Challenge Factory welcomed co-op students Adam Sigal and Jennifer St. Denis for the 2025 winter term. Drawing from their own onboarding experiences, they explore the importance of effective onboarding in today’s dynamic, intergenerational workplaces.
By Adam Sigal and Jennifer St. Denis
Starting a new job can bring feelings of anticipation, excitement, and uncertainty. As co-op students beginning our career journeys, we’ve come to understand that onboarding is far more than just a formality. It’s the critical foundation for career ownership and professional growth.
Effective onboarding sets the tone and dynamic for how employees and employers engage, collaborate, and grow together, and how well the individual’s aspirations align with organizational goals. For students, it’s also a crucial bridge between academia and the professional world, offering more than just an introduction to a new work environment.
Unfortunately, busy employers often view onboarding as a long-term strategy and low-priority task in the short-term, overlooking its potential to transform a new hire’s experience, engagement, and productivity. In this blog, we explore how intentional onboarding can empower individuals to take proactive control of their careers while ensuring they contribute to their new employer’s success quickly.
Unpacking career ownership
Onboarding goes beyond quick introductions and first-day logistics. Done right, it’s an opportunity for employees to build confidence, develop new skills, and take ownership of their careers. Career ownership refers to an individual’s responsibility for actively managing their own career development, including setting goals, acquiring skills, making decisions, and seeking opportunities aligned with their personal and professional aspirations. It is one of five drivers shaping the Future of Work.
For co-op students, whether in the early stages of their career or navigating a career pivot, learning technical skills to succeed is only part of the challenge. Learning how to take responsibility for their own growth is equally, if not more, important.
As someone who has spent a significant amount of time in remote education settings, Adam knew his remote internship with Challenge Factory would feel somewhat familiar yet also come with challenges. In the absence of in-person interactions and casual office conversations, intentional effort to build connection is required from both him and his new colleagues. Cultivating this relationship-building skill is part of his career development.
Career ownership extends beyond the duration of any one job, including a co-op placement. The skills, experiences, and insights gained shape how students are able to approach future roles, build networks, and set long-term goals. Receiving strong onboarding helps co-op students recognize how to take responsibility for their growth while also creating a sense of belonging and purpose within the organization.
Navigating professional transitions
Onboarding isn’t just for co-op students and early-career employees. It’s also crucial in helping mid- and later-career professionals navigate transitions effectively and with confidence, especially during a career pivot or detour.
Career pivots and detours redefine an individual’s work, identity, and relationships within the workforce and labour market. Onboarding plays a pivotal role in easing this transition, serving as the bridge between where an employee has been and where they want to go, while providing clarity, purpose, and alignment with new goals.
Over time, Jennifer’s comfort in the restaurant industry became a safety net that no longer served her. She began to see that the professional growth she wanted wouldn’t come from staying in a familiar but stagnant role. She had to step outside her comfort zone to see that her career development could flourish—if she was willing to invest in learning new skills, even when it seemed daunting at first.
A well-designed onboarding program recognizes the unique circumstances of where the new hire is at in their career, and provides tailored resources to accelerate their specific learning curve. By addressing potential gaps and needs early on, onboarding transforms uncertainty into a chance for growth and success in the new role.
Crafting transformative onboarding experiences
In today’s world of work, employees are responsible for their own career, and linear career paths are becoming less and less common. But employers still play a key role in fostering their employees’ career ownership. A truly effective onboarding process balances structure with autonomy. It should:
- Provide practical training and tools for success
- Offer clear guidance while encouraging creative thinking
- Facilitate regular goal-setting and progress tracking
- Prioritize a sense of belonging and purpose within the organization
Employers who approach onboarding thoughtfully and proactively do more than integrate new team members. They also shape organizational culture, build a strong intergenerational workplace, and set the stage for long-term engagement, growth, and productivity. The best onboarding experiences recognize that career development is a lifelong and collaborative journey. By investing in intentional, supportive onboarding experiences, both employees and employers create opportunities for mutual success.
Adam Sigal is a Research Intern at Challenge Factory for the 2025 winter term. He’s a third-year undergraduate student at the University of Ottawa majoring in Economics and Public Policy.
Jennifer St. Denis is a Project Coordinator/Administrative Associate at Challenge Factory for the 2025 winter term. She’s pursuing an advanced diploma in Human Resource Management with Communication at Georgian College following a career pivot from the restaurant industry.