Setting up new employees for success from day one is crucial. A solid onboarding plan can help ensure your new employees get a great first impression of your company, while also providing the rest of your team with the resources they need to support the new hire.
One of the best ways to manage all the moving pieces of onboarding is by using a new hire checklist. With a documented and formalized approach to onboarding, you'll show new employees that you're ready to help them succeed starting on their very first day.
Why do HR teams need a new hire checklist?
Onboarding is a new hire's first experience with your company's culture. How you structure the experience — from the meetings to the paperwork — is their introduction to being a part of your team. It conveys what your company expects of them and how much support you offer. If this first experience is positive, it will reinforce your new hire's decision to join your organization.
Using a new hire checklist as part of your onboarding process helps you, as the employer, set the tone immediately. With one checklist, you introduce new hires to your company culture and show them what success at the organization looks like. It can also be a way for you to address initial questions they may have about their role or the company.
Additionally, a new hire checklist standardizes onboarding for everyone, no matter what their role or which member of human resources they're working with. A documented set of steps and processes gives everyone the same experience, making it easy for you to identify future opportunities for improvement.
The complete new hire checklist
Preparing for a new employee can be overwhelming, so we’ve broken down your team's new hire tasks into four smaller, easily digestible checklists:
- New hire paperwork
- Company policies, benefits, and general information
- Employee orientation
- Equipment and supplies
You can download a printable copy of these checklists below and customize them to meet your needs, or use the items we've listed here to help you create your own checklists.