How can I check whether onboarding materials are actually helping newcomers?
Quick answer
Ask people to share feedback after they have used a specific onboarding resource for a real task. Keep the form short and focused on the material: what they used it for, what helped, what was unclear, and what they could not find. Make skipping questions acceptable, and review responses for recurring gaps rather than judging an individual’s performance.
The question, the details, the next step.
How do I find out if our onboarding materials are useful without making the feedback feel like a test of the new person?
Ask about the resource and the task, not whether the person succeeded. A useful prompt is: “Think about the [guide, checklist, or page] you used for [task]. What helped you move forward, and what was unclear or missing?”
Send the form after the person has had a chance to use the material. Keep it optional and brief, and explain that you are looking for ways to improve the resource. Avoid questions such as “Did you understand everything?” or “How well did you perform?” Those can sound like an assessment and do not point clearly to what should change.
What should the short review form ask?
Use a few questions that produce details someone can act on. For example:
Onboarding materials review
- Material used: [name or link]
- Task or situation: [what you were trying to do]
- What part, if any, helped you take the next step?
- Was anything confusing, hard to find, or out of date? If so, what?
- What did you look for but not find?
- Optional: What one change would make this material more useful?
You can make the last four prompts optional and allow short answers. Do not ask for a general rating unless you also invite a specific example: a score alone rarely tells you what to revise. If people use several resources, ask them to review one at a time so their comments are easier to connect to the right material.
How do I make it easy to answer and still get useful observations?
Choose a natural moment after the resource has been used—for example, after a person completes a task that refers to a checklist. Ask only about materials they actually used, and let them say “not used” or skip a question. A form should not require someone to remember every page they encountered during onboarding.
Use neutral wording. “Where did you have to guess?” can surface a gap in the instructions; “Why didn’t you follow the instructions?” shifts attention to the person. A short free-text box is useful, but offer prompts such as “a heading, step, or example” so the respondent can point to a specific place without writing an essay.
Once feedback comes in, how do I turn it into a useful update?
Group comments by the resource and the kind of issue: unclear wording, missing step, hard-to-find information, or a detail that may need checking. Look for patterns across responses, but keep a specific one-off comment visible too; it may identify a meaningful gap. Do not treat the number of comments as a verdict on a person or as proof that a document is good or bad.
For example, suppose two illustrative responses about a [sample handoff checklist] say they could not tell where to record an owner. A practical next step is to review that checklist and consider adding a clearly labeled owner field. Then note what changed and, when the material is used again, invite another focused observation. The example is a way to structure the review, not evidence about any particular team.
A practical checklist
Ask for feedback after the person has used a named resource for a real task.
Describe the purpose as improving the material, not assessing the newcomer.
Keep the form short; make answers optional and allow “not used.”
Ask what helped, what was unclear, and what was missing.
Group responses by resource and issue, then record any change to consider.
A few more useful answers
Should I ask newcomers to rate each onboarding document?
A rating can be included, but it is more useful alongside a question about what helped or what needs changing. A score by itself does not identify a specific edit.
What if someone has not used the material yet?
Let them skip that review or choose “not used.” Ask again after they have had a relevant task rather than requesting feedback based only on a quick glance.
How often should I review the responses?
Choose a manageable review point, such as when updating onboarding materials or after a set of responses has arrived. The important thing is to connect comments to a resource and record which changes you decide to consider.