Best Practices - Tips for an amazing new hire experience (even when working remotely!)

You've found the perfect hire - congrats! Take a moment to celebrate (fist pump in the air - do a little chair dance) - and then refill your coffee cup - because the hard work isn't over! 

The time between the acceptance of an offer letter, marking the candidate as "Hired" in Trakstar Hire, and them arriving on the first day can vary. Regardless of how long it is, there are key things you can do to make the new hire feel welcome, and get up and running quickly on day one!

Things to do right away

• Begin the internal process for getting their "gear" ready - whatever this is for your business! Keep in mind that ordering equipment - especially if being mailed to a remote employee. 
• Set up their email address, and start building logins. Internally, we have a list of logins for each role, and who "owns" building these. This makes it fast and easy to get these assigned to a new employee
• Mail the employee a welcome card! Yes, a physical card through the actual mail! Everyone loves getting mail - and getting a surprise welcome card from your new company before your first day will make your new hire know you're excited to see them. Pro tips - use a company branded card, and sign the card from the full team!
• Send the new hire an email letting them know what the next steps will be - when will they hear from you next? Is there anything they need to purchase or prepare for day 1? Any particular dress code that they need to be ready for?

Things to do 2 (business) days before their first day

2 business days before the new hire starts, here are some things to make sure you do:

• Send them an email that contains:
  • Directions for day 1, including: expected dress, what time they'll start on the first day, and where (or how!) to get to their first meeting. Remember to include directions for video chat, if this is the preferred method
  • Ideally, their schedule for the first week - so they can know what to expect 
  • Let them know who to contact if they run into questions or problems on day one
• Enroll the employee in their E-Learning Onboarding Course
• Finish their training schedule
  • Assign internal people to help with each training task
• Invite the employee to any reoccurring calendar events that are relevant to them
• Double check that you have all logins - including any necessary passwords
• Give their teammates a heads up about them starting!

Things to do on their first day

• Have a person assigned to spend the first hour of the day with the new hire. 
  • If you are remote, this will be over video chat!
  • Use this time to get logged in to all critical logins
  • If your team uses an internal chat tool (slack, teams, etc) show the employee how to use this software - and add them to any relevant channels/rooms
• Review the schedule with the employee, and let them answer any questions
• Announce the new hire to the team/company!

Things to do in the first week

• Have a team member that is assigned to check in with the new hire each day of their first week
• The new hire should have at least one check-in with their direct manager during their first week 
• Make sure the new hire is included on all weekly team meetings / updates
• Set up an engagement survey to check on the employee throughout their first few months.

Progress Checks after week one

• After the first week, we recommend progress checks using the Performance Management Module
  • 30 days in
  • 90 days in
  • 6 months in
  • 1 year in
• Each of these checkins allows you to see:
  • How is the employee progressing?
  • What gaps/opportunities exist?
  • What goals can we set for the next time period? 

Start Planning for your next hire

It's never too early to start. Read our best tips here.