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The goal of onboarding is to make the new employee a contributor as soon as possible. It is crucial to get it right, and yet it is an afterthought in most startups. If onboarding is the bridge from the offer letter to enculturation, in startups this bridge is often built by the new hire. This may be fine in the short term, but over time creates a poor sense of belonging and weak commitment to the mission. It doesn’t have to be this way.
Systemic impatience begets undisciplined onboarding. The new hire is told there’s too much work to do, so grab a shovel and get to work. Usually, the first day is a flavor of “here’s your brand new chair and laptop (still in their boxes). The first step is to set up both.” What starts out cute and exciting ends up being annoying and disrespectful.
The First Step
Notwithstanding the company’s age or the maturity of the onboarding process, there is a lag between the employee’s first day and the day they become a contributing member of the team. The goal is to get to this point as quickly as possible.
You accomplish this using milestones and checklists and ensuring that the first 90 days are truly spectacular. The process is designed so the employee sees minimal friction in onboarding.
First, pick the milestones and then clarify the expectations of and from the employee and the team. What follows is a sample.
Day 1
What would the team expect the employee to have accomplished at the end of the first day? This could be getting added to the right Discord or Slack channels, email set up, etc.
Day 7
They are ‘situated.’ They know their team lead, onboarding buddy, and teammates.
Day 30
Are they contributing? How comfortable are they with the tools of the trade and team-specific tools? How comfortable are they asking for help? One test is how candid their feedback is on what’s working and what’s not working. If they’re not comfortable being frank, it is a yellow flag.
This checkpoint is the perfect time to start what Adam Grant calls “Entry Interviews.” Instead of waiting till they leave to find out what the company could have done better, Grant recommends sitting down with the employee and seeking their insights early in the onboarding process.
A new employee’s fresh perspective will last for maybe 3-4 more weeks before they become part of the tribe. Onboarding is the best time to use the new hire’s “insider-outsider” perspective and spot inconsistencies between what the company says and what gets done.
Day 60
This checkpoint is a follow-up on Day 30. The new hire should be on their way towards a significant project or a deadline. The work should require focus and diligence, but the pressure manageable.
Day 90
They are a self-reliant member of the team. They are ready and willing to help and, more importantly, unafraid to ask for help. They are looking forward to showing their first significant contribution to their teammates.
Finally
The first time coming up with these timelines is chaotic, especially if the team is small. There is so much tacit communication between a group of 2, 3, 5, or even 8 that unless you set aside time for expectation setting, you might be surprised by the mismatch between the support system a new employee needs and the expectations their new teammates have from them.
This checklist doesn’t require you a PeopleOps background. It requires collaboration, consistency, and feedback. And if you get it right, the effects will show in higher retention and output as an A team. It will also help fight apathy—the ultimate culture killer.