It’s your first day at a new job.
Be productive.
And … go.
The confusion you’re feeling now is nothing compared to how your new hires feel when they’re left to fend for themselves at your company. Expecting your new hires to hit the ground feeling like they fit in with those who have worked for your company for years is unrealistic.
We’ve all had first days at work. For too many, the first day consists of being shown your desk and being handed the project you were hired to work on.
On paper, this sounds good. Your team needed a job done so you found someone to fill the role. The best way to get them up to speed must be through immersion. Resilient people who are tossed into the treacherous waters of uncertainty at a new job will start to form bonds with those who helped them navigate through.
However, it’s natural to start forming a negative outlook on the company and leaders who left them hanging. Instead of opening your culture up to failing from the start, give your new hires a reason to believe you have their back from day one — by showing them.
Using the New Hire Game as a part of your onboarding process is one way you can do that.
Grab the free New Hire Game e-book now
Start putting faces to names
Growing up in a house with siblings, my mom would sometimes go down the list of my siblings’ names before she finally got to mine. Some people have a hard time remembering people’s names even after they’ve known them for years. It happens.
Throw in payment details, what is and isn’t covered by insurance, legal paperwork, office layout (Where are the bathrooms again?) and matching the long list of new faces with the right names is bound to fall between the cracks.
Your new hire’s first few weeks are a flood of things being thrown at them. Some of that data will stick right away; some will take a little longer to sink in. The New Hire Game helps take this into account by setting aside some time for the new hire to chat with each person.
Abby isn’t another name forgotten after the brief introduction in passing on the office tour. Instead, you’ll get the chance to take a few minutes to sit down with her to learn what she does and ask her the questions from the worksheet.
Get to know who does what
Domain knowledge is incredibly important. By that, I’m referring to the knowledge that comes from working at a company for a while. It boils down to understanding the processes and systems that drive your business.
A big part of that is knowing who the major players are for the different aspects of your business.
Who builds the website? Not just the team, but who are the people who are responsible for designing, coding, and testing the website? When you know that, if you have a question about the website you’ll know who can answer it for you.
Who is the sales rep in charge of the western region?
Who do I ask about restocking the toilet paper in the bathroom?
The New Hire Game helps jump-start towards becoming self-sufficient when questions come up. In the end, it boils down to eliminating bottlenecks, and getting more stuff done in less time.
What do you like to do?
A great first step in getting to know your coworkers as people is to learn what drives them. What sort of interests, hobbies, and passions do they have outside the walls of the office?
Using the questions on the New Hire Game will help open dialog that isn’t work-related. That’s how you get to know your coworkers as people — as friends.
Only then can your team become more than a collection of people who happen to work at the same place. That’s when you’ll find an extra productivity boost from a tight-knit tribe who wants to see each other succeed.
Collectively, the New Hire Game is a fun and easy way to help your new hires feel like they’re a part of your tribe faster … because they are. They’ll get to learn who’s who, and who does what. They’ll know who to go to when they need an answer and feel more confident talking to someone they’ve already talked to as a part of the New Hire Game.