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Setting your new hires up for success can often be as simple as updating and finetuning your onboarding process. All too frequently onboarding agendas become out of date, and this can happen more quickly than you might think. If, for example, company information, new employee benefits and branding documents are not diligently and consistently updated, then your new employee will have an outdated understanding of who you are as a business today. We believe that possessing a well-rounded onboarding process can be the key to the early success of any new hire.
Whether you’re revising your existing new hire checklist, or starting from scratch, know that you’re doing the best for your new employees and managers by prioritising them from the get-go. We’ve compiled an essential checklist that you can hand out to various members of your organisation.
New hire checklist
Send offer letter and contract: Before the new employee starts, your HR lead will need to send out an offer letter and contract. This includes vital information such as the start date, benefits, schedule, salary and responsibilities. We suggest enabling e-signatures on all electronic documents as it makes the process much more efficient and simpler. Adobe offers Enterprise plans with various bonus capabilities, including language customisation, mobile scan and sign and record and audit trail keeping.
Send a welcome email: It’s good practice to send a welcome email to your new hire, detailing what they can expect from their first day. Liaise with the HR department for relevant training material and your accounts department for any necessary payment information and include this in the email. It’s also useful to include any information the employee may need to access the premises here, such as a building code.
Collect devices from IT department: Ensure that all necessary electronic devices are properly set up and ready to go for the employee’s start date. It can waste valuable learning time if a laptop or company phone isn’t working as it should be. This also goes for the employee’s monitor and tech accessories at their desk too. Dual monitor screens should both be functioning; any necessary software and security features should be installed, and updates should be complete.
Schedule an employee orientation in the calendar: Employee orientations are great if more than one hire is starting on the same day. They can include a little bit about the history and values of the company, some ice breaker activities and discussions about job responsibilities. You can even tie in a tour of the premises here.
Assign a mentor: Whether you’d like a manager to mentor your new hire, or perhaps an employee looking to impress, you should ensure that whoever you choose will gel with the new hire. Mentors are great for making sure new hires feel welcomed, that they’re introduced to everyone on their team and that they feel looked after when learning the ropes.
Schedule regular check-ins: We recommend weekly catchups between mentors and employees for as long as possible. In addition to this, you can schedule 30-, 60- and 90-day check-ins to keep track of progress and collect any feedback.
Depending on your industry, this checklist may vary slightly but it’s a good foundation to start with. We recommend collecting feedback from new starters, mentors and anyone else in your company so that you can continue to improve and personalise the onboarding process to your organisation.
EZRA’s onboarding advice
Aside from a new hire employee checklist, there’s a few other important things you should consider before you start the onboarding process. For example, how can you make things exciting on the first day? We can recommend a couple ideas. How about scheduling a lunch for your new hire and their mentor? Or, sending out a companywide welcome email introducing the new recruit?
Additionally, your new employee should feel comfortable on their first day. Try not to speed through the learning process too quickly, allow them ample time to soak everything up. Initially, the volume of information will be very intimidating, so ensuring they know that they’re allowed to ask questions and make mistakes is crucial. Many companies will dedicate the probationary period to learning and development, so that when/if the employee passes, they’re properly prepared for a long and fruitful career with you.
To achieve that transformative leap in leadership and team integration you should strive for, consider EZRA's Management Coaching. Our tailor-made programmes to inspire, mentor and guide your managers in the onboarding process, giving your new hires the best chance at excellence.