So you’ve just hired a new employee—what comes next? After all the time and effort spent recruiting and interviewing to find the perfect candidate, you want to ensure your new hire stays at your company for a long time. A little preparation can go a long way towards making a great first impression. Whenever you’re onboarding new employees, you want to make them feel welcomed and prove how easy it is to work for your company. This checklist can help you get organized and make the orientation process less overwhelming for everyone.
✔ Send a Welcome Email (or Two)
Once a new hire has accepted your offer, you should reach out with all the information they’ll need for a successful first day. This includes basic details like the address of the office and their start date and time plus anything else they might be wondering about, like what to wear, where to park, and whether they need to bring their own lunch. Remind them what documents to bring to complete their paperwork and let them know where to check in and who to ask for once they get to the office.
After you’ve reached out to your new employee, consider sending an email to their department. Include a brief bio and start date for their new colleague so they’re not surprised when someone new shows up at the office.
✔ Establish Expectations with Their Manager
There’s a saying that employees don’t leave jobs, they leave bosses. In fact, one in two employees have left a job to get away from a manager and improve their overall life at some point in their career, according to Gallup’s State of the American Manager report. To make sure your new employee gets off on the right foot with their new manager, personally ensure the manager knows exactly when the new hire’s starting and give them a chance to weigh in on the orientation process. This is a good time to discuss responsibilities, goals, and reporting structure so you’re able to answer any questions the new hire might ask you. You should also schedule some time at the beginning of the new employee’s first week for them to meet with their manager to get to know each other and discuss expectations.
✔ Make Sure IT is Prepared
There’s nothing that says, “You’re not important to us,” like having a new employee show up on the first day and find out they’re not in the system yet. No email address, no computer, no way to get into the building. You know how busy your IT department can be, but providing a positive onboarding experience for new hires goes a long way in employee retention. That’s why you should reach out to IT as soon as a hire is finalized to make sure your new employee will have access to the network, a company email address, and logins for any additional software they’ll use on a regular basis on their first day. IT should also order or prep any equipment they’ll need, like their computer or phone. You should also ensure there’s a plan to create their ID card, add them to the payroll, and enroll in any relevant benefits as soon as they start.
✔ Prepare Your New Hire’s Workspace
If your new employee will have a desk in your office, be sure it’s ready for them with everything they’ll need—from basic office supplies to their computer and phone. Consider putting together a welcome basket with some company swag. If your employee will be working remotely, gather all their tech and anything else you’ll provide for their home office. If you’re shipping them a computer, try to have it arrive before their start date so they’re ready to log in on their first day.
✔ Create an Orientation Schedule
There’s a lot that needs to be accomplished in the first few days of onboarding new employees. To keep things running smoothly and make sure nothing important gets forgotten, create an orientation schedule. Be sure to include time to complete paperwork, discuss benefit enrollment, tour the office, review company policies, meet with their manager and other key stakeholders, complete trainings, and meet their colleagues. It may be helpful to assign an orientation buddy who can answer questions and show the new employee around. But don’t just hand the new employee off and assume the buddy knows what to do with them. The more guidance and structure you can provide during the first few days, the more confident and less overwhelmed a new employee is likely to feel.
✔ Arrange for a New Hire Headshot
Last but certainly not least, you should arrange for your new employee to receive a headshot that you can use on your website and in your company directory. Not everyone is comfortable getting photographed. Sending them to a photographer who will help put them at ease and guide them throughout the process is another way to show an employee you care. That is our specialty! With our LINK company headshot program at Berks Headshots, we take care of your people every step of the way from the booking process to the final images. We have a proven process that sets them at ease. It starts with a custom booking page made for your company where they can get the information they need and instantly book. We give them information on how to prepare for their session ahead of time and guide them on posing, expression, and choosing the best images. All you have to do is send them the link to your custom booking page, and we’ll take it from there! New hires tell us all the time how much they appreciate our process. It’s easy for you as well! Plus, all LINK members receive priority booking and editing so you’ll receive your headshots fast.
Final Thoughts About Onboarding New Employees
Onboarding is your first chance to show a new hire the type of care and support they’ll receive from your company throughout their career. Wow them by being both welcoming and prepared. Berks Headshots can help you prove how easy it is to work for your company by streamlining your headshot process. Contact us today to join the program!
