A new hire’s first few days tell them everything about what working for you is going to be like. They’re paying close attention, whether you realize it or not, and the impression they form early tends to stick around.
The trouble is that a lot of companies run onboarding the same cookie-cutter way for everyone. Sign these forms, watch these videos, here’s your desk, good luck. It gets the paperwork done, but it doesn’t make anybody feel welcome, and it doesn’t set them up to do good work.
A little thought here pays off for a long time. Get onboarding right and your new people feel valued, informed, and confident, which is exactly the combination that keeps them around. Here are the do’s and don’ts worth paying attention to.
Do Assign a Mentor
Pair every new hire with a mentor, and watch how much smoother those first weeks go. This doesn’t have to be their direct supervisor. In fact, it’s often better if it isn’t. What you want is someone well-established who can answer the small questions people are too nervous to bring to a boss, make introductions, and help the new person find their footing in the culture.
A good mentor is a sounding board and a friendly face all at once. New hires who have one feel supported from day one, and that support shows up later as engagement.
Don’t Drown Them in Paperwork
Your new hire showed up excited. Don’t kill that excitement by burying them under a mountain of forms and policies on the very first morning. It’s overwhelming, and none of it sinks in anyway.
Spread the administrative stuff out over the first several days instead. Mix the dry tasks in with training and a few enjoyable moments, so the week has some rhythm to it. Nobody remembers their first day fondly because of the tax forms.
Do Make the First Day Memorable
Give your new hire something to remember, and you set the tone for everything that follows. Maybe that’s a lighthearted icebreaker with the team, or a small tradition you run for every newcomer. A welcome kit waiting at their desk is one of the easiest wins there is. A branded notebook, a good mug, a little company swag, it all says we were expecting you and we’re glad you’re here. If you want to put one together, our employee gifts make for a warm first impression that costs very little.
Do Bring Your Onboarding Into This Decade
The days of handing someone a fat folder of forms are over. There’s good software out there now that handles the whole administrative side for you. Tools like BambooHR, Gusto, and Rippling can automate the forms, the e-signatures, and the checklists, and they plug into the chat tools your team already uses, like Slack, so a new hire has an easy way in from the start.
The point isn’t the specific tool. It’s that automating the busywork gives every new hire a smooth, consistent experience, and it frees you up to spend your time on the part that matters, which is the human welcome.
Do Set Clear, Reachable Goals
Nothing builds a new hire’s confidence like actually getting something done. Give them a handful of small, achievable goals for the first week or two, the kind they can knock out and feel good about. Then lay out some bigger objectives for the months ahead, so they can see where all this is heading.
Clear goals do double duty. They give people a roadmap, and they give you an easy way to show that you noticed the progress. Which brings us to the last one.
Don’t Disappear After Week One
This is the mistake that undoes all the good work above. You put together a great first week, then you vanish, and the new hire is left to sink or swim. Onboarding isn’t a day or a week. It’s the first few months. Check in regularly. Ask how things are going and actually listen. And when someone clears an early milestone, mark it. A word of thanks goes a long way, and for the bigger moments, a proper recognition award tells a new employee they made the right call joining you.
You don’t have to do every one of these to onboard someone well. Pick the ones that fit your company and your people. But get even a few of them right, and your new hires will hit the ground running and remember why they said yes in the first place!