Employees are a company’s most precious resource. Hiring and retaining employees, therefore, is one of the most important functions in a company. Companies go to great lengths to hire employees that are a perfect fit.
Newly hired employees need to be treated in a special way to help them get inducted into the company. They need a fair bit of hand-holding initially. More importantly, new hires need to feel happy, excited and secure upon joining the company.
There are ways to achieve all of this. A great onboarding experience goes a long way in employer branding and employee retention. Welcoming new hires the right way can bring great dividends to the employers in terms of satisfied employees and ultimately greater productivity.
The first and foremost step is pre-onboarding – To communicate with the new hires as soon as they have accepted the job offer. It can be done by a cheerful, welcoming email or even a phone call. It should convey the employer’s happiness about the new hire joining the company. Next email should be a little detailed, giving useful information like joining date, work timings, company’s handbook, dress code, employee benefit sheet, who to report to, etc.
A new recruit’s first day in the office requires some planning beforehand. A great way to welcome him/her would be to keep their workplace or cabin ready. Mail access and an email account that has been already sorted gives a great deal of comfort to the new hires. The workplace can be decorated nicely with flowers and ribbons and also with things like coffee mugs and personal stationery with company logos if possible. This will make new hires feel special on their first day.
Next thing to pay attention to is assigning a mentor. An ideal mentor should not have any reporting relationship with the new hire. He should be an older experienced employee to ease the new one into the company. The mentor should be introduced to the new hire before the date of joining. The role of mentor can be replaced by a peer who can work as a buddy.
And finally, the day of joining dawns! The first day can be made a happy and joyous day for the new employee if the scheduling of the day has been paid attention to. Most important items on the agenda are meetings with the new hire’s boss and also with his mentor.
Introductions to the other colleagues is a good idea. Organizing a welcome lunch party is a very pleasant way to receive a new hire into the team. The new hire gets to meet his co-workers in a less formal surrounding and this leads to a good bonding straight away. It will be so much better if the boss and mentor can also be a part of this welcome party.
Planning by the immediate superior and execution of the onboarding program flawlessly goes a long way in the career of a new hire.
