You hired your first employee. Now, what’s next?

November 20, 2011, by Stephanie Messier | Employee Onboarding

Onboarding is the next step for a successful integration into your organization.  You should provide a great experience for your new hire, as you never get a second chance to make a first impression.

Onboarding is the process designed to welcome new hires to an organization and educate them on the organization’s culture, procedures and policies.   Sometimes onboarding is referred to as “New Hire Orientation”.

A successful onboarding program will provide the employee with all the information, tools, equipment he or she will require to start their employment and be productive rapidly.   An onboarding program can be anywhere from one day to two weeks.  Some larger organizations may have longer onboarding programs that would include training programs.

What does onboarding consist of?

You will be providing a new employee with the required documentation, such as payroll and benefits forms, as well as introducing him or her to the organization, its culture, policies and practices.  Onboarding can begin before an employee’s first day on the job and continue throughout that employee’s first year.  Ensuring your new hire receives necessary resources (laptop, safety equipment, etc.) and an end-of-day check-in will help start the new job on a positive note.  A welcome lunch will be appreciated as well.

Remember when you started a new job and what you learned from that experience.  Food for thought…