ONBOARDING COLLEAGUES
“Set people up for success with a vibrant, engaging, and thorough onboarding experience” (Brown, n.d)
As an Onboarding Colleague, you play a critical role in onboarding new/transitioning employees. You are a trusted and motivated colleague who will make them feel welcome and will affirm their decision to join the team.
Onboarding Colleagues play an important role in the onboarding experience by acting as a cultural role model, providing guidance, helping to build a sense of belonging, and improving satisfaction with the onboarding experience. Taking the time to serve as an Onboarding Colleague is of benefit to the individual taking on the role. Acting as an Onboarding Colleague is an opportunity for leadership development and to build one’s network. It is also a chance to support others and to help to shape a positive workplace culture where people feel valued and engaged.
Role + Responsibilities*
Acts as a cultural role model
Provides guidance as the employee adjusts to their role and team
Assists the employee to develop a sense of belonging on the team
Provides hands-on support to navigate systems and processes as appropriate
Onboarding Colleagues are NOT
Responsible for the onboarding process
A coach or mentor involved with developing an onboarding employee
A supervisor responsible for the job performance or evaluation
What's Involved
Together with the supervisor, discuss what approach you will take given the unit/department context and your workload.
Onboarding colleague tasks, in general, include:
Meet and greet on the employee's first day
Showing the onboarding employee around the work environment(s) on their first day
Taking the new employee for an expanded tour of the university
Introducing the employee to other team members
15-20 minute weekly check in meetings for the first 30 days and then bimonthly for the first 90 days
Answering general/routine questions and/or putting the employee in touch with the appropriate resources
Introducing the employee to others in the unit and/or with whom they will have contact
Sharing information about good places to get coffee/lunch
Inviting the employee for coffee/lunch once per month for the first couple of months
*This role can be modified based on the needs, expertise, and capacity of the team. For more information, see: Identifying an Onboarding Colleague
