This post was originally published by Mitch Causey on lessonly.com
We all get nervous for the first day on the job.
Here are a few ideas to help you put together an orientation packet for new hires to help them settle in just a little bit easier.
Before we get there though, what exactly is a new hire packet? It’s simply the information you give every new employee when they come on board. Creating one will help streamline your onboarding process, answering your new hires’ most important questions about what it means to work at your organization.
New hire packet checklist:
1. Letter
A hand-written welcome letter is a nice touch to help your new hire feel welcome. If you need some inspiration, check out our employee announcement templates.
2. Employee handbook
No hiring packet would be complete without an employee handbook. Use your handbook to introduce your employee to processes, practices, and behaviors that are expected at your company. If you don’t have one already, check out our employee handbook template to get one started.
3. New employee forms
New hire forms that pretty much every new employee in the United States must fill out are the new employee tax forms, with the most common being the W-2. Obviously, keeping in good standing with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) of the United States is critical, so make sure you include the tax paperwork for new employees when you are creating your new employee forms checklist in the builder above.
I-9 Form
The I-9 form is commonly found in a packet of forms for new employees. According to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services department, the I-9 is used to verify the identity and authorization of anyone attempting to gain employment in the United States. Interestingly, this includes both citizens and non-citizens. Because of this, sometimes, the I-9 form is referred to as the “employment form.” If you are required to submit this form, be sure to include it in your employee orientation programs.
Direct Deposit Form
Most employees prefer their paycheck to be submitted to their bank account automatically through a direct deposit service, and many companies now require this. In order to set up direct deposit, a direct deposit form, along with a canceled check (to prove ownership of the bank account), must be provided. If this is something your new employees are required to do, or simply want to, make sure to include it in your new employee form template in the builder above.
If all of those employee hire forms are too much for you to keep track of when hiring a new employee, just add the new employee forms checklist to your new hire checklist and you will have a much more comprehensive new hire orientation presentation.
4. Compensation and benefits information
Beyond getting a direct deposit set up, learning about company benefits might be the second most important topic on new hires’ minds. While it’s important to convey this information on a new employee’s first day, it might be equally important to ensure that benefits information is easily accessible at any point. After all, there are many life events that qualify for re-enrollment.
5. Emergency contact information form
If something severe were to happen to your new hire, it’s critical to make their emergency contacts aware. Be sure to include this contact form in the process so that if the unimaginable does happen, you’ve got an action plan in place—before you need it.
6. Company directory
The most important part of any company culture is the people. Be sure to both introduce your new hire to people they will be working with and provide a directory of people with contact information. For larger companies, it’s typically only necessary to share a departmental list, while smaller companies may want to include their entire company.
These new hire packet samples can be used to put together your very own new hire packet template to help onboard new employees better.
