It is important that your new hire feels welcomed and prepared to start working during their first week. Get organized and prepare for the initial few days with a new employee in order to help them fully get the lay of the land. A solid onboarding foundation will benefit them in order to get their footing at your company and become productive much quicker. Here are two important strategies to creating the right environment for the newest addition to your organization.
Invest in your introductions
Carve time out of your schedule in order to have on-the-job introductions. This will make the employee feel valuable and set the tone for their time at your company. When introducing them to other employees, make sure to include a little bit about their background and how each employee might interact with the new hire.
It is also a good idea to send a welcome e-mail to your staff. Insperity adds, “the email should include the new hire’s name, picture, a description of their role and initiatives, some resume highlights, the person’s educational background, supervisor and contact information. You can also ask new employees for an interesting fact to share with their new colleagues”.
Investing in your introductions will help combat potential awkwardness and allow everyone to feel more comfortable with the transition.
Get Organized
When I Work says, “create an agenda for your new employee’s first week. It’s much easier to plan this in advance than it is to come up with while the new team member is standing there in front of you”. If this is not organized in advance, oftentimes a new employee may be left to fill out various paperwork and fend for themselves. While it may be important to incorporate filling out new-hire paperwork and other essential on-boarding tasks, make sure it doesn’t consume the week where they spend more time hidden away than getting comfortable with the job.
The first week should be the catalyst for the rest of your employee’s time at your company. It shouldn’t be consumed by only administrative items but allow for key training and an overall comfort level in their role. It will provide them all the key introductions they need in regards to who they will be interacting with and make them feel welcomed because of your preparation for them. This initial investment can be rewarded with a highly motivated and productive team member.
