The first day in office it gives quite a few people some anxious moments. It’s quite challenging for a new employee to walk into an office where except for a few individuals, they hardly know anybody. It is incredibly important how well can you prepare it to make them feel special? How do you take the exciting energy of the interviews and meetings forward to make the new employee feel a part of the corporate family?
Mostly, employees make their decision to stay with their company within the first year of employment. And, the first-day impressions last long.
Here Mr. Atul Mahajan Director, of India’s leading manpower outsourcing company, Trendsetters Facilities & Technical Services (TFTS) share 6 such points which state How can you make your employee’s first day memorable?
1. Greet Them Personally:
The first day is not just an opportunity to hand over a list of mandatory training manuals to your new employee and ask them to log in to the organization’s computer system. It’s a critical day for any new employee so, make a point of meeting with them personally. After all, you are their supervisor or boss.
Your new hire is ‘unconsciously incompetent’ they don’t know what to do. They don’t know anyone in the team or the many different personalities that it consists of. They are not familiar with any business related internal jargon. They have no clue how you do things around here. They are literally completely unaware.
No matter how much you are occupied with your work, it’s amazing what a simple friendly smile and personal greeting can do to improve the onboarding experience.
2. Send A Welcome e-mail:
It is one of the best ways to welcome your new employee. You may want to include their photograph but you must include a short bio and career details, what they will do and what department they’ll be working in. To utilize the most of this opportunity, you could always ask the new employee to share some interesting facts or stories about their life outside of work.
This isn’t just an email describing their background but should be an opportunity for them to show some personality.
3. Setup Their Space:
Get all things organized beforehand makes things smoother and easier. The computer system, a contact list of key personnel that they will be interacting with, email access, office supplies, screensavers or pamphlets welcoming them. Giving them mementos such as coffee mugs, pens, chocolate boxes or company jersey can make the day memorable.
4. Involve The Team:
It’s always a great idea to prepare your team for a new team member since they all will be working together in a team. You will certainly get plenty of time to coach the new hire. Though, on the first day, involving your team in the new employee’s induction is very important.
If you can’t accompany them to a meal or a coffee, ensure that someone else in the team is free to have a meal or a coffee with the new hire. It helps the new employee to open up.
5. Assign A Buddy Or Mentor:
Assigning a buddy or mentor provides the new employee to have a go-to person for any query or doubt which they may have. The mentor knows the nuances and can guide them to get familiarize into the culture faster and can be a big source of advice and encouragement. Mentors have a great deal of impact on the new employee, so choose him/her wisely.
6. Debrief Before They Go Home:
Ensure at the end of their first day, sit down with the new employee to find out how the first day went. This will not only make your new employee realize that the company cares about its new employees, but it’s also a chance for your new team member to have some time with you personally to let you know how they’re feeling.
