Welcoming new hires into your company can truly be an exciting experience, having fresh faces join your company bringing fresh workplace ideas and perspectives.
For the new hires, they will likely be excited as well! If there are initial feelings of nervousness and awkwardness from them, not to worry as it is completely normal (and to be expected) with them being new to your company.
By helping the new hires settle in positively with your company culture, you are setting them up for success with your company, contributing to your company's collective goals and building a great company culture together.
How can you help your new hires settle in positively with your company culture?
It is vital to help your new hires settle in right from the start, supporting them in adapting to your company's practices, working environment and values positively.
In your initiatives with them, here are 3 key principles you can apply, using the 3 I's:
- Involve
- Inquire
- Individuality
1. Involve
Getting your new hires involved, without being left out is essential. This extends beyond just the formalities of company orientation, meet-and-greet with colleagues, sharing company policies and job scope responsibilities.
In addition to involving the new hires on work tasks soonest, consider involving them in other 'not so formal' office initiatives as well.
Examples include:
- Lunch sessions during working days
- After-office sports sessions
- Company corporate volunteer programmes
This is an effective way to get your new hires and current employees to familiarise with and get to know each other, breaking the ice in a more 'casual' setting as well.
2. Inquire
Joining a new company can be an exciting experience for new hires as mentioned above, but it can turn into a stressful and confusing experience for them if not managed carefully.
Potential challenges new hires may face when trying to settle in:
- Understanding new company policies and processes
- Fitting in well with new colleagues and working styles
- Prioritising work tasks to be completed, especially with sudden overload of new information
Hence, it is vital to regularly inquire and check in with your new hires to see how they are settling in and offer workplace support whenever necessary, especially if you are their performance manager/supervisor or team member.
You may not be able to assist with all their challenges, but you ought to be aware of them and point them to the right contact point when necessary (e.g. employee portal, company resources, right contact person in company etc).
3. Individuality
It is important to remember that your new hires are human beings with respective own individualities, which include differing personalities and responding differently to new working environments and your interactions with them.
For example, some may be more open about their personal lives outside work, whereas some would prefer keeping it private and maintain professional space and boundaries. As long as this does not affect overall work performance and deliverables, be mindful and respectful of the new hires' wishes.
If you are the new hires' performance manager/supervisor, do take this into account as part of your performance management initiatives as well in helping them settle in and bringing the best out of them.
Concluding remarks
By applying the 3 I's principles, you are playing your part in providing a great company culture experience to your new hires when welcoming them to your company.
With your new hires settling in positively, you are better preparing them for collective success with the company, resulting from a great company culture together.
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