Podcast — Ten Things to Do Before They Arrive

How to welcome a new employee is a big deal.

After all, you've spent time, effort, and money

finding a great person to join your team

and help solve some of the problems

that you're wrestling with.

You want them to be excited, to get off to a great start,

and be happy working in the team

so they stay and do the best work they can.

I've had some great welcomes

with everything laid on the desk,

lots of colleagues to meet, et cetera,

all the way through to some terrible ones

where the IT is not set up, everyone's busy,

and I'm twiddling my thumbs for half the day

worrying about whether I made the wrong decision to join.

These first impressions stay with you for a long time.

Make sure new joiners into your team

look back with fond memories

and remain excited about wanting to work in your business

long after they join.

So I'm taking you through these 10 tips today.

I explain how to make each of these tips

actionable and effective

in providing a great experience for your new team member.

My name is Jess Coles,

and I've had a 25-year management career

in corporates and household names through to SMEs.

I personally have had some great welcomes, as mentioned,

from places like Innocent Drinks,

and I've also had some really poor ones.

A great welcome does make a big difference

to the new team member.

Do put in the effort and get the benefits from doing so.

If you're new to this channel,

Enhance.Training shares business

and people management expertise

to help you improve your performance

and that of your team and business.

If you like this video,

please give it a thumbs up and subscribe.

Tip one, when planning how to welcome a new employee

is to send them pre-reads before they start.

When a person has gone to the trouble of applying,

getting through the recruitment process,

and getting an offer from you,

they should be excited about joining

and starting a new chapter in their career.

Your new team member is likely

to have to work a notice period.

Anywhere from one month to three months is typical,

though notice periods can be a lot longer.

A great way to keep up this excitement

and to help them have a better start

is to send them information

about what is happening in the team and in the company

so they can learn and feel part of the team

before actually joining.

Your examples of information include,

firstly, company news,

new product launches, customer wins, et cetera.

Secondly, team news,

projects delivered, projects coming up,

and new customers they've just won, and so forth.

Thirdly, organizational charts, team bios,

or anything else to help them get to know the people

that they'll be working with.

Fourth, mini projects planned or being undertaken

that the new joiner will be involved in.

Fifth, information relevant to the new joiner's job.

Sixth, team events, socials,

and any other opportunities for the new joiner

to meet the team before starting officially.

Keeping up contact also reduces the risk of counteroffers,

being successful,

and starts to build positive professional relationships

early on.

Don't just send over the boring official documentation,

such as the employee's manual

or generic training or induction material.

Make it personal to them, your team, and their new job.

Tip two when planning how to welcome a new team member

is to introduce them within the company before they start.

There is nothing worse than joining a company

and most people have no idea who you are

and what you are here to do.

This really does not make you feel welcome at all.

You want your new team member to feel welcome from day one,

with the current team knowing who they are

and what they have joined to do.

Even better is to provide a bit of information

about your new joiner to your current team

so they have some talking points

to get the conversations going.

So send one or a couple of emails out to your team

and all the stakeholders likely to come into contact

with your new team member.

Or if you work in a medium or small company,

send it to all your staff.

Introduce the new employee.

Some of the things you could share,

as well as their name of course,

are firstly the position for which they're joining.

Secondly, some of their key tasks, deliverables,

or projects.

Thirdly, which company they're coming from.

Fourth, any memorable stories about their hobbies,

sports, interests, travels, et cetera,

which will help team members remember them

and start talking to them when they join.

Fifth, some of their achievements from their CV.

Sixth, a recent photograph.

And seventh, anything else you think

will be interesting to share.

Share information that will help the current team.

Firstly, learn about their new team member.

Secondly, understand where they fit into the organisation.

Third, provide talking points,

so speaking to them for the first time is a lot easier.

And fourth, anything else to help

build personal connections.

Do ask the new employee if you're okay

to share information before you do so.

Even better is to get their help

in drafting what you actually share.

Tip three when planning how to welcome a new joiner

is to get all the IT set up.

Getting all the IT organised and working

before your new employee starts

is about presenting a organised, welcoming company

that demonstrates they care.

You don't want your new team member

having to chase around to get things sorted

on the first day.

So as a minimum, make sure the following are set up.

Their email address and it's working.

Secondly, their computer, that's both the hardware

and all the software that needs to be put onto it.

Third, their desk or mobile phones,

if they have them, are working.

Fourth, their access to the right systems

and at the right levels are set up.

And then fifth, anything else that's needed

for them to do their job well from day one.

And of course, make sure they have their desk set up

and it's neat and tidy.

Add any welcoming presents so they have a lovely surprise

when turning up to their desk.

Tip four when planning how to welcome a new employee

is to ask them to start late on their first day.

You know, ask them to start at 9.30 a.m.

instead of 9 a.m. on their first day.

Give yourself and everyone else in the team

a chance to get in and get settled.

When your new employee arrives,

your team will be ready to greet them properly

without being distracted.

And starting a little later also takes the pressure off

your new joiner and gives them a more relaxed start

to their new job.

The days and weeks ahead are going to be busy

and tiring enough for the new employee,

so give them an easier start.

A later start also gives you a chance to remind the team

that the new member is starting that day

and gives you a chance to send out one last reminder email

to the rest of the company and check everything is ready.

First impressions count for a lot,

so make sure everything is organised and ready.

Tip five when planning how to welcome a new team member

is to be there to greet them in person.

Book out the starting time in your diary

so you're available to greet them in person.

Don't let others book you into meetings or call you away.

Your relationship as manager to your new employee

is very important.

You want this professional relationship

to start on the right foot

and being there to greet them in person

demonstrates that they are important,

that you care and will put the effort in to support them.

It will also be good if their immediate team members

are also available and at their desk

so you're able to introduce them in person

as soon as they arrive.

Give them a chance to settle in

and have a bit of a chat with the other team members

before kicking off with any induction plans.

So tip six when planning how to welcome a new employee

is to take them through the induction plan.

Focus the induction plan on helping them get to know

and start building relationships

with colleagues and team members as quickly as possible.

Starting to build these relationships

are a lot more important

than reading through the HR employee handbook

or other official documentation.

That background reading could be done later

or as part of their homework.

In the weeks leading up to your new team members starting,

you should have been creating their induction plan,

detailing out what activities are going to happen,

when and with whom.

Again, focus on helping them build relationships

and work out who to speak to about what area.

Get them meeting as many relevant people

throughout the business as possible.

Booking these meetings into the new employee's calendar

and also who they're meeting and make sure they happen.

Talk your new joiner through the plan,

explain why you've included what you have

and answer any questions they have.

Listen to any suggestions or requests

that your new joiner makes.

Their input can be really valuable too.

Tip seven when planning how to welcome a new team member

is to book time in to train them.

No matter how experienced the new employee is,

they will need some training on the systems you use

and how to use them.

You'll need to show them your company's way of doing things,

what the rules and expectations are,

what the meeting rhythms are and so on.

If you have training materials, videos

or other reference documents,

make sure they have access to these,

which will give them clear instructions

and make them self-sufficient as quickly as possible.

Show them where to find all the information they need

and how it is organised.

Now could be a great time to introduce them to a buddy

so they have another person responsible

for helping them settle into the company

as quickly as possible.

A buddy should ideally be a peer.

Set expectations out early and clearly.

This ensures that the new joiner knows exactly what's needed

and how they can meet those expectations.

The training by you or other team members

gives them the tools to meet the expectations set out.

Tip eight when planning how to welcome new employee

is to organise lunch and coffees.

Organise your current team members

to individually or in pairs take out your new employee

to lunch on the first day and over the first week or two.

The aim is to help build good working relationships

between your current team and the new joiner.

It is also very nice touch to have team members

looking after you over those first few weeks

when you are trying to get your bearings,

get to know people and how everything works.

You as their manager should also book in a lunch or two

with your new employee.

The lunches don't have to be anything extravagant.

Building relationships and looking after your new employee

are the key aims.

Arrange for other stakeholders outside your team

to invite your new team member for coffee

over the first few weeks.

The coffee meetings could be part

of a formal induction programme

or as part of a much more informal approach.

Having an informal setting such as lunch or coffee

gets the personal side of relationships building

which is just as important as the professional side.

Meetings in workplace settings such as meeting rooms

are not as good for early relationship building in my view.

Tip nine when planning how to welcome a new employee

is to plan a mini project.

The purpose of planning a mini project

is to give your new employee a project

to keep them busy from the word go.

Ideally it would be a mini project

that firstly the new team member can own.

Secondly that gets them into contact

with a wide range of people.

Third that asks the new employee to review

and potentially challenge the status quo.

New employees are perfectly positioned

to look at the processes, ways of doing things

and the rules that are currently in place

with an unbiased eye.

Use their natural questioning and open-mindedness

at this stage to bring immediate benefits to the company.

And be prepared to implement any sensible changes

suggested through these mini projects.

I mean what better way to create a sense of achievement

and show the company's openness

while getting great value from the process.

Tip 10 when planning how to welcome a new employee

is to book in a team social night.

Social meetings with team members are great places

to build positive and long-lasting relationships.

The more personalized settings allow team members

to let their hair down more

and get to know each other quicker.

Building the personal side of relationships

helps with the professional side of the relationship.

Think of all the reasons behind

all the team building exercises and offsite activities

many companies run to build relationships

between team members,

which in turn increases trust and teamwork.

Consider stopping work early on a Thursday or a Friday

and get the team to the local pub, bar or coffee shop

or take them out temping bowling or to crazy golf

or to something fun.

Make it as easy for everyone to attend as possible

and enjoy it.

So there you have 10 actionable tips

when planning how to welcome a new employee

in the best possible way

to get them up and running as quickly as possible

and adding value to you, the team and the company.

As a quick reminder, the 10 tips are

firstly, send them pre-reads before they start.

Secondly, introduce them within the company

before they start.

Third, get all the IT set up.

Fourth, ask them to start late on the first day.

Fifth, greet them in person and send a welcome note.

Sixth, take them through the induction plan.

Seventh, book in time to train them.

Eight, organise lunch and coffees.

Nine, plan a mini project

and 10, book in a team social night.

If you have any questions,

please leave them in the comment section below

and I'll get back to you.

Thanks very much for watching

and I look forward to seeing you again soon.

I look forward to seeing you again soon.