By simplifying communication and creating an inclusive environment, companies can quickly onboard newcomers and attract and retain top talent. It is also an important step towards creating diversified teams that give companies in complex industries growth potential.

By effectively adjusting your company’s communications, you can create a greater sense of engagement with employees, which will make them less likely to leave.

Ultimately, a strong company culture, supported by knowledge sharing and streamlined communication, is one of the most powerful growth tools for any company.

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