Your best new hire quit on day 119. But another is still there on day 121. Here’s why that timing isn’t coincidental.

It’s not just about the job description or your onboarding checklist. The truth is, it all comes down to attachment, that vital emotional bond formed during the first 120 days on the job.

In a recent webinar, TalentRight’s HR and Recruitment leads joined forces with attachment specialist Selena Sork to unpack how employee attachment can make or break your recruitment ROI. Here’s what you need to know.

The One Factor You’re Not Measuring (But Should Be)

Attachment is the strength of emotional connection formed between a new employee and your workplace. It hinges on four key perceptions:

• Security
• Trust and Value
• Acceptance
• Belonging

These aren’t vague concepts, they’re measurable. And they shape how long someone stays, how hard they try and whether they truly integrate into your culture.

Research shows that over 80% of a new hire’s attachment is shaped by their direct manager. If that relationship isn’t right, the whole onboarding process can unravel.

“The manager has the greatest influence over that strength of bond, so think of them as your primary carer,” Serena explains.

The 120-Day Countdown

So how long is this attachment period? Six months? A year? Serena’s analysis has made this very clear:

“The critical attachment period, it’s actually 120 days.”

That’s right. You have just 120 days to get this right. To help you get there, Talent Right uses a science-backed tool, the Employee Attachment Inventory (EAI), to measure new hire attachment on day 90, with a 30-day window to address any gaps.

Attachment scores help you:

• Catch early signs of disengagement
• Understand what’s working (and what’s not) in onboarding
• Enable meaningful conversations between managers and new hires
• Avoid costly early attrition (which can average $100,000 per lost hire)

Inside the Employee Mindset

The EAI measures 20 environmental drivers across your organisation, from orientation and team culture to leadership visibility and work-life integration. 

“We ask five questions or five statements per driver from strongly disagree to strongly agree, and this provides us with an opportunity to identify what’s high in attachment.”

These insights help pinpoint exactly where the experience is falling short.

“We actually give a score for each of these 20 drivers. It provides an opportunity for the manager to identify what’s going on for that individual and where I really need to focus in terms of that discussion,” Serena adds.

To give you an example, a new hire was consistently scoring low on attachment drivers like physical work environment, team culture and co-worker connection. On the surface, nothing seemed wrong. Then, the manager looked closer.

The issue? The new hire had been seated away from their team. While the company technically had a hot-desking setup, everyone else had unofficially claimed regular spots, leaving the new team member isolated.

No one had thought to say, “Do you want to move in with us?”

It might seem like a small oversight, but for someone new, it was a dealbreaker in the making.

Once the issue was uncovered through the attachment survey, the manager took immediate action. They physically moved a desk into the team’s area, creating a stronger sense of inclusion and connection, before it became a problem.

It’s often the small things that matter most but this would have been easily missed without the EAI.

Where the Data Gets Personal

The Employee Attachment Inventory isn’t just data, it’s a catalyst for real conversations. Each report guides managers through focused, actionable discussions with their new team member.

“The report you get back is a consultative report as well, so it provides some really insightful questions.”

This gives the line manager an opportunity to have “a meaningful conversation using the feedback in the data to unpack what’s been going on,” providing a clear way forward with your new employee. 

Our Edge, Your Retention

This attachment measure is now part of Talent Right’s premium recruitment package. Why? Because our goal isn’t to fill seats. It’s to help our clients hire well and keep great people performing.

Already hired someone? You can still access this tool through Talent Right’s HR services.

Things to Remember:

• The first 120 days are critical to long-term retention and performance.
• Over 80% of attachment comes down to the direct manager.
• Attachment is measurable and manageable.
• Small oversights can become major deal breakers.
• Honest, structured conversations make the biggest difference.

Ready to Strengthen Your New Hires’ Attachment?

Stop losing great people to bad first impressions. To learn how the Employee Attachment Inventory can help your team, reach out to the Talent Right team today.