Employee Onboarding Videos: What to Include and What Actually Works

Most employee onboarding videos are recorded policy briefings with a slide deck behind them. They get made once, uploaded to the LMS, and watched, if they are watched at all, at half attention while a new hire waits for them to end. That is not necessarily a production problem. It is a planning problem, and it happens when nobody separates what the video is trying to do from what a document could have handled just as well.

This guide covers what actually belongs in an onboarding video, the formats worth considering before production begins, and two onboarding video examples from RaffertyWeiss Media's own work. It also covers what to consider when developing an onboarding video script, common production mistakes, and when it makes sense to record internally versus bringing in a video production company.

What an employee onboarding video is actually for

An employee onboarding video has two distinct jobs: help a new hire feel confident about joining the organization and communicate practical information consistently. Separating those purposes makes it easier to decide what belongs in the video and what should remain in a document or other training material.

The first job is the welcome. An onboarding welcome video can introduce the organization, its culture, and the people a new hire will work with. A leadership message or team introduction can speak directly to the new hire, with the focus on tone, pacing, and a clear introduction rather than loading the video with policies and procedures.

The second job is practical. An onboarding video can communicate policies, systems, and procedures so each new hire receives the same information. This can include compliance or safety orientation, software walkthroughs, and other role-specific training content. Clear structure, accurate captions, and content that can be reused or updated matter here.

Problems arise when one video tries to perform both jobs at once. A compliance briefing presented as a "welcome to the team" video can lose the distinction between an introduction and a training module. Separating those purposes, even across short videos, gives each piece a clearer role in the onboarding process.

The main types of onboarding video

Most onboarding programs use a mix of five video formats. The right combination depends on what a new hire needs to understand before day one and what they will need to reference after they start.

Welcome and culture video. An onboarding welcome video introduces the organization, its culture, and the people behind the work. A leadership message or team introduction can give new hires a clear sense of who they are joining without turning the video into a policy briefing.

Role-specific and team introduction video. This format introduces the people and responsibilities connected to a new hire's role. It can show how the position fits within a department and give employees context before they begin working with their team.

Policy, compliance, and safety orientation. These videos communicate policies, compliance requirements, and safety procedures that need to remain accurate and consistent across the workforce. RaffertyWeiss Media produces training content with closed captioning, audio description, and accessible file formats when accessibility requirements apply.

Policy, compliance, and safety orientation. These videos communicate policies, compliance requirements, and safety procedures that need to remain accurate and consistent across the workforce. RaffertyWeiss Media produces this content in both live-action and animated formats, and Grace Hill's Comments & Compliments training is one example. Closed captioning, audio description, and accessible file formats can also be included when accessibility requirements apply.

Systems and software walkthrough. A screen-based walkthrough can show new hires how to use the systems they will encounter in their role. RaffertyWeiss Media's eLearning production includes graphics-driven presentations, subject matter expert interviews, animation, on-camera hosts, and role-playing scenarios, so the production approach can match the training objective rather than forcing every topic into the same format.

Facilities and workplace orientation. This format covers the physical details a new hire needs to navigate the workplace, such as where to report, how to access the building, and where key spaces are located. It is most useful when those details are important to the employee's first days on site.

Onboarding video examples worth learning from

It is easier to see what works with real projects than hypotheticals. Two RaffertyWeiss Media productions show how an onboarding or refresher video can stay focused on a defined training objective.

Amtrak Ambassador Refresher Training. The training explains how ambassadors are activated for planned events and unplanned incidents. It covers event notifications, shift selection, reporting to the event supervisor, pre-shift briefings, and Amtrak's communicator system, then uses a knowledge check to reinforce how ambassadors are notified about an incident.

Workplace Harassment Refresher Training: Comments & Compliments. Produced for Grace Hill using the animated format described above, this training focuses specifically on comments and compliments in the context of workplace harassment. Keeping the subject narrow gives the video a clear training purpose, rather than asking one module to cover an entire workplace harassment program.

These examples show a practical approach to onboarding video production: define the information employees need, keep the content within that scope, and use the format to support the training objective.

What belongs in the script

Start with the length the topic actually needs. A short onboarding video can focus on one task, policy, or introduction without combining unrelated information. If a subject requires a longer explanation, divide it into separate segments so each video has a clear training objective.

Cut information that belongs in a written policy or reference document. Use video for demonstrations, explanations, interviews, and context. For example, a new hire may watch a video explaining how to use an internal software system, while detailed policy language remains in the written policy they can reference later.

Keep one message per segment. A segment that introduces a team, explains a compliance policy, and demonstrates an internal software system has three different jobs. RaffertyWeiss Media's training work includes subject matter expert interviews, on-camera hosts, animation, and role-playing scenarios, so the production approach can match the subject being taught.

End with a specific call to action. Tell the new hire what to do after watching, such as reviewing a policy, completing a required form, or logging into a system. For a software walkthrough, that might mean asking the employee to log in and complete the demonstrated task. For a policy video, it could mean directing the employee to review the related written policy or complete the required training step.

The mistakes that make onboarding video fail

Trying to cover everything in one video. An onboarding video can become difficult to follow when it combines a welcome message, policy information, software instructions, team introductions, and workplace orientation in the same piece. Separating those subjects into focused videos gives each one a defined purpose and makes it easier to revise one part of the onboarding content without reworking everything.

Filming the executive welcome and stopping there. A leadership message can introduce the organization and set the tone for a new hire's arrival, but it does not cover the practical information employees need to get started. An onboarding program may also require separate content for policies, team introductions, software walkthroughs, or workplace procedures.

Leaving out captions. Captions are an important accessibility feature for onboarding and training videos. RaffertyWeiss Media's training work includes closed captioning, as well as audio description and accessible PDF transcripts, when those requirements apply.

Never updating the video. An onboarding video can become inaccurate when it shows a workplace, team, policy, or software system that has changed. Review the video when the information it presents changes, and update the affected content so new hires receive current instructions.

Making it internally versus hiring a production company

Internal recording is a reasonable choice for some onboarding content. A team introduction, informal welcome from a manager, or simple software walkthrough can work well with a laptop camera or phone. It can also make sense when the information changes often and the team needs to replace short videos without scheduling a full production.

Hiring a production company becomes more useful when accessibility, technical requirements, or review processes matter. RaffertyWeiss Media has more than 25 years of video production experience and produces training and eLearning content that can include closed captioning, audio description, accessible PDF transcripts, scripting, and LMS-ready delivery. For onboarding content that needs to meet accessibility requirements or go through a formal review process, that production experience can take more work off the internal team.

For organizations weighing that decision, it helps to look at what eLearning and corporate training video production involves before choosing an approach. For welcome and culture content that does not need to live in an LMS, corporate video production may be the better fit.

Frequently asked questions