Pre-boarding with impact: this is how your academy gives new employees a flying start

Introduction

Sometimes you get those questions that just make you happy as an LMS vendor! Like this one, from a customer who emailed us on a sunny day:

Hi Herman,
All well in sunny Hilversum?
We would like to ask your advice about the following problem in our organization. Maybe you have good ideas about this, or you know how other customers deal with this?

Management in our organization would like to register future employees to participate in training already, as soon as they know they are going to be employed at future date x. Our answer currently is that this cannot be done until an employee has a login account, nor do we occupy spots in advance. Consequence: Employee cannot learn anything before the employment contract officially starts and/or once employed he/she has to wait for next available group making it late to be trained.

As our smart LMS software vendor, can you help think of solutions to this?

Recognizable and relevant: pre-boarding via an LMS is not an extra luxury, it is essential for organizations in healthcare and education where speed and engagement are crucial. In this blog we dive in - with practical options, critical comments and an in-depth discussion for AFAS users.

1. Why pre-boarding through an LMS is a smart move

Pre-boarding includes all activities before Day 1, from sending login information to getting acquainted with the team culture. It helps to reduce stress and increase engagement. And the beauty: people are already forming impressions before their first day of work, a good chance to influence them positively.

For L&D within healthcare and education, this means:

• Faster onboarding: new employees can already get started with training modules, familiarization or compliance.
• Stronger psychological bonding: you show that you see them and welcome them.
• Consistency and scalability: with your LMS, you work out a uniform inflow, without reliance on separate emails or Excel lists.

2. How to arrange this? 3 options - with and without AFAS

A. Manual account creation

What: Create a temporary account (for example, with private email because a business account has not yet been created) before Day 1.

Benefits

• Few technical barriers, immediately deployable.

Cons

• Progress must be transferred when hired.
• Duplicate accounts can cause cost and hassle.
• Requires periodic cleanup (e.g. Quarterly or monthly cleanup routines).

Critical note:
Work with set times (e.g., last day of the month) when you check and file pre-boarding accounts, and make that a team responsibility (HR or L&D).

B. Self-registration via a secret catalog link

What: Share a non-public catalog link, then someone registers themselves.

Benefits

• Automation of enrollment.
• Flexible and no account management by admin.

Cons

• Monitoring is necessary to prevent "ghost registrations.
• Registrations can remain in place in case of failure.

Critical note:
Set up a monitoring process. Consider automatic e-mail reminders and a clean-up routine (e.g. quarterly) for unused applications. Make progress transparent to HR or L&D.

C. Automated through AFAS (recommended option).

What: Use AFAS to enter pre-hires before contract start with temporary email, then your Procademyconnector handles it.

How does it work?

1. HR creates the employee in AFAS before the start date and uses a private address.
2. A function field (e.g., "pre-boarder") marks this for Procademy.
3. Procademy receives the data automatically and provides account + learning path.
4. When officially hired, change the email address in AFAS so that all progress is maintained, and the employee continues learning within the same account in Procademy.

Benefits

• Fully automated.
• Progress is maintained in transition.
• Insight and reporting in one system.

Cons & Attention

• AFAS setup required: profile, workflow, connector.
• HR/IT alignment needed - schedule, email fields, pre-hire recognition.

3. Getting started: here's how to get started

1. Know what you want to achieve: focus on clarity, stress reduction and team familiarity
2. Select your approach: manual, self-service, or AFAS-automated. Determine your risk and management balance.
3. Create a cleanup schedule (manual options): for example, last Friday of each month.
4. Set up self-service: create subtle reminders, clear portal texts.
5. Walk through AFAS flow:
   • Set up an onboarding profile based on old hiring profiles
   • Set up scripts for required documents.
   • Make sure reminders are set up for incomplete files
   • Conduct a phased pilot - one department first .
   • Optimize portal text & explanation for users .
6. Measure success factors: time to first task, completion before day 1, drop-out in pre-boarding vs. contract extension.

4. Practical tips for OR WITH AFAS linkage.

• Mark 'pre-boarding' in AFAS with a clear field (text selectable) so that Procademy automatically links the correct pathways.
• AFAS - Procademy link: make sure the pre-hires are also included in the connector towards Procadmey
• Set up graphs in your LMS dashboard: number started, completed, before start, open after start.
• Keep thinking about culture: introduce new employees virtually (e.g., through short videos),
• Keep evaluating: increase conversion in your pre-boarding process - timely intervention reduces drop-out.

5.In conclusion

Pre-boarding is not an extra, it is a strategic must in the battle for talent. Whether you start with a simple manual variant or opt for a fully automated AFAS link, with a cleverly designed LMS you give your new employees a head start - and yourself time and overview.

Want to know what's possible within your healthcare or educational organization? We are happy to discuss this with you, live or via demo. Together we make sure that your pre-boarding does not remain a loose puzzle, but a solid process - focused on impact, involvement and growth.

‍