Download Sora's onboarding templates and subscribe to get the latest updates!
Have you ever shown up for your first day of work and had no idea how to get inside the office (or which floor your office was even on)?
You don’t want your new hire’s first moments to be filled with uncertainty and anxiety. After all, first impressions are everything. Fortunately, you can sidestep this situation by clarifying all of this information in your “before your first day” email and greeting your new hires at the door.
Read on for inspiration on how to warmly greet your new hires and what you can do afterwards to make them feel welcome and excited to get to work. We’ll also talk about the digital equivalent of an in-person greeting, if your company is fully remote.
We’ve covered this in the section about writing a “before your first day” email, but, as a recap: in-office new hires are going to wonder what time they should arrive, where they can park, how to get into the building, and who will greet them at the door.
Make sure to spell out all of this information in the email. Also, it’s ideal for their hiring manager to greet them at the door. That’s the person your new hire is the most familiar with, and it’ll make them feel more comfortable when they officially start this new chapter of their career.
Your new hire is likely going to show up early to make a good first impression, so make sure their hiring manager is at the door 10-15 minutes before they’re scheduled to arrive.
After they greet them at the door, have your hiring manager give them a tour of the office and introduce them to their teammates. From there, they can kick off their first day with a welcome breakfast with everyone.
If your company is fully remote or your new hire is a remote worker, their first day email and greeting is, of course, going to be a little different.
Remote new hires will need to know when to sign on and who they’re supposed to meet with. Consider setting up a welcome chat with their manager as a kick-off to their morning – include this in your “before your first day” email and send the invite to your new hire’s personal email address in advance. This chat can be a casual get-to-know-you, with some time carved out to run through their schedule.
After the welcome chat, consider setting up a virtual welcome breakfast or lunch so your new hire can get to know the team. You can send everyone on the team a digital DoorDash gift card beforehand or just allow them to expense a meal.
Download Sora's onboarding templates and subscribe to get the latest updates!
