How to Set Your New Employees Up for Success by Making Them Feel Welcome

When a new employee comes to work for you (or alongside you), making them feel welcome should be a top priority. And that's because making a new employee feel confident, valued and engaged since the very beginning makes it much more likely that you’ll retain them for longer and help them feel motivated in their work. 

Here's a little help on how to set a good example and work positively, while making your new employee feel like part of the team from the very start.

How to Set Your New Employees Up for Success by Making Them Feel Welcome

When people are financially invested, they want a return. When people are emotionally invested, they want to contribute.

- Simon Sinek (Read more quotes)

Here are a few ways to make your new employees feel welcome:

Prepare Their Work Space

There’s nothing worse for a new employee than arriving at a new company and having no space to call their own.

Make sure your new arrival has a clean desk space and a computer with login details already set up. Provide them with the space they need to work efficiently and consider seating them next to the person they’ll be working most closely with. That way they can reach out for support more easily.

Give Them A Tour

Starting a new job can be intimidating. Not knowing the people they'll be working with, not having a full grasp of what they'll be doing, along with a new environment, it all adds up to the anxiety of a new start.

But introducing new hires to their workplace is the easiest fix of them all. That's why all new employees should be given a tour of the office, shown all of the equipment they’ll need to complete their work, but also where they can make themselves a coffee and go take a break.

Giving them a personal tour will help create a positive and open relationship from the start. This can be a great stepping stone for your relationship, as it will communicate to the new employees that they can rely on you for leadership and guidance.

Introduce Them

If you have a big office, introducing your new employee to others -- a few at a time -- can be a less daunting experience than meeting everyone at once. We’ve all had the trouble of being introduced to lots of people at once and barely being able to remember one name correctly.

If you'd like to take things a step further, you could also provide a list of employees with photos, along with some fun tidbits of information on everyone around the office. Being able to put a face next to a name can help employees fit in much more quickly.

Plan a Social Occasion

Getting to know people in the office environment can be tricky. Everyone has their own daily tasks to get on with and deadlines to meet, oftentimes being too busy to greet and chat with the new people that joined.

But feeling like you belong is very important to anyone joining a new work place. So consider planning a small social get-together with the new person and their team (or even the wider company if appropriate.) It could be something as simple as after-work drinks or a coffee and cake morning at the office.

Socializing in a less formal environment will help your new employee fit in faster, while also learning about their new colleagues and making valuable connections that will make them appreciate their new job more. 

Plan Their Training

On your new employee’s first few days in the job, they can be left floundering if they aren’t given enough to do. Don't add to their confusing first week and plan the workload and training for them in advance. Give them small, manageable projects that will ease them into the role, while also being useful. This can give a huge boost to their confidence and motivation.

Provide A Support Network

Some companies expect new employees to be up and running within days. This can put a lot of pressure on a newbie to learn the ropes fast. They don’t want to ask questions out of fear of looking like they’re not up to the job. But this can lead to mistakes and a feeling of being overwhelmed, which is the worst way to kick-off what could otherwise be a great opportunity for your new hire. 

Encourage your new employee to come to you or a dedicated buddy with any questions they have. This will reassure them that they’re not being left to sink or swim. Instead they have a ready-made support network around them.

Making your new employees feel welcome from their very first day can have lots of benefits for them, you, and the wider team. It will also help further promote a positive work environment where employees, new and old, are embraced, motivated and valued each and every day.