Best Practices for Employee Onboarding

Imagine it’s your first day at a new job. You arrive at an office where no one seems to be expecting you. After locating your workstation, you realize that no one has shown you how to log into your computer or get an outside line on your phone. You do not have a clear idea of what you are expected to do first in your new job. Your supervisor is nowhere to be found, and you are starting to question your decision to accept this position.

As the above scenario suggests, an organization never gets a second chance to make a first impression with its new hires. Investing in employee onboarding ensures that an organization is prepared for and committed to positioning its new hires for success in their new roles.

Effective employee onboarding serves three interrelated purposes. First, it ensures that the new hire feels welcomed, comfortable, prepared, and supported. In turn, this leads to the new hire’s ability to make an impact within the organization, both immediately and over time. Finally, employee success leads to satisfaction and retention, which allows the organization to continue to meet its mission.

In order to position a new hire for success, it is important that an organization prepares in advance and continues to support a new hire throughout the first several months (and beyond). This article explores some tried and true best practices for employee onboarding procedures.

Before the First Day
Preparing for a new hire’s start date is the first step of ensuring effective onboarding. Start by completing an agenda for the first week on the job. As part of the agenda, schedule times for the new hire to meet with key staff members. Provide staff members with the new employee’s resume and job description, and advise them to follow a meeting format that includes sharing a description of their own position, how their role interacts with that of the new hire, and how they might expect to work together in the future. This is also a good time to assign a mentor or buddy to the new hire as an immediate resource for any questions, help them build a network, educate them on resources, and give key information about organizational culture and goals.

Next, create a comfortable workstation for the new hire. Stock his or her workstation with the tools needed to hit the ground running, such as paper, pens, computer, phone, keys, and business cards. Make sure that voicemail and email accounts are set up. Leave a copy of an organization chart, staff list and phone directory on the new hire’s desk. If your organization has a new employee handbook, leave this on the desk as well. To really impress people on their first day, add any branded collateral that you can spare ‘ a logo backpack, hat, T-shirt or mug.

Finally, make sure all administrative forms–such as employment, direct deposit, and benefits–are ready to be completed on day one.

The First Day
The first day of a new job can rattle the nerves of even the most experienced professional. The better prepared you are to welcome the new hire on his or her first day, the easier this transition will be for everyone.

Schedule a particular staff member to be available to greet the new employee and give an office tour. During the office tour, introduce the new hire to all staff members as well as pointing out the copy machine, mail room, employee mailboxes, lunch room, and restrooms. Remember that new hires are asked to absorb a lot of information in a short amount of time, so they will likely have questions about these things later.
Balance the first day schedule between orientation, meetings, and less formal gatherings. Arrange for the new hire to be treated to lunch on the first day by a group of staff members.

Schedule a meeting with the employee’s supervisor for the first afternoon. During this meeting, the supervisor should review the responsibilities of the position and give an overview of what the first 30-90 days in the position will look like.

During the First Week
While the first day entails presenting a good deal of information to the new hire, the first week focuses on the exchange between the new hire and other staff members, primarily with his or her supervisor and/or direct reports.

During the first week, the supervisor and new hire should meet to discuss desired management style and information about typical processes, such as how decisions are made. This is also the time to agree on expectations and create a timeline for deliverables.

If in a supervisory role, ensure that the new hire meets with any direct reports one-on-one and as a group within the first week. These meetings will help build the new team, provide context and orientation towards the department/team, and allow the new hire to get a sense of the work style of each team member.

It is also important for the new hire to interact with other staff that may not be on his or her immediate team. Schedule at least one meeting set up per day with different staff members. This gives the new hire time to learn about the whole organization from many different perspectives and to create new relationships with key staff members.

In addition to interacting with internal staff, if it is appropriate for their role, ensure that the new hire is scheduled to meet in person with any necessary partners, funders, Board members or other constituents within the first month. Encourage new hires to notify their personal and professional contacts of their new role, thereby providing a marketing opportunity for your organization.

The First Three Months and Beyond
Effective employee onboarding continues past the first week. Throughout the first three months, stay mindful of opportunities to integrate new hires into their work groups and into the organization as a whole.

After 90 days, have the supervisor provide formal feedback on the new hire’s performance, while also soliciting feedback from the employee. Depending on the organizational culture and policies, this meeting could involve a representative of the human resource department. During this meeting, any issues should be addressed and all parties should be confident that the new hire is poised for success in their role.

Finally, remember to build opportunities for feedback into the onboarding process. Encourage the new hire to note any ideas that they have for improving the operations, strategy, or culture of the organization. The new hire may or may not feel comfortable sharing these immediately, but it is important that the organization be open to the impressions of someone with fresh eyes. Allow employee onboarding to be an iterative process, one that evolves with your organization’s growth.
Although all of these steps require an investment of time and resources, it is an investment that will pay enormous dividends for your organization for years to come.

For more information about nonprofit and socially entrepreneurial careers, visit Commongood Careers at http://www.cgcareers.org.

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