New employees come and go as fast as lighting, so it makes sense to have a proper onboarding process that ticks all the marks without making the new hire feel uncomfortable on his first day. Well still many companies fail to consider some part of the process unworthy, which later on creates more chaos. That’s why today we will know how to create an Effective Onboarding Checklist that completes the onboarding process and doesn’t cause issues later on.

The onboarding checklist refers to the time and effort needed to fully integrate a new hire into the company. Most people think that it shouldn’t take any more than 7 days, and they bombard the new hire with tons of paperwork and maybe backlogs left by his predecessors. This is a heart breaking situation that also breaks the will to continue. To counter that the onboarding checklist came into picture that can last anywhere between 3 months to even a year. It is not about speedrunning the process, instead it’s all about how to comfortably attach the new blood and mingle it with the existing ones.

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Download the template from the three available links, and get started with the checklist process.

The checklist should be big enough to cover a wide array of tasks. It begins far before the employee joins, and fundamentally it never ends until the company sees the result in numbers and feedback. So, a typical and good onboarding checklist can accomplish anything, and it pretty much looks like this:

1. Pre-Onboarding

This is where all the necessary paperworks is dealt with like offer letter background verification and so on. But that’s not where it ends. It also contains these stages:

1. Personalised email from Manager to the new hire.

2. If it’s not a remote role, the manager prepares beforehand to personally greet the new hire.

3. Gifts or maybe a bouquet for the first meeting.

4. The IT team prepares his workbench with all the credentials logged in. 

5. The administration branch makes sure he is properly registered in the database and his ID cards are available.

6. Notifying the department head that they are getting a new hire, and prepare for him beforehand.

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2. First Day Activity

Now that the new hire is on the office ground, he should be provided a proper onboarding meeting explaining these:

1. The code of conduct, leave policies and anything in between.

2. Company’s rulebook and calendar.

3. All the employment forms that need filling.

4. Where the restrooms and necessary public places are inside the building.

5. Company’s history and why he is here.

6. Final briefing of his salary package, how much taxes will be reduced and clear any doubts regarding cash.

3. First Week Integration

The first week is all about making mistakes and learning from them. The company shouldn’t expect much from him during that time, and he should be made clear about it. So instead the department head provides short tasks which will rotate on a daily basis, providing him with the necessary fundamental knowledge about how things work. A mentor is also assigned to clear any doubts that may pop during that time.

4. 30 Days and beyond

Now the employee should be expected to do 100% of the work and should start preparing towards the long term goals. It may be a promotion, training or any career aspects that he may be into. The waiting game begins now, but that doesn’t matter if the fundamentals are gone. He will still need guidance as usual and the mentor should still try to help unstuck him. It just never stops, only the frequency goes down and that’s it.

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An Effective Onboarding Checklist process can determine how long a new hire lasts. Lack of supervision or helping hand can mentally and emotionally break a person, which eventually leads to a premature resignation. The company can lose highly talented individuals that way, and time too. So yeah, do not take the onboarding checking lightly, and it will do wonders in return.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. What is the biggest mistake made during the onboarding process?

Ans. Companies often focus too much on paper works, and too little on other important aspects like Role clarity, relationship building and proper understanding of how the culture works in the brand. This kind of chaotic onboarding process is the lead cause of early departure of new hires.

Q2. Who is responsible for the onboarding checklist?

Ans. The onboarding checklist process is shared among multiple departments. Like HR handles the offer letter and all the usual documentation, while the IT team quickly starts the login and credential stage and finally the manager and mentor play the big role of making him comfortable in the workspace.

Q3. How long should the onboarding process last?

Ans. The initial stage shouldn’t last any more than a few days. But the real journey begins afterwards, and the entire process may take 3 months to even a year. It is all about fully integrating the employee in the company's space, rather than speedrunning it.

Q4. Is the same checklist possible in remote jobs?

Ans. It is even more necessary in Work from Home setups since there is no one in person to guide him. Just think how you will replicate the in-person part virtually, and that’s it. Just some additional checks might be needed like supplying of equipment, where shipping time will also come into the equation.

Q5. How to know if the onboarding checklist is even working?

Ans. The best sign will be that the new hire isn’t new anymore. I mean if he crossed the 6 month mark, that is a good sign that he is almost fully integrated into the company’s workforce. Other signs would be: Better retention rate, productivity, relationship with colleagues and higher ups, manager’s feedback and so on.

Sources:

1. New Hire Onboarding Checklist | Indeed for Employers

2. New Hire Onboarding Checklist | LinkedIn Talent Solutions

3. Employee Onboarding: All You Need To Know [+ FREE Checklists]

4. 9 New-Hire Checklist Templates to Get Onboarding Right

5. Employee Onboarding Checklist [Steps & Best Practices] | Atlassian