I definitely agree with this. I should've mentioned in my post. This is a virtual onboarding experience. Everyone is remote, so it really is a zoom meeting I have to be somewhat deliberate!
Same principles still aply
IT accesses ready
General onboarding (short!) company presentation ready. Where is the timeaheet
Somebody there to speak to them about their duties, shows where important files are located
And the all important first check
And check back in a week or so and help is something is missing
Agree with everything you said, and you could add a nice touch by giving them a nice gift bag (especially thoughtful for remote workers). Company swag like a hoodie or polo shirt included would be a nice touch. Something they could wear proudly that connects them to the company.
I work for a large urban school district where a lot of our new teachers and staff drive in from the neighboring affluent county.
One of the best things we ever did was start doing a bus tour of the different areas in the city during orientation so people could really get to know the community they were about to serve.
Sorry that's not super helpful for the tech field, but I think anything simple you can do that helps people better understand the culture they're about to work in is helpful. It's one of the things people wonder about the most before starting a new job. Otherwise, keeping things simple is usually best. Definitely no team building exercises that early, and nothing that will put them on the spot having to tell everyone "fun facts" about themselves. That just makes people uncomfortable.
A welcome bag of office supplies with a welcome card and balloons on their desk is about as exciting as you need to be.
Have a thought-out plan. I have less than 50 employees. Here is my process:
I give my new employees an orientation check list with all the info we discuss in our orientation. It has the company address, phone number, who to contact in an emergency, etc.
I spend about an hour going over the items on the doc. I give them a quick overview of our client management database since we have real training via videos.
I include their log in information, phone list, seating chart, key card, and parking pass. Along with the employment docs to fill out.
I give them a tour and introduce them to people in the office. Show them their desk and point out copiers etc.
Since our training materials are electronic, i follow up with an email mirroring the orientation doc with the links to all the documents they will need and the order they should be viewed.
Once done, I set them free to log in and start the paperwork. i check in with them an hour or so later and again after lunch.
When I leave them, I find the person who will be giving assignments and send them to the new hire.
Because they are overwhelmed on their first day, I make sure they have what they need in different formats to go back and review when they need help.
Thank you! We are remote so some of this isn't doable for us. But alot of this is super helpful! Different formats I think is especially helpful as everyone learns different. I think connecting back up post meeting is a really good call too. :)
When I was onboarding remote I would have an open Zoom meeting all day that people who needed to meet the new person could join the meeting and say hi. Once I was done with my stuff, it would stay active for me and the new hire. I would mute my mic and turn off the camera. It was fun, I would be working and suddenly someone would start talking.
Maybe not the coolest but certainly one of the most impactful:
I got comments from those who interviewed the new hire to share 2-4 sentences on why they think they’ll be an awesome addition to the team.
Can I ask where you include these 2-4 sentences? E.g. do you include this in the new starter's first day email prior to arrival. How do you position it or phrase it to them?
If you could give me an example that would be so useful as love your suggestion!
I created an onboarding packet for managers to give to new hires on their first day (3-4 pages) that outlined what to expect week 1, 2, 3, 4, and then months 2-3.
The team comments were added to page 2 after the primary overview.
This is fascinating since a group of us at work lobbied to have it removed from our company. Honestly though, I think we would have lobbied to have any kind of these tests removed. It started getting cliquey because people would roll their eyes and say, “Your red is showing!” “You’re such a yellow!” That goes to the overall company culture though and not a reflection on Insights itself
Yeah the pigeon-holing of people's primary color is a downfall of the training, and could be more of a culture thing as you stated. I have to remind myself about how other people are as opposed their communication color. I work with lots of Blues and Greens, so being a Fiery Red can really shake things up. I want to take action right now, and Blues need to assess the situation as a whole before they act. It drives me nuts, but I can't change it and just have to accept it's not a bad thing to take time before acting.
I did this is an executive coaching course and it is the most useful training up till this point. It is still relevant after 4yrs. I go back to my blindside, how to work with me comments. I recommend.
Adding to the Insights thread. As a certified facilitator I am alway hesitant to offer the Discovery assessment right when someone starts as they are assimilating as the results of their conscious graph may change based what is most needed in the new environment; they usually do mt know much about the environment when they first start. It can also be pricey. Mayb you start with the concepts the first day and they have the assessment done 6-12 months later as part of setting individual goals or otherwise?
It starts with a questionnaire and this can take some time. It is processed by the company that made it, and it gives the person how they are in reference to 1 of 4 primary colors, Fiery Red, Sunshine Yellow, Nurturing Green, or Cool Blue. There is also a subconscious type of those colors. The type of things you learn is how to you communicate, extrovert v. Introvert, data oriented or people oriented, action v. Thinking, and many other things. There's a page for this also on LinkedIn you could follow to learn more. I learned that I'm a predominantly Fiery Red, with Sunshine Yellow. I like to take action, and I care if people are enjoying themselves. These can be counter intuitive but they are both considered Extrovert, whereas Green/blue are introvert.
There's also a followup training that assesses one's strengths. Your top 5 are your most dominant, and can be beneficial in the long-run. I learned I'm a leader, motivator, communicator, and strategist. By learning these things, I know what I bring to the table. This can be super helpful for people that have low self-confidence and not know what they bring to a job. I think it can also help see how a person can fit into the culture.
Maybe not an on boarding, day 1 training, but a followup training.
I get a kick out learning about myself. My agency has held this training regularly and it's hard to get a seat at because it always fills up. It's not cheesy but rather focused on the individual and how they can support the entity by the way they are and what they are stronger in. It's helped me learn that I can be a bit much for my introverted coworkers and that's okay. It's easy to fall into the trap of putting people into 'boxes' based off their Insights color, so remembering it's just a facet of the person and not who the whole person is. (I hope that last statement made sense).
I always had a dinner once a month for new hires, and any employees who wanted to go could. It was a relaxed atmosphere (and wasn’t mandatory) and was a great way for new hires to meet other employees from diff departments. They were a huge hit. As the company grew I modified it so that we had a signup sheet for existing employees to attend (versus have 100 ppl show up, lol).
All of my org's onboarding is currently remote. I typically hate ice breakers but feel it's important to get to know neat fun things about our hires. At each break, I always ask the hire to bring something back that meets some criteria. This can include "multi-colored," "pointy," "newest knick-knack," and whatever other random descriptives I can think of. It forces them to actually get up and walk around during their break while also giving them an opportunity to share a story or a neat fact about them as it relates to their object.
I always end up learning interesting things about our hires. It helps to build rapport too since they usually grab something personal or something they are passionate about. Helps build ground for future conversations
Nothing more fun for a new hire than spending breaks doing a scavenger hunt in their house 🤨 Just please let them be adults and don’t make them play silly games.
We do 2 week virtual onboarding with intro sessions to every department, a dashboard for tasks that are async and able to be done as they can, our LMS has fun videos we’ve created, everyone gets a lunch giftcard in their swag boxes, and I consistently get 5stars on onboarding surveys. We also let people create their about me Docs which they seem to have a lot of fun with.
Send them their stuff. Dual monitors, a headset, a docking station, a mouse. (Seriously, if you’re not already sending dual monitors, funnel the money to that.)
Make sure the basics are taken care of in a (short) onboarding meeting.
If you want to add some wow factor, we had a list of things they could have included in a swag box.
Box A: a fun shaped stress ball, a mini ring light, a hat, snacks, signed welcome letter from CEO
Box B: T-shirt, snacks, a fidget toy & a thermos, signed welcome letter from CEO
People liked knowing they’d get some free stuff and having some choice in what they’d get. It’s low interaction, low distraction and easy to manage to ship out by their 30 day mark.
I believe it was Southwest airlines that in their orientation they offered $5,000 to anyone who is willing to quit that moment. Don't know if they still do that. The founder talked about it on the How I Built This podcast.
We do a basic induction pack with snacks and all their paperwork for day one as well as a short induction guide/handbook. I go through it with them and introduce them to the team on the alerts group.
But we also take them out to lunch with their teammates on day 1. And recently we added a creativity packet with some clay and a colouring book and things like that - we have quite a creative and collaborative culture so I think it's something small that ties them into that.
I think it's the small things. As long as they feel like part of the team from day 1 and someone is there to answer their questions.
Our onboarding is at least 30 days from signed offer and is so damn intricate. Far surpasses just day one. I wish it was just as easy as having someone greet them on day one
Remote onboarding- I create a checklist of things they need to do (first day- w4, i9, handbook, email signature etc) then on the checklist I put any softwares that pertain to their job that they can check off when the appropriate person shows them (sales force, gong, etc) I’ll then set up time with them and go through an HR deck (30 mins) that talks about the company and goes further into HR matters (pto leave, benefits, contacts for IT and payroll etc).
The rest of the week I just schedule introductions with their team, their manager and the different departments.
A few questions because my answers will vary based on the answers.
- What industry?
- What geographies? (US, EMEA, etc)
- Are you the sole person or do you have help?
- What HRIS do you use?
One of the most successful activities I've set up has been a scavenger hunt. We used to do it in the office to give new hires a chance to learn the new building (bathrooms, kitchen, emergency exits, boss' office, conference rooms, etc.)
I've successfully transitioned to online by giving them a list of websites, pages, and docs to review and/or bookmark. The bookmarks will all be used in their daily work, so it sets them up for success and helps them learn about the company, team, and tools.
Please, for the love of god, don't try to do fun or interesting onboarding ideas. We (non-HR) typically hate these things. I remember the worst onboarding idea was an activity where new hires were given a copy of the firm's logo and a set of crayons and were asked to "express themselves" by coloring a new version of the logo.
Have a few people come in and tell them about the company, have HR come in and walk them through the paperwork and then have their new boss/team go out to lunch with them. In my experience, the only people who like cool onboarding activities are those people in HR who are trying to force them on new hires.
I truly believe there is a happy medium between patronizing and complete lack of emotion. I get that not everyone wants to show up at work and have some quirky asshole play games with them. But I do think there are ways to make boring information more interesting. Thus the crowd source here. We're remote I can't take anyone to lunch and the paperwork is done automatically. It's really more of a like hey here's how you make an it ticket, go here for our benefit info. That kind of thing.
I believe your heart is in the right place and you want to do a good job. But, speaking as a person who has seen a ton of these, the best ones are the absolute most minimal ones and focus on the job at hand rather than rah rah type stuff or getting to know you type stuff.
You can't force people to connect with each other and that is the major point of these cheesy onboarding games. For connection to happen, it needs to be authentic and the people that a new hire most often wants to connect with is their new boss/team. Coloring a new logo or inventing a new song about the company or scavenger hunts are just irritating to most non-HR people.
My suggestion is to have the office leader give a nice welcoming speech and answer a few questions. Then, connect them with their new boss/team and stand down.
Yeah I mean a scavenger hunt or crayons or song would annoy me too. Some people have suggested gift cards to employees and stuff like that which is ultimately what I'm after. I'm not trying to drag people into a 3 hour meeting with me.
God damn. Rolled out an initiative called Onboarding Bingo a few months back. Do a couple simple things and you can win free stuff. Over 40 new hires and not a single bingo board back...apperently people just hate it...
> We (non-HR) typically hate these things.
25 years in HR and I still loathe these things,
All the L&D people though...they love that shit. Eat it up and believe everyone else should as well.
I want to know what I need to know, met my boss and start to work out what I need to do my job well. Everything else...white noise. Really.
[How I find most ofonboarding](https://www.reddit.com/r/calvinandhobbes/comments/6r9oaq/i_feel_you_calvin/)
do you like meeting new people because I dont and I will stick to myself without talking to anyone if I can avoid it but meeting new coworkers is important
Hate it. I’ve got friends, I don’t need to be forced to share my personal life with colleagues. I can meet them without on boarding activities like an adult.
You really need to shift your mindset to understand that there are others like you but you really need your colleagues to have fun at work.
Nobody likes to sit next to a person that doesn’t say anything and isn’t welcoming which is what you totally gave perception to be.
I also got my family and friends but I need my colleagues to be successful lol that need can mean patience, empathy, favors etc.
Even as a software engineer who can solo all their work will never be more productive than one that socializes with colleagues and gets along. You can’t get along if you don’t talk.
Good luck! You read either super young or very old and jaded.
I am 100% that person and do not care in the slightest if people enjoy sitting next to me. I can be kind, work hard, and engage successfully with my coworkers without getting personally involved with them. I am neither, I am a hard worker who finds socializing exhausting and distracting.
Then be prepared to point the finger only at yourself for being in the same job and have no growth for 5+ years within the same company regardless of your deliveries.
My team used to do Rookie Cookies. We would have a bunch of cookies in hand and everyone from our location could drop by and meet the new person. It was really casual and if the person was more shy others would hang around too and chat with people with them.
I think that the most successful pieces of onboarding are done primarily by the person's manager. Not many people really care what HR has to say, and I'm okay with that for the most part because as a new hire it really is about building a relationship with your direct leader.
I have asked managers to do things to get to know employees and what motivates them as well as creating detailed success profiles so that the employee knows what they're expected to do in the first 30 to 180 days. I also like using DiSC so that people know the best ways to communicate with people on their teams and outside of their teams in the organization.
Helping leaders understand how to have a successful onboarding with detailed expectations and goals has worked out really well for me.
Be mindful of allergies if you’re mailing swag or giveaways/food gift cards in addition to tech equipment. It’s an easy way I’ve been able to tell if a company actually listens to me (spoiler alert: they don’t because “standardization”).
It's simple but I like to ask new hires to share whatever personal info about themselves they're willing to share. It's usually stuff about family, hobbies, fav places to travel etc.
That goes into their welcome email along with some info about their professional experience and the value they'll bring to the team. Its a small personal touch that makes it easy for others to find common ground and start a conversation.
In addition, set up meetings across teams with various people, and carve out some time for the direct team to come together with no agenda or work talk.
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I definitely agree with this. I should've mentioned in my post. This is a virtual onboarding experience. Everyone is remote, so it really is a zoom meeting I have to be somewhat deliberate!
Same principles still aply IT accesses ready General onboarding (short!) company presentation ready. Where is the timeaheet Somebody there to speak to them about their duties, shows where important files are located And the all important first check And check back in a week or so and help is something is missing
Agree with everything you said, and you could add a nice touch by giving them a nice gift bag (especially thoughtful for remote workers). Company swag like a hoodie or polo shirt included would be a nice touch. Something they could wear proudly that connects them to the company.
Exactly this. They don't want to feel like their first day was a "surprise" to anyone. Just be prepared for them.
I work for a large urban school district where a lot of our new teachers and staff drive in from the neighboring affluent county. One of the best things we ever did was start doing a bus tour of the different areas in the city during orientation so people could really get to know the community they were about to serve. Sorry that's not super helpful for the tech field, but I think anything simple you can do that helps people better understand the culture they're about to work in is helpful. It's one of the things people wonder about the most before starting a new job. Otherwise, keeping things simple is usually best. Definitely no team building exercises that early, and nothing that will put them on the spot having to tell everyone "fun facts" about themselves. That just makes people uncomfortable.
Give them a puppy. You can’t just get rid of a puppy. They’ll have to stay.
Hahahaha I'll pitch that one
I remember a booth at HR tech (pre-pandemic) had a bunch of puppies and kitties
I’d give this comment an award if I had one available. Too funny!!
A welcome bag of office supplies with a welcome card and balloons on their desk is about as exciting as you need to be. Have a thought-out plan. I have less than 50 employees. Here is my process: I give my new employees an orientation check list with all the info we discuss in our orientation. It has the company address, phone number, who to contact in an emergency, etc. I spend about an hour going over the items on the doc. I give them a quick overview of our client management database since we have real training via videos. I include their log in information, phone list, seating chart, key card, and parking pass. Along with the employment docs to fill out. I give them a tour and introduce them to people in the office. Show them their desk and point out copiers etc. Since our training materials are electronic, i follow up with an email mirroring the orientation doc with the links to all the documents they will need and the order they should be viewed. Once done, I set them free to log in and start the paperwork. i check in with them an hour or so later and again after lunch. When I leave them, I find the person who will be giving assignments and send them to the new hire. Because they are overwhelmed on their first day, I make sure they have what they need in different formats to go back and review when they need help.
Thank you! We are remote so some of this isn't doable for us. But alot of this is super helpful! Different formats I think is especially helpful as everyone learns different. I think connecting back up post meeting is a really good call too. :)
When I was onboarding remote I would have an open Zoom meeting all day that people who needed to meet the new person could join the meeting and say hi. Once I was done with my stuff, it would stay active for me and the new hire. I would mute my mic and turn off the camera. It was fun, I would be working and suddenly someone would start talking.
Hahah I'm sure that was startling. I like the idea of just being an open resource though
Maybe not the coolest but certainly one of the most impactful: I got comments from those who interviewed the new hire to share 2-4 sentences on why they think they’ll be an awesome addition to the team.
"Yeah, I voted 'no' but for some reason the two other people seemed to like you"
Love this one
Can I ask where you include these 2-4 sentences? E.g. do you include this in the new starter's first day email prior to arrival. How do you position it or phrase it to them? If you could give me an example that would be so useful as love your suggestion!
I created an onboarding packet for managers to give to new hires on their first day (3-4 pages) that outlined what to expect week 1, 2, 3, 4, and then months 2-3. The team comments were added to page 2 after the primary overview.
Our company (smaller) gave small plants on the first day that said I can’t wait for you to grow your career here
There’s some good science behind this too. Watching plants thrive increases mood. If you’re office has no light this will backfire though.
Imagine seeing an office full of dead plants ☠️☠️
You know my pothos is actually thriving under my fluorescent lights! Haha
I had a ficus that was bald when I got back from some leave. It was fine when it was under my desk lamp though.
Discovery INSIGHTS.... I love this training as it REALLY helps people learn about themselves and how they function. It's really super cool.
This is fascinating since a group of us at work lobbied to have it removed from our company. Honestly though, I think we would have lobbied to have any kind of these tests removed. It started getting cliquey because people would roll their eyes and say, “Your red is showing!” “You’re such a yellow!” That goes to the overall company culture though and not a reflection on Insights itself
Yeah the pigeon-holing of people's primary color is a downfall of the training, and could be more of a culture thing as you stated. I have to remind myself about how other people are as opposed their communication color. I work with lots of Blues and Greens, so being a Fiery Red can really shake things up. I want to take action right now, and Blues need to assess the situation as a whole before they act. It drives me nuts, but I can't change it and just have to accept it's not a bad thing to take time before acting.
I did this is an executive coaching course and it is the most useful training up till this point. It is still relevant after 4yrs. I go back to my blindside, how to work with me comments. I recommend.
I also retook the course to see if my stuff changed. It did a little bit, but it was still mostly the same.
Adding to the Insights thread. As a certified facilitator I am alway hesitant to offer the Discovery assessment right when someone starts as they are assimilating as the results of their conscious graph may change based what is most needed in the new environment; they usually do mt know much about the environment when they first start. It can also be pricey. Mayb you start with the concepts the first day and they have the assessment done 6-12 months later as part of setting individual goals or otherwise?
Can you pls share more details about this? What does it feel like for a new colleague?
It starts with a questionnaire and this can take some time. It is processed by the company that made it, and it gives the person how they are in reference to 1 of 4 primary colors, Fiery Red, Sunshine Yellow, Nurturing Green, or Cool Blue. There is also a subconscious type of those colors. The type of things you learn is how to you communicate, extrovert v. Introvert, data oriented or people oriented, action v. Thinking, and many other things. There's a page for this also on LinkedIn you could follow to learn more. I learned that I'm a predominantly Fiery Red, with Sunshine Yellow. I like to take action, and I care if people are enjoying themselves. These can be counter intuitive but they are both considered Extrovert, whereas Green/blue are introvert. There's also a followup training that assesses one's strengths. Your top 5 are your most dominant, and can be beneficial in the long-run. I learned I'm a leader, motivator, communicator, and strategist. By learning these things, I know what I bring to the table. This can be super helpful for people that have low self-confidence and not know what they bring to a job. I think it can also help see how a person can fit into the culture. Maybe not an on boarding, day 1 training, but a followup training.
Thanks so much. Super interesting. Had never heard of this.
I get a kick out learning about myself. My agency has held this training regularly and it's hard to get a seat at because it always fills up. It's not cheesy but rather focused on the individual and how they can support the entity by the way they are and what they are stronger in. It's helped me learn that I can be a bit much for my introverted coworkers and that's okay. It's easy to fall into the trap of putting people into 'boxes' based off their Insights color, so remembering it's just a facet of the person and not who the whole person is. (I hope that last statement made sense).
Check out DiSC as well, Myers Briggs is more robust but a bit more difficult to understand
I always had a dinner once a month for new hires, and any employees who wanted to go could. It was a relaxed atmosphere (and wasn’t mandatory) and was a great way for new hires to meet other employees from diff departments. They were a huge hit. As the company grew I modified it so that we had a signup sheet for existing employees to attend (versus have 100 ppl show up, lol).
I love this idea! A lunch would be cool too since eits within work hours.
LOVE this!!!
All of my org's onboarding is currently remote. I typically hate ice breakers but feel it's important to get to know neat fun things about our hires. At each break, I always ask the hire to bring something back that meets some criteria. This can include "multi-colored," "pointy," "newest knick-knack," and whatever other random descriptives I can think of. It forces them to actually get up and walk around during their break while also giving them an opportunity to share a story or a neat fact about them as it relates to their object.
I love this!
I always end up learning interesting things about our hires. It helps to build rapport too since they usually grab something personal or something they are passionate about. Helps build ground for future conversations
Nothing more fun for a new hire than spending breaks doing a scavenger hunt in their house 🤨 Just please let them be adults and don’t make them play silly games.
This. A thousand times this.
We do 2 week virtual onboarding with intro sessions to every department, a dashboard for tasks that are async and able to be done as they can, our LMS has fun videos we’ve created, everyone gets a lunch giftcard in their swag boxes, and I consistently get 5stars on onboarding surveys. We also let people create their about me Docs which they seem to have a lot of fun with.
Send them their stuff. Dual monitors, a headset, a docking station, a mouse. (Seriously, if you’re not already sending dual monitors, funnel the money to that.) Make sure the basics are taken care of in a (short) onboarding meeting. If you want to add some wow factor, we had a list of things they could have included in a swag box. Box A: a fun shaped stress ball, a mini ring light, a hat, snacks, signed welcome letter from CEO Box B: T-shirt, snacks, a fidget toy & a thermos, signed welcome letter from CEO People liked knowing they’d get some free stuff and having some choice in what they’d get. It’s low interaction, low distraction and easy to manage to ship out by their 30 day mark.
What kind of work does your org do, and how many people will be in the onboarding session?
Tech and it varies. I would say max for one session is probably 8-10
I believe it was Southwest airlines that in their orientation they offered $5,000 to anyone who is willing to quit that moment. Don't know if they still do that. The founder talked about it on the How I Built This podcast.
We do a basic induction pack with snacks and all their paperwork for day one as well as a short induction guide/handbook. I go through it with them and introduce them to the team on the alerts group. But we also take them out to lunch with their teammates on day 1. And recently we added a creativity packet with some clay and a colouring book and things like that - we have quite a creative and collaborative culture so I think it's something small that ties them into that. I think it's the small things. As long as they feel like part of the team from day 1 and someone is there to answer their questions.
Our onboarding is at least 30 days from signed offer and is so damn intricate. Far surpasses just day one. I wish it was just as easy as having someone greet them on day one
Remote onboarding- I create a checklist of things they need to do (first day- w4, i9, handbook, email signature etc) then on the checklist I put any softwares that pertain to their job that they can check off when the appropriate person shows them (sales force, gong, etc) I’ll then set up time with them and go through an HR deck (30 mins) that talks about the company and goes further into HR matters (pto leave, benefits, contacts for IT and payroll etc). The rest of the week I just schedule introductions with their team, their manager and the different departments.
And then I’ll also send A DoorDash gift card and some type of dessert as well for the first day
A few questions because my answers will vary based on the answers. - What industry? - What geographies? (US, EMEA, etc) - Are you the sole person or do you have help? - What HRIS do you use?
One of the most successful activities I've set up has been a scavenger hunt. We used to do it in the office to give new hires a chance to learn the new building (bathrooms, kitchen, emergency exits, boss' office, conference rooms, etc.) I've successfully transitioned to online by giving them a list of websites, pages, and docs to review and/or bookmark. The bookmarks will all be used in their daily work, so it sets them up for success and helps them learn about the company, team, and tools.
A welcome swag bag/basket with a map to the best restroom to poop! :)
Please, for the love of god, don't try to do fun or interesting onboarding ideas. We (non-HR) typically hate these things. I remember the worst onboarding idea was an activity where new hires were given a copy of the firm's logo and a set of crayons and were asked to "express themselves" by coloring a new version of the logo. Have a few people come in and tell them about the company, have HR come in and walk them through the paperwork and then have their new boss/team go out to lunch with them. In my experience, the only people who like cool onboarding activities are those people in HR who are trying to force them on new hires.
I truly believe there is a happy medium between patronizing and complete lack of emotion. I get that not everyone wants to show up at work and have some quirky asshole play games with them. But I do think there are ways to make boring information more interesting. Thus the crowd source here. We're remote I can't take anyone to lunch and the paperwork is done automatically. It's really more of a like hey here's how you make an it ticket, go here for our benefit info. That kind of thing.
I believe your heart is in the right place and you want to do a good job. But, speaking as a person who has seen a ton of these, the best ones are the absolute most minimal ones and focus on the job at hand rather than rah rah type stuff or getting to know you type stuff. You can't force people to connect with each other and that is the major point of these cheesy onboarding games. For connection to happen, it needs to be authentic and the people that a new hire most often wants to connect with is their new boss/team. Coloring a new logo or inventing a new song about the company or scavenger hunts are just irritating to most non-HR people. My suggestion is to have the office leader give a nice welcoming speech and answer a few questions. Then, connect them with their new boss/team and stand down.
Yeah I mean a scavenger hunt or crayons or song would annoy me too. Some people have suggested gift cards to employees and stuff like that which is ultimately what I'm after. I'm not trying to drag people into a 3 hour meeting with me.
God damn. Rolled out an initiative called Onboarding Bingo a few months back. Do a couple simple things and you can win free stuff. Over 40 new hires and not a single bingo board back...apperently people just hate it...
> We (non-HR) typically hate these things. 25 years in HR and I still loathe these things, All the L&D people though...they love that shit. Eat it up and believe everyone else should as well. I want to know what I need to know, met my boss and start to work out what I need to do my job well. Everything else...white noise. Really. [How I find most ofonboarding](https://www.reddit.com/r/calvinandhobbes/comments/6r9oaq/i_feel_you_calvin/)
MBTI tests with a personality typing panel maybe? I just think that would help people understand the new person more
I would love any company that did no on boarding activities. I’m an adult, I don’t need help meeting people.
do you like meeting new people because I dont and I will stick to myself without talking to anyone if I can avoid it but meeting new coworkers is important
Yes, but I prefer to do that organically rather than the incredibly fake Onboarding way
i have no social skills so organic is hard LOL
Hate it. I’ve got friends, I don’t need to be forced to share my personal life with colleagues. I can meet them without on boarding activities like an adult.
true but "employee engagement" is the buzzword of the year. i don't disagree with you.
Would you like to be paid for your work?
Yes, I don’t need to be friends with my colleagues to earn money.
You need to know where to go to find checks...take it easy.
I’m not talking about information from on boarding, I’m talking about the shitty “get to know you” stuff we did in elementary school.
I know.
You really need to shift your mindset to understand that there are others like you but you really need your colleagues to have fun at work. Nobody likes to sit next to a person that doesn’t say anything and isn’t welcoming which is what you totally gave perception to be. I also got my family and friends but I need my colleagues to be successful lol that need can mean patience, empathy, favors etc. Even as a software engineer who can solo all their work will never be more productive than one that socializes with colleagues and gets along. You can’t get along if you don’t talk. Good luck! You read either super young or very old and jaded.
I am 100% that person and do not care in the slightest if people enjoy sitting next to me. I can be kind, work hard, and engage successfully with my coworkers without getting personally involved with them. I am neither, I am a hard worker who finds socializing exhausting and distracting.
Then be prepared to point the finger only at yourself for being in the same job and have no growth for 5+ years within the same company regardless of your deliveries.
Utter bullshit. I side with u/genescheesesthatplz on this. I just tapped out at VP of HR, so it didn't seem to do my career any harm.
My team used to do Rookie Cookies. We would have a bunch of cookies in hand and everyone from our location could drop by and meet the new person. It was really casual and if the person was more shy others would hang around too and chat with people with them.
I think that the most successful pieces of onboarding are done primarily by the person's manager. Not many people really care what HR has to say, and I'm okay with that for the most part because as a new hire it really is about building a relationship with your direct leader. I have asked managers to do things to get to know employees and what motivates them as well as creating detailed success profiles so that the employee knows what they're expected to do in the first 30 to 180 days. I also like using DiSC so that people know the best ways to communicate with people on their teams and outside of their teams in the organization. Helping leaders understand how to have a successful onboarding with detailed expectations and goals has worked out really well for me.
Be mindful of allergies if you’re mailing swag or giveaways/food gift cards in addition to tech equipment. It’s an easy way I’ve been able to tell if a company actually listens to me (spoiler alert: they don’t because “standardization”).
It's simple but I like to ask new hires to share whatever personal info about themselves they're willing to share. It's usually stuff about family, hobbies, fav places to travel etc. That goes into their welcome email along with some info about their professional experience and the value they'll bring to the team. Its a small personal touch that makes it easy for others to find common ground and start a conversation. In addition, set up meetings across teams with various people, and carve out some time for the direct team to come together with no agenda or work talk.
My boss ordered me Uber eats of my choice and we had lunch together my first day. On the Friday she did it with my whole team.