Want to know the best ways to welcome new employees? We’ll tell you that, but before that let’s take an imaginary situation where you are joining a new company.
Imagine you’ve got an offer letter from a company for your favorite job role. Sure that letter had the date of joining & other basic information regarding that job.
But after you received that letter you get no other information from that company about the rules, regulations, policies, & so on. You got nothing on whom to meet on the first date, what procedures you need to follow while joining. You have no idea about what to prepare for your joining date.
However, you went to the office on the joining date but what you find is you have no clue what to do next. You keep roaming around the office to find the HR but even after you found them, they haven’t prepared your workspace. They kept you busy with loads of paperwork with poor interaction with you.
All of this sounds miserable, doesn’t it? This situation perfectly summed up as an HR professional what you should not be doing to your new employees. All of it shows a lack of communication & mismanagement at large.
In this article, you’ll find everything that will make the new hire’s joining experience wonderful, so they can feel connected, valued & welcomed. Read this till the end to find out how you can welcome new employees.
Here are the best ways to welcome new employees
Welcoming new employees on their first day is a crucial task, but that doesn’t mean it needs to be dull & boring.
This should happen in an interesting manner, so the new employee gets comfortable & feel at home on their very first day of work.
Things to do before the new employees’ arrival:
1. Begin communication & start welcoming the new ones
After the candidate accepts the offer start communicating with them with a purpose to welcome them to your firm. You can mail, message or call to let them know you are happy to welcome them. This way the employee will feel more comfortable & enthusiastic on their joining date.2. Send them the necessary details & documents
Before they join the company they must have all the necessary details they must know & that includes:- Policies & procedures
- Company’s mission, vision & values
- Company Dress Code
- Working hours
Along with these details don’t forget to send them other documents they will be required to study before they join. These documents will guide them & will convey to them what to expect when they come on their first day.
3. Keep their workstation & gadgets fully prepared
Not to mention it’s one of the things you cannot skimp on. Please prepare the working space of the new employees in advance. Also, ready the gadgets (computer or mobile) by installing necessary software applications they require for their work & set these on their table. It will save a lot of time plus the employees can immediately come to their workspace & start working.4. Create a work plan for new employees
You must prepare a work plan for your new employees. This plan must carry all the activities that they need to do like on-the-job training, product tours, and others. It will guide the employees about their activities for the first week & then the rest of their first month. A well-created plan in advance will definitely help the new employees to get settled for their job smoothly. This is the best thing to do before you welcome new employees.Things to do on the new employees’ date of joining:
1. Set up a meeting with their boss
It’s a good idea to set a meeting of the new employees with their boss individually. The new hires must get a chance to have a good talk with their new boss to get familiar with him/her. It will definitely set a great rapport between them for sure.
2. Introduce new hires & colleagues with each other
Your new employees have met with their boss, that’s great, but the introduction phase not ends here. You need to bring them to meet their new workmates.
The sooner they familiarize themselves with their coworkers the better will be the coordination between them. If you do this correctly it will result in making a positive impression in front of the new employees. It helps in retaining these new hires for a longer period of time.
3. Go out for lunch with them
Now it’s time to take the new employees out for lunch. You can invite the employees’ boss, team members with whom they’ll work with & people from related departments as well.
Keep the conversation informal & talk on light-hearted topics, that way you will get to know each other pretty well. A great lunch helps employees to open up a little bit & relax.
Also, when you are on an outing you can tell them about the best places to go for the best quality food. If you do so they won’t have to waste time finding the best places to eat. For sure, it’s a time saver for them.
4. Gift a welcome kit
Make a long-lasting charming impression by gifting them a welcome kit. You can include goodies like a coffee mug, a diary, a t-shirt, a water bottle & other useful things with your company’s logo on them.
To clear any doubt we want to say that people love gifts. It is a nice gesture that you can make towards the new employees that will establish a sense of belongingness immediately.
Also, you can add cookies, chips, or any other snack that your new employees might like to have. It will add a nice touch to the welcome kit.
5. Take them on a full office tour
Yes, you definitely need to take them with you on an office tour on their first day of work. Firstly, you can show them the places where they primarily be visiting for their work. It is important to do while you welcome new employees.
Visit all the important places of the office from the meeting room to the cafeteria. Obviously, they won’t be memorizing all at once but at least they will feel more confident after the office tour.
6. Give new employees a guide
It’s nice to have a guide by the side of the new hires when they join, to answer their questions & to guide them whenever needed. Assign a guide/mentor to them who can be a team leader or a colleague for the first few weeks.
The new employees are going to get hugely benefitted from the guide. The guide will educate new hires about the office culture, working environment plus other things about the office & work-related queries.
7. Assign not so heavy tasks to new hires
Don’t put them in a situation where they scratch their heads wondering what work they need to do after joining. So, assign them some least complicated small tasks on their first day to boost up their morale & confidence.
When you assign them some work then they will get a chance to show how well they can perform. Do this, and you will definitely see the happy faces of the new hires when they accomplish their tasks.
Don’t forget to give them the work plan you’ve prepared before their arrival, so they can schedule their activities according to it.
8. Be available to them for assistance & guidance
Keep in mind that your new hires might need assistance on their first day on the job. That’s why give some of your time from your schedule to guide & assist them whenever they need it on their very first day.
9. Take feedback from the new employees & have a nice talk
At the end of the day before they go home, have a good talk with the new hires plus take feedback from them. Ask them about how their first day went, ask if they need anything, and answer the questions they might be having.
Feedback will help you improve your existing onboarding process for welcoming new employees in the future.
One more thing you can do is, tell them that they can come to you if they have any problems. It will bring them a sense of peace plus they will feel good about being valued in the organization. If they feel valued then they’ll be happy & it’s amazing for your company in all aspects.
Conclusion
Remember to fill all of these activities with joy and excitement, so this will confirm a memorable welcome experience for the new hires.
If you welcome new employees this way then they will stay with your company for a long time plus they’ll perform at their best.
