When a new employee joins your organization, you need an employee onboarding checklist. You have a limited amount of time to provide them with the tools and support they need to ultimately succeed with the organization. From their first day, they need a solid understanding of the company’s culture, your requirements, and the basics they’ll need in order to be successful at their job.
Furthermore, they’ll need a copy of the employee handbook, information about check-ins and reports, and a basic understanding of the other team members they’ll be interacting with on a regular basis.
With all the information you need to share, it’s little wonder that day one with a new hire can be a challenge—or that information often falls through the cracks. However, with a comprehensive employee onboarding checklist, you can improve the odds of a successful onboarding experience and create a better first impression with your new employee.
Disclaimer: The information below is accurate as of August 8, 2024.
Employee onboarding basics: Before the first day
Before new hires arrive for their first day, there are some essential preboarding strategies you may need to add to your employee onboarding checklist.
- Finalize the job offer in writing. Make sure it includes all key information about the employee’s salary, bonus structure, and benefits.
- Reach out to your new hire. Encourage other team members to get in touch and connect with them personally. A welcome email can help get new employees excited about their new positions and provide them with essential information.
- Share any company swag you may want the employee to have, including t-shirts, mugs, and cozies.
- Assign your new team member a mentor if that is a step that will help them thrive in their new position.
- Set a clear start date and ensure that employees can give notice with their current jobs and move forward with the new role well before that date.
- Offer information about first-day expectations, including when your new employees should arrive, where they should go, and who they should report to. If there is any other information employees need to know, such as that lunch will be provided on that first day or that they should expect to get off a little early, include them in the preboarding packet.
- Review the dress code.
While preboarding, also known as pre-onboarding, is a key part of bringing a new employee into your company, employees should not be required to work before starting their first day.
Need a preboarding template to help ensure you meet all those goals? Check out this one, which can be found on Document Locator. When you’re looking for a welcome email template, explore the ones available on Hubspot or Forbes.
Day one: The essentials
On the first day with you, employees will need to go through several essential steps. Keep in mind that a new hire’s first day can be key to setting them up for future success with the organization. A bad first day could cause a negative opinion of the company as a whole or convince a new hire that they won’t be able to be successful in the role, all before they can get a strong understanding of the company and their role in it.
On their first day, new hires will need to complete these employee onboarding checklist essentials:
- Read over the company handbook and familiarize themselves with company policies.
- Fill out the paperwork to set up direct deposit for checks.
- Finish filling out any new hire or onboarding paperwork, which may depend on your organization’s requirements or any industry needs.
- Meet their teammates. They may need a chance to socialize, make connections, and get a better feel for the people they’ll be working with for the foreseeable future.
- Settle into their new office or workspace, if relevant.
- Take a tour of the office.
- Learn about what training materials they’ll be expected to complete, including any modules they may need to finish before they can get to work.
- Meet their mentor or buddy and get a feel for how often they need to connect.
- Connect with Human Resources and learn about any essential steps they may need to take, including confirming tax withholding or filling out any other necessary paperwork.
- Get the employee security permissions, and ensure they are set up with the accounts they need.
Why these essentials matter
The first day of the onboarding process can be a whirlwind. Having a new hire and employee onboarding checklist in place can make it much easier for your team to get a feel for the new hire onboarding process and ensure that new hires do not miss out on anything as you bring them on board. Furthermore, consider setting up an onboarding buddy to ensure that the new hire completes all onboarding tasks and that nothing is overwhelming.
Employee onboarding checklist templates for new hires
Utilizing templates can make it much easier for you to streamline the process of bringing a new hire on board. Ultimately, this leads to more effective onboarding and increased new employee satisfaction. Check out some of these employee onboarding checklist templates:
- Airtable’s New Employee Onboarding Template
- Hubspot’s Professional Suite Onboarding Checklist
- Docebo’s Employee Onboarding Template
During the first week: Getting set up for success
The first week is critical for new hires in any organization. During this period, employees do not yet have their feet under them. They may not have a solid idea of what the team looks like or their place on it. Your onboarding program should include substantial support during these early days to ensure that employees have the guidance and information they need to manage their new employment effectively.
- Give employees plenty of time to review onboarding materials.
- Encourage interactions with new teammates. Consider team-building exercises, collaborative opportunities, or even simply going out to lunch together.
- Engage in goal setting. Make sure new hires clearly understand employee expectations and your company and know what to expect as they move forward in their new positions.
- Allow employees to take care of any needed training. This may mean using your LMS (learning management system) modules, going through training materials, or getting up-to-date on your company’s policies, requirements, and standards.
Keep in mind that the first week is just the start of your employee onboarding process. If you want to improve the employee experience and increase overall employee engagement, you must stay with the employee through the first six months of employment. Continue to provide them with training and support.
Managing the first month
The first month of employment is a key part of the employee onboarding process. During that first month, employees get a better feel for the work environment. They get essential job training and learn how to navigate any new roles or requirements. During this period, professional development may increase.
- Continue employee training. Make sure employees are fully trained in all aspects of their jobs, including company policies and expectations.
- Conduct regular check-ins with the employees to make sure they aren’t missing anything. Put those check-ins on the calendar and keep to the schedule so your new employees don’t fall through the cracks.
- Continue to increase collaboration and connection between the new hire and their teammates.
As you guide your new employees through their first month on the job, keep communication channels open. Provide essential support to anyone needing it.
The first six months of employment
The employee onboarding process continues throughout the first six months on the job and beyond. In fact, in some cases, you may want to continue the onboarding process throughout the first year of the employee’s time with your company. Make sure that you include:
- A performance review. Let employees know how they’re doing and anything you might like them to change.
- Ongoing professional development and training.
- Continuing check-ins.
- Milestone confirmation. Make sure employees continue to meet essential milestones and expectations.
If you need performance review templates, check out Indeed and Clickup.
Onboarding remote employees
Remote onboarding brings its own unique set of challenges. Not only do you have to make sure that new hires are prepared with everything they need to become successful employees at your company, but you also need to do it from a distance! Remote employees need the same things in-person employees do. However, your new employee onboarding checklist becomes even more important to ensure that nothing falls through the cracks. Focus on:
- Onboarding documents
- Providing new employees with a strong understanding of your company culture
- Offering new hires access to company resources, especially resources that can help them connect or succeed
- Building relationships between the new hire and the current members of your team
By keeping up with your employee onboarding checklist, you ensure that your employees are prepared to take on the responsibilities of a remote position.
Let Docebo help with the onboarding process
At Docebo, we offer learning management software. Our platform can help carry employees through the onboarding process, engage more deeply in training, and so much more. Contact us today to learn about our training solutions and templates. Also, see how we can help ensure that your new hires are as successful as possible.