Tenneco Scales Employee Onboarding Globally

Tenneco pioneers technologies for cleaner, safer and smoother transportation, yet it used a manual onboarding process that was time-consuming, costly, and inconsistent. The organization sought an onboarding system to support its operational excellence and worldwide presence.

SilkRoad software has dramatically decreased onboarding costs and time spent per hire—while increasing new hire satisfaction throughout the company’s global network of offices and manufacturing facilities.

Background

Tenneco is one of the world’s largest designers, manufacturers and distributors of solutions for the automotive and commercial vehicle original equipment markets and the aftermarket. Globally, the company has 89 manufacturing facilities and 14 engineering centers on six continents, and 100 countries that it services. The organization has 355 hiring managers and 47 HR managers— spread across a vast geography of different languages and cultures. Annually, Tenneco hires hundreds of employees to fill a wide variety of roles—from design, manufacturing and operations, to finance, administration and management.

Tenneco wanted a new employee onboarding system that would reflect its technical prowess and worldwide reputation. Yet, their older, inefficient onboarding process was burdensome for new hires, HR, and managers. New hires would typically spend hours reading and signing forms, which were routed and collected, then filed or scanned. Moreover, the process varied from location to location; new hires did not share a common experience, and first day expectations were communicated inconsistently.

The company selected a package of SilkRoad Recruiting and SilkRoad’s Onboarding.

Speed, Efficiency, And Cost Savings

The SilkRoad Onboarding solution has resulted in significant time and cost savings for Tenneco. No longer does HR spend time ensuring that employees have signed all paperwork, nor do new hires sit for hours, signing stacks of paper forms; now most forms are electronic. Managers no longer spend time on the phone, trying to determine when an employee is ready for work; rather, they receive system notifications after the new employee has completed all pre-hire forms.

After the first year of using SilkRoad Onboarding software, the HR team estimated a savings of $250,000 to the company globally. The onboarding process is now 95% paperless, eliminating waste and cost. In addition, the time that a hire spends signing paper forms has dropped from 4 hours to .5 hours—all hours that can be more productively spent adapting to the new work environment.

One Brand, Localized Web Portals

Tenneco has an extraordinary brand that conveys the company vision, values and approach to business. That brand has been incorporated into SilkRoad Onboarding web portals to help reinforce new employees’ understanding of the organization. Moreover, the portals also carry standard corporate information that an employee might have forgotten during orientation, such as questions about the 401K plan or payroll schedule. All critical information is stored in one place, thus eliminating questions for managers and relieving any anxiety the employee might have.

What’s more, Tenneco’s employee portals are customized for each facility or engineering center. A new hire in Grass Lake, Michigan will find the same strong Tenneco brand as an employee in Shanghai, China or Buenos Aires, Argentina. Yet, the content has been localized to make the employee aware of hours of operation, nearby restaurants, amenities, and other information. Best of all, the SilkRoad Onboarding software has enabled Tenneco to deliver content in the language of the new hire helping to bring employees up to speed quickly.

Increased Organizational Alignment, New Hire Satisfaction

The SilkRoad Onboarding system has helped create greater alignment across the entire Tenneco organization – from the hiring manager and HR, to other departments, such as Facilities. One system ensures all parties are accountable and aware of the roles they play in the onboarding process.

The software has also helped Tenneco fill an important piece of the onboarding puzzle: new hire satisfaction. The company surveys new hires about their onboarding experience after twenty days on the job. Before adopting SilkRoad Onboarding, the scores were below average; now the company receives high marks for its organized, clear-cut process.

Last but not least, Tenneco’s onboarding activity has evolved from being tactical to strategic, supporting the company’s core values of teamwork, innovation and transparency. The company now quickly transforms enthusiastic new hires into dedicated employees who are prepared to help realize the company vision: pioneering global ideas for cleaner, quieter, smoother and safer transportation.

Many Countries And Locations: One Onboarding Solution

Tenneco global locations appreciate the SilkRoad Onboarding user portal. It is customized for each location to show restaurants, health clubs, attractions, and “need to know” company information. Best of all, the portal is translated into the language of the new hire, so that the person comes up to speed quickly.