The hiring process doesn’t end when you extend an offer to your top candidate. Start your new employee off with a welcoming and productive first day that will smoothly begin the transition to becoming an integral part of your team. Here are 7 tips to ensure that your new hire leaves their first day feeling excited for the second one.
Prepare the team
Start the official training off on the right foot by preparing for your new hire’s first day on the job. There’s nothing worse than a busy team member being tasked the unexpected assignment of training someone last minute. It’s not a welcoming feeling for the new person and it makes the company look unorganized. Ensure that documents are in place and schedules are coordinated so that each co-worker has outlined time to train, eat lunch, give tours and more. Have assignments ready to go and helpful documents waiting in your employee’s work inbox. Thoughtful preparation is key to giving your new hire an accurate and positive first impression of the company and ensuring that they aren’t sitting around on their first day, waiting for someone to give them something to do.
Provide resources
Give your new employee access to helpful information and documents such as passwords, annual reports, marketing materials, brand guidelines or procedural documents. Make sure that they have anything they need from the first day. Providing valuable tools such as past presentations and work examples can be helpful for a new employee to look through on their down time. The better they know the company, the better employee they will be.
Check in
Your new hire has a lot to take in as they are learning the ropes at their new job. Check in with your new employee more than you think you should. Although it might seem like you’re overdoing it, it’s better than your new hire feeling lost, unsupported or overwhelmed during their first week. Even if they don’t need any help, it’ll be a representation of company culture and will show them that it’s a team effort and that you care about their success. Stop by their desk, send them an e-mail or type up a message to show them that you’re there if they have any questions.
Involve peers
Getting your new hire settled in doesn’t just involve to-do lists and tasks, but includes the people that make up the company. Introduce your new employee to superiors and peers, and involve them in a lunch outing or have them shadow a colleague. It’s best if they spend the most time with individuals who do similar work or someone that they will be working closely with so that they can start developing a rapport from the beginning. This person will also be a beneficial lifeline if your new hire has questions regarding workload, company culture, tasks, procedures or HR. Meeting 20 people in one day can be overwhelming and it can feel impossible to remember names. Give your new addition a cheat sheet with names, pictures, office locations, and commonalities such as children, hobbies, philanthropic involvement or quirks. This will help make strangers quickly become familiar faces.
Hand out an assignment
Many individuals learn better by doing than reading or listening. If you give your new hire an assignment, it will give them confidence that you feel they can handle it and it will be an exciting start to the job. I mean, they accepted the offer to work, right? It’s a good introduction into the process and a perfect way to be involved with people that they will be working alongside. It also sets expectations from day one. They have been hired by a company where everyone stays busy and comes to work to do their job!
Give a tour
Collaborate with your current employees and create a list of places that they wished they would’ve been taken to or things that took them weeks to find. Spice up the normal tour that goes to the breakroom and back to their desk. Ensure that they are well acquainted with their work environment to eliminate any added stress. This allows them to settle in and feel comfortable in their new role from their first day.
Take them out to lunch
Nothing is more overwhelming than lunch on your first day. Make sure that they have someone to sit with during the lunch break or take them out with a few colleagues. Front the bill if it’s possible, but it’s more important to accompany them than it is for you to pay for their meal. Head to a happy hour in the first couple of weeks so that they have a chance to get to know their co-workers in a more relaxed setting.
Starting a new job is a big change for anyone. Make the transition smoother by making an effort to seamlessly integrate your new hire into your company from day one. A positive first day will start your new employee’s week off to a good start and they will feel comfortable and confident in their new role.
