What people keep running into with onboarding
Complaints tagged onboarding, each raised by more than one person. One-off posts are not included.
21 recurring problems · 224 people · 28 forums we read
Raised more than once
Most people first.
- 46How to deal with uncooperative coworkers who don't do their workCarrying the entire workload while teammates remain checked out, confused, or completely unresponsive turns your job into exhausting babysitting instead of actual project management. Constantly chasing people for updates and reminding them of deadlines leaves you overwhelmed and forced to manage adults who refuse to take responsibility for their tasks.
- 44Why do I feel so overwhelmed after starting a new job?The shock of a new career, unfamiliar professional environments, and massive information overload trigger intense anxiety and regret immediately after the first week. This sudden wave of dread makes individuals question their career choices and leaves them spending their first weekend in tears instead of resting.
- 28Feeling lost and overwhelmed starting a new accounting jobSwitching to a new company with unfamiliar processes and systems can make even routine tasks like prepaid expenses feel confusing, triggering intense self-doubt. This sudden lack of familiarity leaves experienced CPAs feeling completely behind and questioning their career path despite having a solid educational foundation.
- 25How to understand a confusing legacy software system you inheritedInheriting unfamiliar legacy software with poor documentation and unconventional design leaves you trapped doing archaeological work instead of actual development. Without automated tests or clear guides, you are left merely putting out metaphorical fires and feeling completely lost during on-call shifts. This lack of comprehension makes it impossible to speak deeply on the codebase and threatens to stall your career.
- 13Is it normal to have no training or supervision on a new job?Accepting a role where the departing employee leaves immediately means being thrown into unfamiliar tasks alone on your second day with zero ongoing guidance. This lack of proper onboarding makes it nearly impossible to learn the job correctly and forces you to handle complex responsibilities without support.
- 9New hire interviewed well but can't do the jobCandidates who ace interviews often fail to deliver independently or follow standard procedures once deadlines get tight. Because managers skip short paid trials or early performance checkpoints, they end up second-guessing their initial doubts. This hesitation causes them to waste months training the wrong person before finally letting them go.
- 8How to set up automated payment processing for a small businessSetting up professional payment automation is blocked by poor vendor responsiveness and a lack of compatible Shopify gateway solutions for international stores. These roadblocks prevent businesses from moving away from manual cash and peer-to-peer apps like Venmo to a structured system.
- 8How do I know what my job actually is with no communication?A total lack of communication from leadership leaves new staff guessing about their duties and wondering if they should just stop helping altogether. Without clear boundaries, colleagues end up taking over lessons and paperwork, making it impossible to establish an actual role.
- 7Why don't students know how files and folders work?Growing up using phones and web browsers means many students have never had to organize files or understand local versus cloud storage. Without knowing where documents actually live on a device, people get stuck trying to find saved work or share files across different applications.
- 6Why pay a monthly retainer when nothing is broken?When systems run smoothly with zero downtime, clients perceive that no active work is happening and question the necessity of ongoing service fees. This invisibility of preventative maintenance makes it difficult to justify a regular retainer, leading clients to view the service as an unnecessary cost when problems aren't actively being fixed.
- 5Is it normal to have no work to do at a new job?Having an empty schedule and getting work only by asking can make you wonder if you are in trouble. This lack of assigned tasks during a slow period creates anxiety about your standing at the company.
- 4When should I expect a pre-employment drug test?Job seekers and graduating students face uncertainty around when employers will require a pre-employment drug test during the hiring timeline. This unpredictable timing causes intense worry over whether they will pass or be disqualified from the job.
- 4Employee onboarding workflow for small teamsSmall team onboarding usually relies on scattered spreadsheets, random emails, and hoping someone remembers what to do. Because everyone assumes someone else handled the setup, teams waste time fixing incorrect I-9 forms and risk missing strict three-day E-Verify deadlines. This lack of clear ownership makes the process unnecessarily tiring and creates an embarrassing first experience with polite new hires.
- 3How to train new employees on technical work without repeating yourselfStandardizing onboarding is difficult because variables in projects make it impossible to train someone on everything at the start, leaving them to rely on asking whoever is around. This leads to managers answering the same repeat questions over and over instead of having a centralized, written reference like an SOP.
- 3Getting zero feedback at work on whether I'm doing wellManagers often provide zero performance feedback for years, leaving employees feeling completely invisible until a problem triggers a sudden emergency. Even when workers actively ask questions and request training, this silence leaves them unable to tell if they are doing a good job or at risk of losing their contract.
- 3Why do new hires quit in the first week?Employers lose good people by winging onboarding and throwing new hires in to swim on their own. When employees spend their first days trying to learn complex systems while getting yelled at by customers, they quickly bail.
- 3Hostile HR emails before starting a new jobNew hires are receiving stern, reprimanding emails from HR over basic logistical questions like parking and dress code. Being unexpectedly accused of asking repetitive questions by professionals lacking emotional regulation creates immense anxiety about the company culture before the job even begins.
- 2How to enter a multi-word name on an application formStandard applications like the Schengen visa or I-9 often provide only basic first and last name fields, leaving people unsure how to enter a four-word Arabic name or two last names. Guessing how to split these names across sections can trigger processing delays, such as an E-verify submission returning a "needs more time" status. This formatting confusion stalls the application process and leaves people struggling to figure out their mistake so they do not repeat it in the future.
- 2How to transition to HR roles without direct experienceJob postings for HR Generalist, HRIS, and Learning & Development roles typically require specific background that transitioning candidates lack. Even when hired for solo HR positions without technical experience, incoming staff often receive no advance information on where to begin learning. This lack of direction leaves them nervous and unsure how to prepare to properly support their employees.
- 2How to remove my credit card from the shop databaseMissing the opt-out button during checkout or trying to back out of the setup process leaves your personal and banking data trapped in the database. Because the system loops back to the billing screen without a cancel option, you cannot erase your information without paying a $29 fee to fully open a shop first.
Comes up alongside
Topics that keep appearing on the same problems — not topics with similar names.