If you’re tired of new hire onboarding eating up your time (or worse, turning into a disorganized mess), you’re not alone. Manual checklists, endless emails, and “Did anyone send them the handbook?” moments are the norm for most companies. The good news: you can automate a lot of this with Centrical’s onboarding modules. This guide is for HR teams, people ops folks, and managers who want less busywork and a smoother ramp-up for new hires. If you want practical steps, not fluffy promises, keep reading.
Why Automate Onboarding in the First Place?
Let’s be real: onboarding is rarely anyone’s favorite task, but it’s critical. Automating it isn’t about replacing a human touch—it’s about cutting out repetitive, error-prone steps so you can focus on the stuff that matters (like actually making new hires feel welcome).
Here’s what gets better when you automate: - Consistency: Everyone gets the same info, in the right order. - Less chasing: Fewer “Did you finish that?” emails. - No missed steps: Compliance? Training? Documents? Nothing falls through the cracks. - Time saved: HR and managers get hours back each month.
But don’t expect automation to fix a broken process. If your onboarding content is outdated or confusing, automating it just spreads the pain faster. Clean up your stuff first.
Step 1: Get to Know Centrical’s Onboarding Modules
Centrical calls itself a “performance experience platform” (yes, it’s a mouthful), but what matters for you is their onboarding modules. These are prebuilt workflows that walk new hires through tasks, content, training, and feedback.
What you can actually automate: - Welcome emails and intro videos - Paperwork (contracts, NDAs, policies) - Training modules and quizzes - Task lists (e.g. “Set up email,” “Meet your team”) - Reminders and nudges for incomplete steps
What you can’t automate (and shouldn’t try): - Genuine human connections - Spontaneous team culture moments - Complex, role-specific training that needs a real person
Pro tip: Start with Centrical’s templates. You can customize them, but don’t try to build everything from scratch until you know what works.
Step 2: Map Out Your Onboarding Journey
Before you click anything, sketch out what your ideal onboarding looks like. Don’t just copy-paste your old checklist—think about what new hires actually need, and where automation makes sense.
Questions to ask: - What’s mandatory for every new hire (compliance, IT setup, etc.)? - What’s nice to have, but not critical? - Where do people usually get stuck or confused? - Who needs to be involved (IT, managers, HR)?
Example onboarding workflow: 1. Welcome message (from CEO or manager) 2. Paperwork (contracts, tax forms, etc.) 3. IT access and equipment setup 4. Company policies & compliance training 5. Meet the team (introductions, maybe a buddy system) 6. First-week goals and check-ins
Don’t overcomplicate it. If you’re debating whether to automate a step, ask: “Will this save time for everyone involved, or just make things more complicated?”
Step 3: Build Your Workflow in Centrical
Now the hands-on part. Log in to Centrical and find the onboarding module builder (the UI changes sometimes, but it’s usually under “Modules” or “Onboarding”).
How to set up a basic automated onboarding workflow:
- Choose a Template (or Start Blank)
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If you’re new, use Centrical’s onboarding template. It covers most bases and is much easier to tweak than starting from zero.
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Add Steps (Modules or Activities)
- Each step can be a task, form, video, quiz, or message.
- Drag and drop to reorder.
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Assign deadlines if needed (but don’t go overboard—nobody likes a barrage of “overdue” pings).
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Set Up Triggers and Automations
- Example: When a new hire is added, automatically send the welcome message.
- Assign training modules to start after paperwork is submitted.
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Nudge managers to schedule intro meetings after day 1.
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Assign Roles
- Make sure the right people (IT, managers, HR) get tasks assigned to them, not just the new hire.
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Centrical lets you automate notifications—use it, but sparingly.
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Customize Content
- Replace generic text with your own videos, docs, or links.
- Keep it short and clear. New hires are overloaded as is.
What to watch out for: - Overly complex branching logic—don’t try to automate every “if/then” scenario on day one. - Too many notifications—people tune them out. - Assuming everyone learns the same way—offer a mix of formats if you can.
Pro tip: Test your workflow with a real new hire (or even better, someone who’s never seen it). You’ll catch stuff you missed.
Step 4: Connect Centrical to Your Other Tools
Automation only works if your tools talk to each other. Centrical can integrate with HRIS systems (like Workday or BambooHR), learning platforms, and even Slack or Teams.
What’s worth integrating: - Your HR system: So new hires get pulled in automatically. - E-signature tools: For contracts and policy sign-offs. - Calendar: For scheduling intro meetings or training sessions. - Messaging apps: So notifications go where people actually read them.
What’s not worth the hassle (in most cases): - Over-customizing with bespoke APIs unless you have a dev team and a real need. - Integrating tools nobody actually uses (that old SharePoint site? Let it go).
Setting up integrations: - Most are plug-and-play, but you’ll need admin access. - Double-check permissions—don’t give Centrical more access than it needs. - Test with a dummy account first.
Pro tip: Start with the basics. You can always add more integrations later if you see a real bottleneck.
Step 5: Track, Measure, and Adjust
The first version of your automated onboarding workflow won’t be perfect. That’s normal. Centrical gives you dashboards and reports so you can see what’s working and what’s not.
What to track: - Completion rates: Where do new hires get stuck or drop off? - Time to productivity: How long until they finish onboarding and start real work? - Feedback: Add a quick survey at the end (and actually read it).
What not to obsess over: - Micro-tracking every click. Focus on outcomes, not vanity metrics. - Comparing your numbers to “industry benchmarks”—your company is unique.
When to tweak your workflow: - If people keep asking the same questions, your content isn’t clear. - If steps get skipped or delayed, maybe you’ve made it too long or confusing. - If managers ignore their tasks, build in reminders (but talk to them first—maybe the process is broken).
What Works, What Doesn’t, and What to Ignore
Works well: - Automating repetitive paperwork and training steps - Clear, simple checklists for new hires and managers - Integrating with HR systems to avoid manual data entry
Doesn’t work so well: - Trying to automate culture or personal connections—keep these human - Over-customizing at the start (you’ll just create more things to fix) - Relying on automation to “fix” bad onboarding content
Ignore (at least for now): - Fancy gamification features unless you know your team will actually care - Building dozens of custom workflows for every role—start with one or two
Wrapping Up: Keep It Simple, Iterate Often
Automating onboarding with Centrical can save you huge amounts of time and make life easier for everyone—if you keep it focused. Don’t try to build the perfect workflow on day one. Start with something simple, get feedback, and adjust. The goal isn’t to replace people, but to free them up for the stuff that only humans can do. Simple is always better, and you can always add bells and whistles later.