Onboarding Checklist
Enable Productive
Employees From Day One
What can you
A Great Start Can
find in this guide? Have a Lasting Effect
Did you know?
Only 12% of newly-hired employees think
their organisation has a great onboarding
01 Before Their First Day process. However, 91% of employees who
have experienced effective onboarding feel
strongly connected to their work. The kind
of connectedness that drives both productivity
02 During Their First Day and retention.
There’s a clear gap between how employees
feel about onboarding programs and how
03 During Their First Week effective they have the potential to become.
Given that kind of room for improvement, it’s
a bit overdue that employers put a structured
04 After Their First Week and seamless onboarding process in place.
In this guide, we offer a checklist for each
of the five core onboarding phases as we
05 During Their First 4-8 Weeks see them.
01
Before the First Day of Work
Try and provide new employees with as much information as possible before they begin. This
can help remove stress from the first day of work, while helping them better process new
Quick Tip
experiences.
Happen to have a company event
To do’s
running before an employee’s first
day? Employment contract. Have the new employee sign theemployment contract and file
it in their HR file.
Send them an invite (completely
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
optional) so they can meet some of
their new colleagues before they start. Direct integration. Maintain occasional contact with your new employee and ask them
how they are doing. This promotes employee loyalty even before day one.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Best Practice Formalities. Request keys/badges/employee passes foraccessing company premises
or buildings.
At Personio, we created a separate Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
website for new employees with all
relevant information (and even an Colleague involvement. Provide all employees involved in the onboarding process with
agenda for their first few days). the information and to-do lists they need well ahead of time.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
New colleagues are sent a link a week
Workplace. Ensure the new employee’s workplace is fully functional (data access,
before they start, so they can learn at
computer, desk and chair, licenses, etc.)
their own pace about life at Personio.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Your team could do the same using your
own internal communications platform. Information. Collect and send information concerning formalities and organisational
matters to the new employee. The following questions can serve as prompts: How does
your company operate? What structures are in place? What will the first few days look
like? How is your organisation structured?
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
To do’s
Deadlines. Invite the new employee to inter-departmental and onboarding meetings.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Virtual. Determine if your employee will onboard virtually or in a hybrid fashion. Reach
out to them see what works best. Make sure they have access to all the equipment
they need (whether by sending it directly to them, or through an equipment budget/
reimbursement).
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Employee training. Organise a workplace safety training session and any other
relevant trainings.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Responsibilities. Have the employee’s superior inform allteam members of any
redistribution of responsibilities.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Welcome gift. Get a small welcome gift for the new employee.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Workplace. Appoint a colleague as a mentor (or buddy) to help the new employee
feel welcome and guide them as a kind of cultural ambassador for your organisation.
Especially for new employees onboarding virtually, encourage a cadence (bi-weekly, for
example) for coffee breaks and opportunities to “share culture”.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
02
During the First Day of Work Best Practice
To do’s At Personio, onboarding is spread out over two
days and is presented in two stages: an official
Joint lunch. Have the entire team go to lunch together to get to and an individualised onboarding. That entails
know each other. Alternatively, a lunch with all new employees is also inducting new colleagues “from the outside in”.
a good idea.
Due Date:____________ Responsible:___________________ The first day is used to share fundamental information
about the company, vision and strategy and everyday
General onboarding within the department. General onboarding workflows.
within the department. Have the manager introduce the new
employee to common tools, roles and processes etc. that are The second is more focused, designed by respective
specific to the respective department. managers and used to ensure colleagues know how
Due Date:____________ Responsible:___________________ their unique department functions.
03
During the First Week of Work
To do’s
Keep In Mind
Team onboarding. Have colleagues from the new employee’s department give overviews
of their fields, tasks and responsibilities.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________ You can’t fully onboard someone
in only a few days.
Product introduction. Provide the employee with information about the company’s
products and/or services and their benefits. New employees deserve to
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________ take the first week to find their
way around, ask questions and
Legal matters. Have the new employee read and sign the standard operating procedures,
familiarise themselves with how
if applicable.
you work.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Technology. Introduce all tools commonly used within the company and explain them to This early stage is prime time
the new colleague. This can also be done as part of a separate tool induction. to provide new colleagues with
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________ additional information while
assigning them their first tasks.
First tasks. Have the competent manager brief the new employee on their first projects.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Team spirit. Have colleagues continue to integrate the new employee into their group, for
example through shared lunches or coffee breaks.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Mutual expectations. Have the new colleague’s line manager communicate the company’s
requirements. What will the new employee be expected to do, and what tasks have been
assigned to them? How does their role fit in with the company and its vision?
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
04
After the First Week of Work
The first week has now come and gone. Now, the foundation for a successful start should have
been laid. This is an ideal time to clarify any unanswered questions and obtain some valuable
initial feedback about the onboarding process from your new employee.
To do’s
First impressions. Seek input from your new employee. What has struck them as
positive or negative so far? How do they feel? Is there any information they need?
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Initial goals. Have the manager and employee agree on some early goals (for example,
within the first month).
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Leave arrangements. Inform your employee about internal leave policies and brief
them about the relevant process.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Working hours. Inform your new employee about internal regulations on working
hours.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Hybrid policy. Share your hybrid working framework, any out-of-country policies and
when employees are expected at work and when working from home is possible.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Build contacts. Have the manager or HR actively initiate inter-departmental contacts
through shared activities such as joint lunches.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
05
After Four to Eight Weeks
The first two months, for any employee, are critical. That’s why your onboarding processes needs to
extend beyond weeks and into months. Establishing regular feedback sessions is essential, especially
as employees confront new tasks, colleagues, processes and structures. Best Practice
To do’s Within Personio, you can easily
establish and run automated
Second impression. Have the new employee’s manager ask them for feedback again. performance cycles.
This time, focused on their wellbeing and expertise. What suggestions might they have for
improving processes? Has their impression improved or worsened since the first day? Performance conversations, even
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________ from the beginning, are critical for
onboarding employees. Set an
Regular feedback. Conduct an initial feedback meeting (which will be repeated at regular early standard while embedding a
intervals from then on). culture of development within your
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________ organisation. Learn more about
Performance & Development with
Organise a team event! This could take the form of bowling, a hike in the great outdoors, Personio here.
or even a casual dinner with the team.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
A sounding board. Have the manager and HR work together to offer feedback on the
onboarding process and who they see as key stakeholders in the process.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Development opportunities. Have the manager and new employee jointly define any
development opportunities that may be appropriate.
Due Date:_________________ Responsible:___________________________
Organise A Stellar Start
for Every Employee
Prepared onboarding processes
Inbox 12
Create any number of customised
onboarding templates, per team or
department level, that automatically Amelia Becker
assign tasks to different employees
wherever they start.
STATUS
A wide range of onboarding tasks
Run your onboarding processes more To-do Responsible Deadline Status
smoothly with employee involvement.
Automatically send welcome emails or
make important documents available for
download as needed.
Automatic reminders Discover Better
Give each task a due date and Personio Onboarding with
will follow up automatically with Personio
stakeholders to ensure everything →
gets done (and no leaves no important
questions unanswered).
