#RushTok Proves Us Right: Onboarding Needs Work

Sisters, sisters, there were never such devoted sisters.

If you've been on TikTok or social media during the month of August, you've probably stumbled across #RushTok. RushTok is a look inside the rush process at large U.S. colleges and universities. It draws billions of views and likes, turning sorority recruitment into an overload of social media content. The trend exploded in 2021 when University of Alabama students started documenting their recruitment experiences in real-time. The hashtag #alabamarush has more than 28 million views on TikTok, and that's one university.

What started as college students sharing their outfit-of-the-day posts and recruitment prep has turned into a cultural phenomenon. Rush is typically a 10-day event where prospects try out sororities through rounds of activities, outfits and etiquette, and TikTokers document every day of it. We're talking outfit planning sessions, choreographed dances, post-party debriefs, and reactions to bid day results. Then there’s the balloons.

It's flash, chaos, somewhat foreign to anyone that wasn’t in “Greek life”, full of symbols and insider terms, money, ambition, dreams made and crushed at once. For me, it’s a perfect analogy for what? Yep, employee onboarding programs!

Imagine: It’s your first day at your first big-kid job. You show up on time, get passed around for quick intros, get a laptop that may or may not work, sit through 14 presentations you’ve forgotten by noon, and then get thrown smack into the deep end. Meanwhile, your manager (if you’ve met them) is nowhere to be found and you had to ask someone where the restroom is. Come on, these people are busy! What did you expect?

#RushTok makes a very different promise. While Greek organizations treat Rush like it's make-or-break for both the individual, this is also about the individual organizations. They've figured out that if new members don't feel connected and informed from day one, they're going to bail. Corporate America, on the other hand, seems to operate under the assumption that people will just figure it out eventually because, hey! They're getting paid!

To find out if we were right, we found some folks that have moved on from #greeklife to #worklife. They are men and women who have successfully rushed and went on to onboard at a few companies across multiple industries. What they told us was that yep, for the most part, the onboarding experience with their sisters and brothers was superior to the ones they had at their jobs.

Mentorship:

“Having a Big Sis…I could ask my big questions, go to person for all these new things happening without feeling silly.”

“The built-in systems of mentorship are probably the most noticeable and seemingly intentional difference between them.”

“I quit the fraternity briefly, and pairing me with a mentor brought me back and provided me with a resource who helped me acclimate to the organization.  The fraternity disregarded several traditions around pledge dads to ensure I had the right mentor.”

Knowledge Share:

“Knowing the chants, the Greek alphabet, the traditions of your sorority bonded you together. Took down walls easier.”

“The fraternity heavily emphasized the values during new member education and required memorization.  There were no stated values at my first adult job - a government agency.”

Development & Growth Opportunities:

“I think the process being a positive one overall encouraged me to become more involved in leadership as I progressed through the years. I maintained an executive level role in different positions because I cared enough to want to make the experience positive for those coming up after me.”

“We had annual elections and nominations. Both serious for leadership and more casual that were more like volunteer roles. But they were clear and the opportunity to do so was given to all, with the process being transparent to all.”

Were the Rules/Policies Clear?

“Not for me.  I didn't pick up on the rules or even the social norms until my second year.  There can be a learning curve. But there was zero onboarding for policies at my first job.”

“I understand the Greek values better than I understand the values at any job I’ve had.”

What Confirmed You Made the Right Choice?

“Definitely the feeling of unity. Each individual reflecting the same values that brought them together in the first place as well as representation: bringing people from different places, interests, backgrounds together by choice.”

“It felt like narrowing the ocean down to a pond in a huge university system.”

We got a lot of text messages and commentary from former Greeks far and wide.

Greek organizations have some advantages here, with small groups, shared living situations, and members who are the same age going through similar life experiences. But that doesn't excuse what’s happening in some companies, many of whom have the resources and professional expertise to build a great experience.

If a group of 20-year-olds can figure out how to make new people feel welcomed, valued, and prepared to contribute, there's really no excuse for the Fortune 500.

Interestingly, the viral nature of RushTok actually proves the point about Greek life's superior onboarding approach. The reason these videos are so compelling to watch is because they showcase a system that's incredibly intentional about community building, tradition, and helping people find their place. It's just that now millions of people get to watch the process unfold in real-time.