For many startups, attracting top tech talent is already a challenge. But keeping those new hires beyond the first months? That’s often the real test. Studies show that poor onboarding is one of the leading causes of early turnover, leaving startups scrambling to replace talent, disrupting projects, and hurting team morale.
This article explores 7 proven onboarding practices that not only help retain tech talent but also ensure they are engaged, productive, and aligned with your company’s mission from day one. At HR Oasis, we’ve supported startups across LATAM and the U.S. in refining their onboarding processes to keep the talent they’ve worked so hard to attract.
1. Start Onboarding Before Day One
One of the most effective onboarding practices is to begin the process before the employee officially joins. Pre-onboarding activities set the tone and reduce uncertainty.
- Share welcome emails and a digital handbook.
- Provide access to tools and accounts in advance.
- Introduce them to their team via Slack or email before their first day.
Example: A fintech startup in Mexico reduced new-hire anxiety by sending a personalized welcome video from the CTO before day one.
CEO/HR Tip: Pre-onboarding boosts engagement and creates excitement, leading to faster integration.
Insight: Consider creating a “Day Zero” checklist that includes paperwork, hardware setup, and a welcome message from leadership. This makes the first official day feel smooth and intentional rather than chaotic.
2. Personalize the Onboarding Journey
Not all engineers, product managers, or designers learn the same way. Personalizing the onboarding journey is critical.
- Adjust onboarding sessions depending on role and seniority.
- Provide technical deep dives for engineers, product overviews for PMs, and creative workshops for designers.
- Incorporate personality-based learning (introverts may prefer written guides, extroverts might thrive in live workshops).
Example: A SaaS startup in Colombia built role-specific onboarding tracks that cut time-to-productivity by 25%.
CEO/HR Tip: Personalization ensures relevance and keeps new hires engaged from the start.
Insight: Personalization doesn’t have to mean reinventing the wheel for each role. Develop modular onboarding “building blocks” that can be tailored to different positions. This creates efficiency while still giving each hire a sense of individual focus.
3. Align Culture and Values From the Start
Culture is just as important as technical onboarding. Early alignment helps prevent mismatches that lead to turnover.
- Share company values in action, not just slides.
- Assign early tasks that reflect company culture (team collaboration, customer-first mindset).
- Encourage open conversations about expectations.
Check: Onboarding New Employees — Without Overwhelming Them
CEO/HR Tip: Make sure culture is not an afterthought. Early immersion improves retention and long-term fit.
Insight: Create culture immersion sessions that include storytelling from founders or long-tenured employees. Hearing firsthand how values guide decisions makes culture more tangible for new hires.
4. Assign a Tech Mentor or Buddy
The buddy system is one of the most underestimated onboarding practices. Assigning a mentor accelerates learning and builds trust.
- Choose mentors who exemplify your culture and have technical expertise.
- Encourage weekly check-ins during the first 90 days.
- Create safe spaces for questions.
Example: An US based company implementing a buddy system saw 40% fewer resignations in the first six months.
CEO/HR Tip: Mentorship increases belonging, a key factor in retention.
Insight: Formalize the buddy program by giving mentors recognition or small incentives. This ensures they treat the responsibility seriously and see it as part of their leadership growth.
5. Balance Technical Training With Soft Skills Support
Technical onboarding alone is not enough. Top engineers also need soft skills to thrive in a startup environment.
- Provide communication and collaboration workshops.
- Offer resources for remote team dynamics and cross-cultural communication.
- Encourage peer-to-peer learning.
See our article on 10 HR Tips for a Comprehensive Soft Skills Assessment to integrate soft skill evaluation into your onboarding.
CEO/HR Tip: Balanced onboarding creates well-rounded team members who stay longer and perform better.
Insight: Incorporate simulations or role-playing exercises into onboarding to build resilience and adaptability. For remote teams, consider virtual team-building exercises that help break the ice across different geographies.
6. Set Clear Milestones and Feedback Loops
Uncertainty is a major source of disengagement. Setting milestones makes progress visible and builds confidence.
- Define 30-60-90 day goals.
- Use shared dashboards for transparency.
- Conduct regular feedback sessions.
Example: A Chilean healthtech startup cut first-year turnover by half after implementing structured milestone reviews.
CEO/HR Tip: Feedback loops keep employees motivated and aligned with company goals.
Insight: Go beyond milestones by creating development maps. These outline not just immediate expectations but also future growth opportunities, helping employees envision a career path inside the company.
7. Leverage Technology for a Smooth Remote Onboarding
With remote and distributed teams, tech-enabled onboarding is essential.
- Use onboarding platforms like Notion, Trello, or Asana.
- Host virtual coffee chats to encourage informal connections.
- Record training sessions for asynchronous learning.
Check out our guide on Modern Tech Recruitment and Digital Transformation to see how technology streamlines HR processes.
CEO/HR Tip: A digital-first onboarding experience creates consistency and supports scalability.
Insight: Consider creating an onboarding portal that includes FAQs, recorded sessions, org charts, and a resource library. This central hub reduces repetitive questions and gives new hires a place to self-serve information.
Building a Long-Term Retention Strategy
Onboarding is not just the first week—it’s the first year. Continuous support, structured growth opportunities, and a culture of feedback make the difference between employees who leave early and those who stay and thrive.
Insight: Extend onboarding into ongoing development by pairing employees with learning paths. These could include leadership training, cross-functional projects, or language learning to strengthen collaboration with international teams.
Startups that adopt these 7 onboarding practices not only retain talent but also build stronger, more committed teams ready to innovate and scale.
Building a Long-Term Retention Strategy
Onboarding is not just the first week, it is the first year. Continuous support, structured growth opportunities, and a culture of feedback make the difference between employees who leave early and those who stay and thrive.
Insight: Extend onboarding practices into ongoing development by pairing employees with learning paths. These could include leadership training, cross-functional projects, or language learning to strengthen collaboration with international teams.
Startups that adopt these 7 onboarding practices not only retain talent but also build stronger, more committed teams ready to innovate and scale.
Conclusion
For startups, retaining top tech talent is critical to long-term success. Implementing strong onboarding practices helps reduce early turnover, improve engagement, and accelerate productivity. But onboarding is not just a one-time event, it is an ongoing journey. When employees feel guided, supported, and connected to the company’s vision from the beginning, they are far more likely to stay and contribute at their best.
Effective onboarding practices also pays dividends beyond retention. It enhances collaboration, strengthens employer branding, and sets the tone for a culture of growth. Startups that invest in onboarding are signaling to their talent that they value people, not just positions.
At HR Oasis, we know that every startup has unique challenges and goals. That is why we design onboarding practices frameworks tailored to your culture, growth stage, and distributed team dynamics. Whether you are scaling rapidly or building your first engineering team, our approach ensures that your people do not just join, they thrive.
💡 Ready to take your onboarding to the next level and retain top LATAM tech talent? Connect with HR Oasis today and let us build a process that makes your hires stick and your teams stronger.
