onboarding

noun

on·​board·​ing ˈȯn-ˌbȯr-diŋ 

ˈän-

1

: the act or process of orienting and training a new employee

… good onboarding leads to higher employee engagement and greater retention rates.

—Joyce E. A. Russell

2

: the act or process of familiarizing a new customer with one's products or services

Customer onboarding primarily involves answering customers' questions and addressing their concerns so they have a smooth, positive experience with your product or service.

—Aaron Agius

3

: the act or process of converting data to digital form

While many retailers are coming to terms with the need for data onboarding and management, there is still a massive chasm between collecting data and using it to the fullest advantage.

—Larisa Bedgood

onboard

ˈȯn-ˌbȯrd 

ˈän-

transitive verb

onboarded; onboarding

The workflow chart that was pinned to the wall was an excellent orientation for me, as a new employee, and anyone else being onboarded.

—Jill Duffy

It's easy to forget how difficult hiring people is and getting them onboarded and effective in their job.

—Sue Gilbert

Once a customer is onboarded, they can immediately start using the account for remittance payments …

—Richard Gluyas

Examples of onboarding in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

One onboarding step was phrased so oddly that two teams interpreted it in opposite ways. —Michael Goshka, Forbes.com, 12 June 2026

Seller onboarding is starting immediately, giving retailers a head start to secure visibility before the platform officially goes live for consumers in the fourth quarter of 2026. —Arthur Zaczkiewicz, Footwear News, 11 June 2026

One employee used Claude to build a script that assembles and creates onboarding materials, saving over 20 minutes per new customer. —Sage Lazzaro, Fortune, 9 June 2026

But some of the most meaningful long-term gains may emerge more quietly through better dispatch systems, faster hiring pipelines, smoother onboarding, safer communications, clearer family updates, and more reliable daily transportation service. —Malana Vantyler, USA Today, 2 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1988, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for onboarding

• according
• affording
• awarding
• keyboarding
• recording
• rewarding
• skateboarding
• snowboarding
• boarding
• cording
• fording
• hoarding