7 Ways to welcome a new team member

30 January 2017

Welcome

โ€‹Weโ€™ve all been there. Stepping into a new office on a Monday morning, scanning the desks for a small sign of welcome, eyeing up your new potential best โ€˜work friendโ€™. Itโ€™s pretty daunting, but itโ€™s not just up to the newbie to make a good first impression. Team members should be offering a warm welcome when it comes to initiating new people around the place.

Here are 7 small gestures that require little effort but mean a lot:

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1) Let everyone know.

Thereโ€™s nothing worse than someone not knowing you exist. Update the website, send out an email, announce on your social media; make sure everyone is aware of the new employee and their role.

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2) Team building.

Nothing says โ€˜welcomeโ€™ to the team like a Friday afternoon drink, or a round of bowling.

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3) Intros & tour.

Offer a guided tour and an opportunity to meet other employees face-to-face. Itโ€™s great to put a face to a name, and know where the kettle is when itโ€™s your turn for a coffee run.

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4) Host a meeting.

Getting the whole team together to run through whatโ€™s going on at the moment is a great way to ensure the latest recruit can hit the ground running.

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5) Outline expectations and targets.

What will be expected in the next week/6 months/ year? Knowing targets is the best way to inspire motivation and enthusiasm.

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6) Welcome present!

You will have seen photos of big companies like Uber provide elaborate (and not to mention expensive) welcome packs all over your Linkedin newsfeed. But you donโ€™t need to provide a new Macbook and Iphone to help an employee settle in, it might be a clichรฉ but it really is the thought that counts. Try a personalised mug or a new pack of highlighters, stationary and coffee โ€“ what more could you want?

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7) Introduce a Mentor

More often than not this will be their direct manager. Itโ€™s integral to a successful working environment that an employee feels supported; give the mentor a heads up about whatโ€™s expected from them too.

AustCorp has it's own "welcome to the team" support plan in place, including one-on-one team catch-ups, management meeting, and company presentation regarding our core values. Not to mention the very important Friday night drinks. If you're interested in working with us, get in touch