How Generative AI Makes Employee Onboarding Videos Easy

Employee onboarding videos set the tone for new members and their place in your organization. 

These videos go beyond mere introductions; they encapsulate the essence of your company's values, expectations, and operational procedures, making important information engaging and accessible. 

Visual content allows HR departments to create memorable experiences that new hires can connect with emotionally and cognitively from the jump.

Moreover, these videos serve as a bridge between the new employees and the company, fostering a sense of belonging and alignment with the company's mission. 

Traditional employee training is inefficient and can cost thousands of dollars. To help you streamline your company’s onboarding process, we’ve detailed why and how you should use generative AI in your video creation process.

We’ll also detail examples using AKOOL’s Realistic Avatar tool for employee onboarding videos, and a bit about AKOOL’s Video Translator tool.

Challenges of Traditional Video Creation Methods

Resource-Intensive Production

• Expertise Requirement: Each stage of production, from scriptwriting to post-production, requires specialized skills in video production, directing, and editing.
  This often means hiring external professionals or training internal teams, both of which can be costly and time-consuming.
  
• Equipment and Technology: High-quality video production demands professional-grade equipment such as cameras, lighting, and editing software, which represent a significant investment.
  
• Production Logistics: Organizing shoots involves logistical planning, including location scouting, scheduling with actors or presenters, and managing multiple revisions, which can extend timelines and complicate project management.

Lack of Flexibility and Scalability

• Content Updates: Traditional videos are static, making them difficult to update without complete reshoots or complex editing.
  In fast-paced industries, the need for frequent updates can render these videos obsolete quickly, leading to continuous reinvestment.
  
• Customization Challenges: Producing different versions of a video to address various roles or language needs is not only costly but also challenging to manage without compromising the consistency of the message across different versions.

Limited Personalization and Engagement

• Generic Content: Often, traditional onboarding videos are not personalized to individual viewer's roles, learning styles, or preferences, which can lead to lower engagement and retention of information.
  
• Cultural and Language Barriers: Without the capabilities to easily include multiple languages or cultural nuances, traditional videos may fail to connect effectively with diverse audiences, particularly in global organizations.

High Costs and Low ROI

• Initial and Ongoing Costs: The upfront costs of traditional video production are high, and when you factor in the need for updates and customizations, the return on investment can become increasingly unfavorable.
  
• Scalability Costs: Scaling traditional onboarding videos to a larger workforce or across multiple geographies often means exponential increases in costs, as each new video iteration might require the same amount of resources as the original.

Introducing Generative AI in Video Production

Generative AI is taking the world by storm with its applications in nearly all industries. Now, in the field of video production, particularly for tasks like creating employee training assets.

This form of artificial intelligence utilizes machine learning algorithms to generate realistic videos at break-neck speeds.

Now, there are a number of ways generative AI helps automate the employee onboarding video process while maintaining consistency and quality.

Automated Content Creation with Video Translator

• Multilingual Voiceover and Subtitles: For global companies, there are generative AI tools, such as AKOOL's Realistic Avatar and Video Translator, that enable the generation of voiceovers in various languages, making it possible to create onboarding videos that cater to an international workforce.
  This feature is important so that all employees, regardless of their native language, receive the same information in a format they understand.
  
• Seamless Translation Integration: AI video translator tools automatically translate existing video content, adding subtitles or dubbing in different languages without needing manual input for each translation.
  This streamlines the process of adapting videos for diverse audiences.

Customization and Engagement with Talking Avatars

• Personalized Avatar Interaction: You can create realistic avatars that can act as virtual presenters in onboarding videos.
  These avatars can be tailored to reflect the company's diversity or even to mimic actual team members, making the onboarding experience more relatable and engaging.
  
• Dynamic Content Delivery: Avatars can deliver content dynamically, with the ability to change presentation styles or information based on the specific audience watching the video.
  This flexibility enhances the personalization of the viewing experience.

Consistency and Quality Control

• High-Quality Visual and Audio Production: With AI video translator and avatar tools, you're able to produce high-quality audio and visuals, making sure that all onboarding materials not only look professional but are also effective in communication.
  
• Uniform Brand Representation: With generative AI, each video maintains consistent branding, style, and messaging, which is vital for instilling company values and policies uniformly across the entire workforce.

Generative AI not only streamlines the process but also ensures each video is tailored to its audience, making the onboarding process more engaging and effective. 

How to Streamline Employee Onboarding Video Production With Generative AI

You've already seen how generative AI could be beneficial to companies after they hire new employees.

You're probably wondering how you could streamline the onboarding process so your HR team could focus on other "more important" tasks.

Here are some ways AKOOL is making onboarding processes more engaging and efficient.

• Automated Face Swaps: Companies can use some of the best AI video face swap tools to effortlessly update the faces in their onboarding videos.
  This is particularly useful for keeping content current without the need for new shoots, for example, when a department head changes.
  
• Voice Cloning: This technology clones the voice of a selected individual to narrate the video content, creating a familiar auditory experience for new hires.
  This personalized touch helps maintain a connection with the company’s leadership, even if they are not physically present during the onboarding process.
  
• Lip Sync: In addition to voice cloning, AKOOL’s tools allow teams to sync lip movements with audio automatically. That means you can upload an image of an avatar and then upload audio—and AKOOL would handle the rest.
  
• Background Generation: Generative AI facilitates the creation or alteration of video backgrounds to suit different contexts or to align with updated branding guidelines.
  Whether it’s depicting a lively office scene or a calm, remote work setting, the background can be tailored to convey the right atmosphere.
  
• Integration with Learning Management Systems (LMS): Once these customized onboarding videos are created, they can be easily uploaded to a company's Learning Management System (LMS).
  This integration allows for seamless distribution and access, enabling new hires to view these personalized onboarding videos at their convenience as part of their training regimen. The LMS can track progress, ensuring that all relevant onboarding materials are completed in a timely manner.

What are the Benefits of Using Generative AI in Employee Onboarding Videos?

Every interaction that an employee has with your organization, starting from the point of application to their initial few months on the job, plays a significant role in shaping their employee experience and, consequently, has a direct impact on their overall work performance. 

By leveraging AI in the onboarding process, you can significantly minimize any discomforts that may arise during the transition phase of the employee to a new role in a new company, and make sure that the employee-employer relationship starts off on the right foot.

Scalability

One of the most compelling benefits of generative AI in onboarding is its scalability. As organizations grow and their workforce diversifies, the demands for onboarding also expand. Generative AI addresses this challenge by:

• Adaptable Content Creation: This allows for rapid adjustments in onboarding materials to include new roles, updated policies, and additional languages. This adaptability is important for keeping content relevant across all levels of a multinational corporation.
  
• Effortless Scaling: Whether you are scaling up in size or expanding across geographical boundaries, generative AI equips HR teams to handle increased demand without compromising the quality or personalization of onboarding content. Consistent Quality and Branding

Maintaining consistent quality and branding across all training materials can be challenging, especially for large organizations. With AI tools, such as AKOOL's Realistic Avatar, you'll gain benefits such as:

• Uniform Content Delivery: It ensures that every piece of onboarding material, from videos to interactive guides, adheres to the same high standards of quality and branding. This consistency is vital for presenting a unified brand image to new hires.
  
• High Production Values: Generative AI tools are equipped with advanced capabilities that ensure all generated content meets professional production standards. This high quality enhances the credibility of the onboarding process and can significantly improve the new hire's perception of the company.

Time-Saving

Generative AI significantly curtails the time required for administrative aspects of onboarding, streamlining processes that traditionally consume substantial HR effort. Here’s how it enhances efficiency and saves HR teams time:

• Automated Task Handling: Generative AI can automate the setup of employee profiles, distribution of compliance materials, and collection of initial feedback. This automation reduces the manual workload, allowing HR personnel to devote more time to strategic, value-adding activities.
  
• Integration and Systemization: By integrating with existing HR systems, AI can swiftly populate new hire data across platforms, ensuring that all relevant departments receive up-to-date information without delay. This seamless integration not only speeds up the process but also reduces the potential for human error.

Higher Engagement

A well-executed onboarding process significantly impacts employee retention and overall engagement. Generative AI plays a pivotal role in ensuring these outcomes:

• Enhanced Initial Experience: AI-driven onboarding helps create a positive first impression. By ensuring that new hires receive all the necessary information in a digestible and engaging format, AI helps them feel well-prepared and valued.
  
• Quick Productivity: Automated, personalized onboarding processes accelerate the time it takes for new hires to become productive members of the team.
  By providing them with the tools and information they need from day one, AI helps new hires feel competent and confident in their new roles.
  
• Emotional Connection: Through personalized content that might include welcome messages from future team members or leaders, AI helps forge an emotional bond between the new hires and the organization, which is highly important for long-term engagement.

Implementing Generative AI Tools into Employee Onboarding Videos

Now, when it comes to implementing generative AI tools into your existing onboarding workflow, there are two tools that'll help—AKOOL's Realistic Avatar and Video Translator.

With these two easy-to-use generative AI platforms, HR teams can seamlessly integrate them into their existing workflows.

Here are some quick steps to get started.

1) Define Clear Objectives

Start by establishing clear objectives for your onboarding videos. Determine the key messages you want to convey to new hires and the specific goals you aim to achieve, such as providing comprehensive information about company culture, policies, and job roles. 

With AKOOL's Realistic Avatar, you can create lifelike avatars that serve as virtual guides, enhancing the personalization and engagement of your onboarding materials.

2) Training for HR Teams

Provide comprehensive training for your HR teams on how to leverage AKOOL's Generative AI tools effectively. 

Offer hands-on workshops and tutorials to familiarize HR personnel with the features and functionalities of the Realistic Avatar and Video Translator.

Educate them on how to input information, customize avatars, translate video content, and manage the onboarding process using these tools.

Keep in mind, AKOOL’s platform is super simple to use—but it can be helpful to provide quick tutorials and provide HR teams with ideas on employee onboarding videos.

3) Uploading Videos to Learning Management Systems (LMS)

Once your onboarding videos are created using AKOOL's Generative AI tools, seamlessly upload them to your organization's LMS for easy access and distribution to new hires. 

Make sure there’s compatibility with common video formats and LMS platforms to facilitate smooth playback and integration with existing training modules. 

By centralizing your onboarding content within the LMS, you can track new hires' progress, monitor engagement metrics, and ensure consistent delivery of training materials across the organization.

4) Feedback Loop for Continuous Improvement

Establish a robust feedback loop to gather insights from new hires and HR staff regarding the effectiveness of the onboarding videos generated with AKOOL's tools. 

Encourage new hires to provide feedback on the clarity, relevance, and engagement level of the videos, allowing you to fine-tune future content based on their input. 

Additionally, solicit feedback from HR teams on their experience using the AI tools, identifying any challenges or areas for improvement in the onboarding process. Utilize this feedback to iteratively enhance the quality and impact of your onboarding materials over time.

Examples of AI Onboarding Videos 

Now, we've created a list of video examples so you can have some inspiration for your company's onboarding videos. Of course, with AKOOL's Realistic Avatar tool, you can customize the employee onboarding videos to your liking.

1) Dive into Company Culture and Vision

Video Title: "Discover Our Journey and Values"

This foundational video immerses new hires into the heart of the company’s culture and ethos. Featuring AI-generated avatars of company founders and key personnel, the video narrates the company's journey, its core values, and its vision for the future.

Why It's Helpful:

• Authentic Connection: The use of AI to recreate founder speeches adds a personal touch without their physical presence, making it feel both inspiring and welcoming.
  
• Visual Storytelling: Dynamic visuals and company milestones timeline help new hires visualize the growth and trajectory of the company, fostering a sense of pride and belonging.

2) Warm Welcome from the Team

Video Title: "Welcome Aboard: Meet The Team"

This video serves as a warm welcome to the company, featuring personalized greetings from team leaders and future colleagues. 

With AKOOL, all you would need to do is upload a high-quality photo or video and an audio script and you’re well on your way to streamlining this style of onboarding video.

Why It's Helpful:

• Immediate Engagement: Personalized messages from future teammates create an instant connection, making new hires feel valued from day one.
  
• Customizable Content: Easily updateable to include messages from new team leaders or changes within teams, ensuring the content remains relevant.

3) Clarity on Policies and Procedures

Video Title: "Guiding Principles: Our Policies and Your Responsibilities"

This clear and concise video outlines the key company policies, workplace etiquette, and legal compliance. It uses straightforward language and AI-generated scenarios to demonstrate dos and don'ts.

Why It's Helpful:

• Interactive Examples: AI scenarios depict common workplace situations, helping new hires understand practical applications of policies.
  
• Easy Updates: As policies evolve, the video content can be quickly updated to reflect changes, ensuring ongoing relevance.

4) Comprehensive Benefits Overview

Video Title: "Your Benefits and Perks with Us" 

Detail the comprehensive benefits package the company offers, from health insurance to professional development programs, using engaging visuals and voiceovers to explain each benefit clearly.

Why It's Helpful:

• Informative and Engaging: Breaks down complex information about benefits into digestible, easy-to-understand segments.
  
• Visual Aids: Uses graphs and icons to communicate the value of the benefits and perks effectively.

5) Team Dynamics and Collaboration

Video Title: "Collaborate and Thrive: Your Teamwork Guide"

This video introduces new hires to the team structure and collaboration tools they will be using. In these videos, you can feature a combination of a team leader's narration and real-world footage or screen grabs that illustrate team dynamics and collaborative successes.

Why It's Helpful:

• Direct Insights from Leadership: A team head discusses the key aspects of effective teamwork within the organization, providing a direct and personal connection to the company's collaborative culture.
  
  
• Real-World Examples: By incorporating video clips and images of actual team interactions and achievements, new hires can see practical examples of how teams operate and succeed in real scenarios.
  
  
• Encouraging Engagement: The video encourages new employees to envision themselves as integral parts of their teams, understanding their roles in achieving collective goals, and motivating them to engage actively from the start.

Tips for Creating Engaging Employee Onboarding Videos

Showcase Company Culture

Begin your onboarding videos with a vibrant introduction to your company's culture, values, and history. Use this opportunity to communicate the essence of what makes your organization unique. Include:

• Vision and Values: Clearly articulate the company's mission and the values that drive it. This helps new hires align their personal goals with the broader objectives of the organization.
  
• Leadership Introductions: Feature short messages from key leaders to build a sense of connection and familiarity. Hearing directly from upper management can make new employees feel welcomed and valued from the top down.

Engage with Creativity

Transform essential information into captivating content. To keep your new hires engaged:

• Dynamic Visuals: Incorporate lively graphics, animations, and even interactive elements that make learning about the company an enjoyable experience.
  
• Humor and Personality: Lighten the mood by infusing humor and a touch of personality that reflects the company's tone and style. This approach can make the content more relatable and less daunting for new hires.
  
• Real Employee Testimonials: Include clips of current employees sharing their experiences and tips. This peer perspective can make the organizational culture more tangible.

Conciseness is Key 

Respect your new hires’ time by keeping videos concise and to the point. Here's how to streamline your content:

• Short Segments: Keep videos under two minutes when possible. Focus on delivering clear and concise information to maintain engagement throughout.
  
  
• Segmented Content: Divide content into short, specific topics. This modular approach allows new hires to digest information at their own pace and revisit sections as needed without feeling overwhelmed.

Personalization Touches 

Personalizing content can significantly boost a new hire's connection to the organization:

• Role-Specific Content: Tailor portions of the video to address the specific roles and departments of the new hires, making the information more relevant and directly applicable to their job functions.
  
• AI-Generated Personalization: Utilize generative AI tools to create personalized greetings from the CEO or team leads. Modern AI tools can generate high-quality, personalized video content quickly and cost-effectively, making new hires feel especially welcome and valued.

Leverage Storytelling

Storytelling is a powerful method to make complex information more relatable and memorable. Here’s how to incorporate it into your onboarding videos:

• Narrative Flow: Structure your video like a story, with a beginning that introduces the company, a middle that covers essential information about working there, and an end that looks forward to the new hire's journey in the company. This narrative arc helps new hires follow along more easily and retain information.
  
• Relatable Scenarios: Use scenarios that depict typical day-to-day activities or common challenges and show how they are addressed. This not only prepares new hires for what to expect but also demonstrates proactive problem-solving within the company culture.

Include Call-to-Action (CTA) 

A clear call-to-action can guide new hires on what to do next after watching the onboarding video, which is crucial for a smooth transition into their new roles. Effective CTAs in onboarding videos can include:

• Next Steps Orientation: Direct new hires to the next steps they should take, such as completing specific forms, setting up their workstations, or scheduling meet-and-greets with their teams.
  
• Resource Links: Provide links to important documents, company portals, or additional training materials they may need to access. Embedding these directly in the video or the video description ensures they have all the resources at their fingertips.

Final Thoughts on How Generative AI Streamlines Employee Onboarding Videos

Employee onboarding videos play a critical role in seamlessly integrating new hires into a company's culture and mission. However, traditional video creation methods can be expensive, inflexible, and lack personalization. 

But don't worry! 

Generative AI software like AKOOL is the ultimate solution to overcome these challenges by automating content creation, streamlining translations, and generating personalized avatars. 

By using AKOOL’s Realistic Avatar and Video Translator, companies can revolutionize their onboarding processes, enhance employee experiences, and maximize their return on investment.

Ready to Simplify Employee Onboarding Videos?

AI tools like AKOOL’s Realistic Avatar and Video Translator make creating employee onboarding quick and easy. You can try AKOOL’s platform for free and start making effective onboarding videos—even if you don’t have any knowledge of generative AI.