Employee On-Boarding—Start Date
Written by Michelle Wachtel, SPHR
You’ve taken care of as much as possible prior to the start date to make the candidate feel welcome so don’t drop the ball on the first day and make it one of the longest days for your new team member. Keep them active and included as much as possible. If you sent paperwork ahead of time, the new employee should arrive with it completed so no time is wasted filling it out in the office.
Make sure someone is available to meet the new hire when they arrive. A welcome sign in the lobby is also a nice touch. I recommend having them start later on their first day, especially if it’s a Monday. If the hiring manager needs to get started for the day before being able to spend time with the new hire, don’t make them wait in the office or sit idle, just have them come in at a later start time than what will be their schedule going forward on the first day.
If your company has a standard orientation where important policies and information are shared, this doesn’t have to be the first item on their schedule. Mix it up. A new employee will appreciate some variety to their first day and likely regard the experience as different than what they’ve had in the past and often better than the norm.
When opportunities allow, engage the new employee in the process of scheduling some of the meetings and sessions on their agenda themselves. This will allow them to take initiative and learn independence early on. Invite them to observe but ask for their feedback. A new employee will have fresh ideas and see things through a different lens. You may get great ideas for process improvement and your new employee will feel valued early on.
Take the new employee out to lunch on their first day with as many of their peers as schedules allow. But make sure to communicate protocol for lunches and breaks going forward. Tenured employees and managers forget these details and can leave the employee feeling confused or intimidated.
Schedule in some down town but not too much. If you’ve finished up the basics with the employee before standard quitting time, there’s no reason to make them sit idle at their work station. Send them home with a smile and confirmation of what time to arrive the next day and what’s ahead.
A first day can be tiring and overwhelming for a new employee but if you’ve scheduled efficiently and no when to call it day, the employee will leave feeling positive about their decision to join your team.
