For an electronics manufacturer, one in seven signed hires simply never showed up on day one. We built a pre-boarding drip — team intros, first-week plans, paperwork nudges over WhatsApp — with silence flags that tell HR exactly who needs a call.
Typical results
3%
First-day no-shows, from 15%
96%
Paperwork done before day one
6
Touchpoints per hire
9
At-risk hires saved this year
Figures reflect typical results for this kind of automation.
The challenge
Production hires signed offers, then waited out two- to four-week notice periods in total silence. By start day, 15% had taken counteroffers or another job — nobody knew until the shift began short. Every no-show meant a restarted search, eleven of them a quarter, and paperwork arrived complete for barely half of those who did show.
Before and after
First-day no-shows
−80%Paperwork complete before day one
+92%Restarted searches per quarter
−82%The automation
We wired the ATS to a WhatsApp drip that starts the moment an offer is signed. Six touchpoints carry the hire to day one: a welcome from the manager, a team intro, the first-week plan, site logistics, and paperwork nudges until every form is in. The flow watches engagement — two ignored messages trip a risk flag and a same-day call task for HR — and the day before start, hire, manager, and security get final confirmations.
How it works
- 01
Signature starts the clock
A signed offer in the ATS spawns a touchpoint schedule mapped to the start date.
- 02
Warm drip
Manager welcome, team intro, first-week plan and site logistics arrive on WhatsApp, well spaced.
- 03
Paperwork nudges
Missing forms and documents are chased automatically until everything is in before day one.
- 04
Silence detection
Two ignored messages trip a risk flag and a same-day call task for HR.
- 05
Day-one ready
The day before start, the hire, the manager and site security all get final confirmations.
Starts from
- Signed offers
- Start dates
Delivers
- WhatsApp welcome drip
- Paperwork nudges
- Ghosting risk flags
The impact
First-day no-shows fall from 15% to 3%, an 80% drop, and restarted searches go from eleven a quarter to two. Paperwork arrives complete for 96% of hires before day one, and a well-timed call triggered by the risk flag regularly wins back wavering candidates.
Questions about this automation
What starts the pre-boarding messages, and what do they include?
A signed offer in the ATS starts a schedule of messages mapped back from the start date. A typical sequence is a manager welcome, a team introduction, the first-week plan, site logistics such as parking and shift times, and reminders for any missing forms. Timing adapts to short or long notice periods.
How does the automation spot a new hire who might not show up?
It tracks whether each WhatsApp message is read and whether forms are being completed. When two messages in a row go unanswered, the hire is flagged as a risk and HR gets a same-day call task with the full message history, so a person can check in well before the start date.
Can the paperwork be collected through the same flow?
Yes. Each nudge links to the missing form or document upload, and the automation checks the HR system for what has arrived before sending the next reminder. Once everything is in, the nudges stop. The day before start, the hire, the manager and site security each get a final confirmation.