Here is part of a recent, excellent article in Forbes.com by Meghan M. Biro (“Workplace Culture Leaders Humanize the Onboarding Process”) in regard to humanizing the onboarding process for new employees:

 

Here’s my idea of an ideal mix of traditional and social onboarding – a program designed to keep the personal touch while automating processes where it makes sense for leaders:

-Host a weekly (or monthly, if you aren’t hiring new talent every week) day-long session for new hires. Bring in your most passionate leaders to speak with new hires about company history and authentic workplace culture. The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. Celebrate your workplace with others. Don’t keep too many secrets. People will find out. 

-Have leadership team members on hand from the C-Suite, HR and finance to take people through the boring but necessary stuff – payroll, health provider selection, 401K and ESOP programs, and yes, expense reports. Make sure this team is welcoming, knowledgeable and positive. No culture vampires allowed.

-Sometime during the first three days, have people from the departments the new hires are headed for take the new hires to breakfast or lunch.  They’ll be able to preview the day-to-day work environment in an informal setting – important for those who prefer informal learning as well as those who need the personal touch.

-Capture health care information, 401K and other finance sessions in webinar or on-line class form and make them available on the company intranet. Many people want to involve spouses and partners in big decisions, and automating the presentation of this information is a convenient way to bring the new hire’s family unit into the company’s culture.

-Put the company’s employee manual online. Make it creative and have fun with it. If you have the resources, make it hyper social and interactive – record your best experts delivering chapters or sections. This way each employee can absorb the information at his or her own pace.