Make the employee’s first day memorable by making them Feel welcome and Connected to the team. Find out their favorite snack and have it on their desk the day they start. LiIle acJons like this don’t take a lot of Jme, money or effort, but can mean so much to a new hire, and help make them feel connected.
Don‘t miss out on the opportuniJes provided by NHO to help people feel Connected from day one
New Hire
Take the new employee to lunch on day one, this says they’re important. Make it a fun day. Take the employee on a tour of the department, break room, building or enJre campus. Maybe show those secret areas the public never gets to see, like the lab where the secret recipe is concocted.
Warm Welcome – Make Them Feel Connected from Day One
Announce the new employee via email and post the informaJon online. Reach out to your manager and other execuJves asking them to introduce themselves and make your new hire feel welcome. Encourage long-‐term employees to stop by and share stories. Schedule a team lunch or dinner to welcome them.
Warm Welcome
Be IntenJonal About Exposing Your New Hires to Your Culture
New Hire
Who We Are
There’s no feeling like pride in belonging to something bigger than yourself, so tap into that and shake some company booty! Connect the dots between your amazing company culture and how they can be part of it.
Day One Shuffle Paperwork w Find some way to minimize the stupefying boredom of new hire paperwork. Mail it ahead and provide online access for them to review everything before they start. Have stuff ready w Every day a new hire sits around unable to get started because the new laptop has not been configured yet is money wasted. Not to menJon frustraJng for the new hires who are anxious to ramp up quickly.
What are the rules of engagement? Describe the company culture. Explain when management prefers to use email, phone or face-‐to-‐face communicaJon. Review topics like cadence of meeJngs, eJqueIe of dialing into meeJngs, and how to approach senior execuJves. What’s Your Management Style?Discuss your expectaJons, hot buIons, strengths and blind spots. Advise who they go to for quesJons when you are not available. If there are suggesOons or concerns, what are the appropriate channels to share those.
Day One QuesJons to Answer
Is there any one to be wary of? MenJon any adversaries who may transfer an a`tude to your innocent new hire. This could be an individual, a group, or an organizaJon.
Another QuesJon
New hires want to make a good impression and start adding value. Ensure they have the resources. Set Up Technology Working from home or offsite Provide Resources Provide both the Company’s and your department ‘s current Q-‐T-‐D and annual reports, goals, policies and procedures. Specify on the org charts who is important and who are the key stake-‐ holders on current projects. Provide a list of key contacts inside and outside the company. Select and Schedule Training
Help Them Do Their Best Work
Review calendar on key organizaJon deliverables and let them know when performance reviews are held and how new hires are evaluated. Set 30/60/90/180 day milestones. Check in frequently, at a minimum when they are due. Encourage them to network outside of the organizaJon. NoJfy them of company brown bag lunches and seminars they can aIend.
Establish Goals and Clarify ExpectaJons Right Away
Build trust by establishing a mutually agreed level of autonomy for the employee. Which decisions can the employee make without consulOng and informing the manager and how long are you willing to wait for status updates? bound of discreJon.
Decision Decision Check w/Mgr Inform Mgr of Type: Maker: Befofe AcJng Outcome Leaf Employee No No Branch Employee No Aher AcJng Trunk Empolyee Yes B 4 AcJng Root Manager Yes B 4 Decision
Decision Tree
Reimburse for work related social media accounts and learning, TED, lynda.com, etc. Consider new hire sales training. This is good knowledge to have, especially if you are in a customer facing posiJon. Provide presentaJon training and let them pracJce presenJng to your team. Have them create their own presentaJon that “Brands” them and their mission. See reference secJon.
Encourage Learning
¤ In today’s wired, networked world of constantly and rapidly changing conditions help your new hire to understand The Big Picture by being connected.
¤ Google reader lets you set up alerts for
any informaJon.
¤ Zite is an iPad app that learns what you like and don’t like, customizing your feeds according to your preferences. Pulse is another iPad app that’s good.
¤ Save your web surfing arJcles to Instapaper on your PC, phone or tablet.
¤ Kindle, Kobo, iBooks. Kindle supports features such as social media integraJon
Be Socially CollaboraJve
Assign A Mentor Every new hire should have a ‘buddy‘ to help them navigate the informal network. They are that extra support –like the training wheels on your bike. They’ll know the go-‐to people, the gatekeepers, the people who know what's happening before it happens. They can be your English to English translator for the company’s inside jokes and jargon.
People Don’t Leave Companies . . . . They Leave Managers.
Hew hire turnover is greatest in the first 40-‐50 days.
The First Few Months Focus on These 3
CommunicaJng and Giving RecogniJon Giving Work with Purpose Managing the RelaJonship
Don`t communicate to be understood; rather, communicate so as not to be misunderstood.
Engaging as a listener is one of the greatest things you can do for your new hire. Echoing the other person’s words helps you process what they’re saying and signals to them that you’re really listening.
Be Aware How Your Body Language & Tone Speaks to Your New Hires
We pay more aIenJon to facial expressions and body language,
than to tone of voice,
or to actual words.
55% Facial expressions & body language
8% Actual Words
37% Tone of voice
Make “thank you” and “nice job” a
regular part of your vocabulary.
AddiJonally, take the Jme to teach new employees
why what they did is so intrinsically
important to the organizaJon’s mission and purpose.
Give RecogniJon
Manage the RelaJonship v Assign A Mentor
Ask them if they would like you to
assign one or if they would like to select one themselves.
It should be someone in management who can help them with their career goals. Mentors, like the buddy, reduce the ramp up Jme and
inspire moJvaJon in your new hire.
It’s criJcal managers show their employees they have an interest in them as human beings, not just as employees. You can do this by keeping the channels of communicaJon open. Ask for frequent feedback and remember to encourage an atmosphere of fun.
Foster the New Employee RelaJonship
Whether it’s working out at the company gym, playing PicJonary or going to grab an ice cream cone, it’s important that as they’re learning the ropes, your new hires also have a good Jme with you and their coworkers.
Manage New Employee
RelaJonships CONSIDER HOLDING A RE-‐ORIENTATION -‐ All employees hired in the past quarter come back to ask the quesJons they hadn‘t thought of Day 1. Make it a safe environment to ask any quesJons and have them connect with the colleagues from other departments with whom they had spent vast amounts of Jme on day 1, but didn‘t really interact with anymore.
Break the ice with a fun interacJve game or acJvity. This is a chance for the group to get to know one another and begin idenJfying itself as ‘us’.
START GROUP – People who start together have
a higher chance of building lasJng bonds as they spread out over the company. Help your new hires define their first network at your company by assigning them to a start group.
Research has found that strong social Jes in the workplace can boost producJvity, make employees more passionate about their work and less likely to quit their jobs. When we look at what makes people happy and effecJve at work, it’s being able to spend Jme with a close group of people. You need to structure work in such a way that new hires have those opportuniJes.
A feeling of connecOon makes people want to come to work.
You probably had some help on the climb up. Now it’s Jme to return the favor. Give your Jme, give your counsel, give of your emoJons and be involved in the process. The more you give of yourself, the bigger the impact. It does not have to be terribly formal or Jme-‐consuming. Carving out a few minutes to listen shows the new hire they are important. Schedule 1:1s and work hard to keep them.
Give of Yourself to the New Employee
Taking breaks is at odds with how the new employee wants to be viewed, but it is not Jme wasted. Brief diversions significantly increase one’s ability to focus on that task for prolonged periods of Jme. Get up and move around to get the blood flowing and clear the mind. Bonus points if you take a walk outside! Walking just 10 minutes will relieve stress, reduce faJgue and boost mood.
Encourage New Employees Going 100mph to Take EffecJve Breaks
Curiosity is key to empathy. Ask your new hire about their struggles & strategies for coping with a challenge they’re having and offer to help. When its been a tough day, tell them go get a good night’s sleep and recall something that went well that day, and be thankful for that. Life always offers you a second chance . . . its called Tomorrow.
Be EmpatheJc
Encourage QuesJons It’s OK to ASK!
You want to take the Jme upfront to make sure your new hire knows how to succeed, because if they don‘t . . . you will be doing this all over again!
References Data Source: Todd DeweI, Onboarding New Hires, Lynda.com Pg. 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11, 13, 14, 20, 21, 22, 26, 27, 28, 29 Marcos Chin Artwork, www.marcoschin.com Pg. 4, 8, 9, 18 Photos by Thomas Peschak, www.thomaspeschak.com Pg. 12 Photo from film “My Name is Doris”, Red Crown ProducJons. 2016 Pg. 14 Decision Tree, “Fierce ConversaJons” by Susan ScoI Pg. 15 ArJcles on Crea%ng a Compelling Presenta%on and Personal Branding hIp://blog.ted.com/2014/07/15/10-‐Jps-‐for-‐beIer-‐slide-‐decks/ hIp://www.forbes.com/sites/dailymuse/2012/02/14/the-‐first-‐step-‐to-‐building-‐your-‐personal-‐brand/#5e6a46dd2c72 Pg. 17 Quote by Dr. John Lund Pg. 18 CommunicaJon Studies StaJsJcs by Dr. John Lund