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23 Best New Hire Orientation Ideas For Onboarding New Employees In 2024

By August 12, 2022 January 4th, 2024 2 Comments

new-employee-orientation

The first day at a new job can feel a lot like the first day at a new school where you’re the latest transfer student.

You’re unsure where to go, who to talk to, and what to do. It can be quite intimidating and overwhelming to a point where anxiety overshadows excitement. A strong new employee orientation experience helps counter these day-one jitters and sets your new hires up for success in their new role!

According to SHRM, employee turnover can be as high as 50% within the first 18 months of employment.

An effective onboarding process that begins with a robust new hire orientation helps ensure you’re starting things off on the right foot with your new employees and has a direct impact on employee turnover & retention rates.

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New hires should leave orientation activities with a strong sense of what your company values, how it operates and where they fit in, and who they can contact for help as they navigate their onboarding experience.

We’re here to make your life a bit easier.

With a ton of employee onboarding tools and tips for hiring managers, it can be tough to sift through available resources to find the perfect new hire orientation ideas for your company.

Keep reading to discover our favorite new employee orientation ideas, activities, and icebreakers that will kick your orientation experience into the next gear!

New Hire Orientation Ideas 

1) Employee Welcome Kit Unboxing 

“Unwrap a warm welcome”

Caroo Gifts

Gifting your new hires an employee welcome kit is a fun way to start the orientation experience and make a great first impression! Whether you’re onboarding in-person or doing a virtual orientation, unboxing employee welcome kits together is a great way to kick things off your new hire’s first week. Some items typically found in welcome kits include office supplies, company swag, and snacks. In addition to the kit, be sure you’re sending new employee welcome messages and providing periodic new employee announcements company-wide.

Why we love this new employee orientation idea: Unboxing a welcome gift helps immediately create an emotional connection between your company and your new employees. It’s also a great way to show your new hires that they’re officially part of the squad.

Best for staff orientation groups of: 20+ employees. While you can order or create welcome kits for a smaller group, we recommend ordering welcome kits in bulk for cost efficiencies and savings.

How to get started: Find the perfect employee welcome kit for your company! Caroo offers an awesome selection of curated welcome gifts to get you started.

 

2) New Employee Orientation Company Trivia 

“Who doesn’t love a good trivia session?”

trivia-games

Company orientation material can be somewhat dry, so try gamifying the experience to create a more dynamic learning session! You can either send your new hires some company information before their orientation session or do a company overview during the orientation, immediately followed by the trivia activity. To provide a bit of extra employee motivation, throw in a gift card or a similar reward to the winning individual or team.

Why we love this new employee orientation idea: Rather than reading out facts and hoping your new hires retain the information, creating a trivia experience encourages your new hires to actively absorb this key information in a fun yet effective way. It also encourages team bonding and friendly competition.

Best for staff orientation groups of: 5 – 20 employees. While you can do this in a larger setting, we recommend 5-20 as the sweet spot to encourage participation without getting too overwhelming.

How to get started: Decide what company material is most relevant for your new hires and naturally lends itself to a gamified trivia experience. Some potential trivia topics include company history, company values, senior leadership names, company policies, and awesome employee perks. You can also set up a weekly email trivia contest to get new hires excited about joining the team!

 

3) Orientation Lunch

“Lunch with a side of getting to know each other”

lunch-treat

This new hire orientation idea is a no-brainer! If you’re doing your orientation in person, carve out time for lunch and try pairing up individuals or creating small lunch pods to help your new hires get to know one another. If you’re hosting a remote orientation, send a digital gift card ahead of time so your new hires can order lunch. Bonus points: try providing a few introductory prompts to help generate conversation and keep it flowing.

Why we love this new employee orientation idea: Chances are your new hire isn’t going to know anyone else on Day 1, so hosting a team lunch is a guaranteed way to make sure your new hire isn’t eating alone in a corner on their very first day at a new job. It also helps create a casual setting where new introductions and connections can begin to form. You can also mix things up and host a new hire orientation happy hour event as well!

Best for staff orientation groups of: 1 – 5 employees. If you have a slightly larger group, that works as well, but it’s generally a good idea to keep lunches a bit smaller or break into small groups so people can truly interact with one another and begin feeling comfortable with their colleagues in this new setting.

How to get started: Plan ahead! Know the size of your orientation group and plan accordingly – Whether that’s booking a reservation, ordering lunch at the office, or sending digital cards.

 

4) Meet The Team Scavenger Hunt

“Get the team moving and the friendly competitive vibes flowing”

Office Party Scavenger Hunt

After lunch, get your new hires moving with an interactive yet informational team scavenger hunt experience! You can do a simplified create-your-own version of this by identifying key landmarks in your office and leaving clues or trivia questions in those locations to find a reward at the end.

Or you can partner with an external company or application to create the scavenger hunt experience on your behalf. Either way, scavenger hunts are a unique way to introduce your new hires to their new work environment and encourage team bonding along the way.

Why we love this new employee orientation idea: We love that you can go as big or as small with this idea as your imagination and budget allow. We also love that scavenger hunts aren’t limited to a new hire activity but can be a great way for existing employees to bond as well!

Best for staff orientation groups of: 20+ employees. This activity works best if you can break your new hires into small teams of 4 or 5.

How to get started: Research companies or apps that offer a turnkey scavenger solution to find the perfect fit for your new employee orientation program.

 

5) Good Cause ←→ Good Company 

“Team bonding while giving back to the community: It’s a win-win”

community engagement is one way to keep employees happy

Wrap up the orientation day or begin orientation Day 2 with a group volunteering excursion. Find a cause that resonates with your overall company pillars or mission statements and organize a volunteer portion for your new hire orientation process. Your new hires will not only have the opportunity to bond with one another but also donate their time and effort to a great cause that is near and dear to your company.

Why we love this new employee orientation idea: Volunteering for a good cause not only creates a connection between your employees & your company but also between your employees and the community at large. It also shows that your company truly values and cares about the community in which it exists and encourages your employees to do the same.

Best for staff orientation groups of: 5 – 20 employees. You can obviously go bigger or smaller with this, depending on the organization you partner with.

How to get started: Reach out to local charities or nonprofits that align with your company values & mission. Work with this charitable partner to create an ongoing volunteer opportunity for your new hires and existing employees alike.

 


New Hire Orientation Activities 

1) Jeopardy-Style Quiz Game On Company Policy & Procedure

“Q: Name a fun way to introduce company policies to your new employees A: What is a Jeopardy game?”

jeopardy-games

A fun onboarding activity or game is a Jeopardy-style quiz session. Company policies and procedures may not be the most thrilling onboarding topic, but it is an important one. We recommend pulling questions from documents such as your work-from-home policy, employee handbook, and other training materials to create your Jeopardy question board.

Why we love this new employee orientation activity: It puts a fun spin on what can be a dry topic. We’ve all read and acknowledged the receipt of company policy & procedure documents when beginning a new job. This activity brings that document to life in a memorable way.

Best for staff orientation groups of: 5 – 20 employees. While this activity could work in a smaller or larger setting, this mid-size range lends itself well to multiple Jeopardy rounds where you can swap employees in and out for each round.

How to get started: Use your employee handbook to create questions and answers for your Jeopardy game and assign point amounts based on the difficulty level of each question. You can also use this tool to help send out and score your new employees’ quizzes.

 

2) Survey Says Game 

“Survey Says… that this is a great orientation activity”

survey-says

Another awesome and interactive new hire orientation activity is a Survey Says game! Recreate this classic game show by creating questions around the company culture, values, mission statements, people, products, and more. You can either create your own format or partner with an external company to host the game on your behalf. Either way, this is a great activity for both virtual and in-person new employee orientations.

Why we love this new employee orientation activity: We love how a Survey Says format gamifies the orientation experience. It’s an entertaining way for your new hires to get to know your company and begin forming a connection with your company culture.

Best for staff orientation groups of: 20+ employees if you’re utilizing a third-party company to host or 5-20 employees if you’re taking the reins.

How to get started: Decide if you’ll be partnering with an external company to host the Survey Says game or if you’ll be creating one internally. This will most likely depend on budget and size or your orientation class. We recently played a game with Weve and had a ton of fun!

3) Speed Dating Q&A Session With HR Or Leadership Team

“Set the timer and open the question flood gates”

Speed Dating

Asking questions can be a bit intimidating, especially in a new work environment. Create a safe space for your new employees to ask questions by organizing “speed dating” Q&A sessions with HR and leadership executives. Be sure you lay out the format and ground rules for the Q&A sessions including how long each speaker will be fielding questions, how to submit a question, and if any follow-up will occur.

Why we love this new employee orientation activity: This orientation activity encourages your new hires to ask questions without fear and lets them know that your company values inquisitiveness and an eagerness to learn.

Best for staff orientation groups of: 5 – 20 employees. You want the group to be large enough that questions are submitted yet small enough that people feel comfortable asking the questions.

How to get started: Create and confirm a rotating schedule of HR and department leaders to sit in the hot seat for these Q&A sessions.

 

4) Mission Statement Mad Libs

“A new spin on a classic game”

mad-libs

Another fantastic new hire orientation activity is mission statement mad libs. For this orientation activity, you would take your company mission statement(s) and remove key nouns, verbs, and adjectives to create a mad lib. Without showing the team the mission statement, ask them for words to fill in the blanks you’ve made. You’ll likely end up with some pretty silly mission statements but will work your way towards one that fits with your company’s after a few rounds.

Why we love this new employee orientation activity: Everyone loves a funny mad lib. This is a fun and interactive way to get your new hires thinking about the company’s mission statements.

Best for staff orientation groups of: 1 – 5 employees. This game can also work with a larger group, but this activity lends itself really well to a small group activity.

How to get started: Decide which mission statements you’d like to use for the game and prep for what words you’ll be removing and which would be the best placements for the mad lib suggestions.

 

5) “Who Am I?”

““Who Am I?”: Leadership Team Edition”

guess-who

“Who Am I?” is a popular guessing game in which players ask yes or no questions to guess the name of someone or something. In this new hire orientation version, you’re trying to get your new hires to guess the name of specific leadership team members or important past company leadership names, i.e. who established the company. Questions should be based on the characteristics or facts about the person. This is a fun way for the new hires to get to know a bit more about the key leads at their company.

Why we love this new employee orientation activity: It can be overwhelming learning the leads and organizational structure at a new company. This activity helps your new hires do just that in a no-pressure environment.

Best for staff orientation groups of: 5 – 20 employees. In a mid-size orientation setting like this, it ensures you have enough questions generated from the group but it’s not intimidating to guess either.

How to get started: Decide on what leaders and names will be included in this activity and create some Yes and No questions based on the names identified.

 


New Hire Orientation Icebreakers 

 1) Five-Minute Quick Trivia 

“And the trivia topic is… you!”

trivia

Five Minute Quick Trivia is an entertaining ice breaker where your new hires can answer some fun trivia questions about each other. A simple way of organizing this ice breaker activity is to have some pre-generated trivia prompts for your new hires to create answers for. For example, the trivia question prompt could be “What is my favorite dish to cook?” The new hire would then list out 4 responses with their actual answer included. Participants would then guess which of the 4 options is the correct answer.

Why we love this new employee orientation icebreaker: Trivia is a super fun and interactive way to break the ice and allow your new hires to get to know each other.

Best for staff orientation groups of: 1 – 5 employees. This icebreaker works well in larger groups too.

How to get started: Identify the trivia question prompts and how you’d like to organize the gameplay. You can also set up a free trial with Water Cooler Trivia to help manage your five-minute trivia contests!

 

2) Two Truths & a Lie 

“Can you identify the lie?”

two-truths

For this icebreaker activity, every participant needs to come up with two truthful statements and one lie about themselves. One at a time, each new hire will share their statements and the group must identify which of those 3 statements is a lie. This is a super fun way to not only break the ice but get to know your colleagues in a fun and relaxed way.

Why we love this new employee orientation icebreaker: This game usually results in some pretty awesome discoveries about people. We love that it encourages your new hires to get out of their shell and share a little bit about themselves.

Best for staff orientation groups of: 1 – 5 employees. You can obviously do this icebreaker activity with a slightly larger group, but if you’re in a time crunch a smaller group setting lends itself perfectly to this activity.

How to get started: Give your new hires a few minutes to craft their 2 truths and a lie statements. It can be tough thinking of something on the spot, so giving your new hires some time to think about their statements helps put them at ease. You can also welcome an onboarding host from Weve to help moderate your game for your new hires.

3) Fun Fact Roundtable

“Fun fact roundtables are… fun!”

trivia

Fun fact roundtable is a short and sweet way to break the ice at your new employee orientation. This activity is pretty self-explanatory, but essentially, you ask each new hire to share a fun fact about themselves. Encourage them to be silly about it and not take this activity too seriously. Maybe they have a fun hobby or a secret talent? This is their time to shine!

Why we love this new employee orientation icebreaker: We love that this icebreaker encourages participants to share a fun aspect of their lives or personality with the group. It gives some great insight into who the person is and what their interests are.

Best for staff orientation groups of: 5 – 20 employees. This could also work for a smaller or larger group since it’s a pretty quick icebreaker exercise.

How to get started: Kick this icebreaker off by having the orientation leaders share their fun fact first. This is a great way to set a positive tone.

 

4) Get To Know You Questions

“What better way to get to know someone than to ask questions?”

Get-to-know-you

Get to Know You questions are a great way to (you guessed it…) get to know your colleagues! Some example questions include:

  • What was your first job?
  • What was your first concert?
  • What’s your favorite food?
  • What’s your favorite vacation destination?

Why we love this new employee orientation icebreaker: We love this orientation icebreaker because it encourages your new hires to get to know each other on a more personal level and helps people find common ground.

Best for staff orientation groups of: 5 – 20 employees. With a larger group, this can take up quite some time in the agenda, so plan accordingly.

How to get started: Create a set of 3-4 Get to Know You questions for each new hire to answer.

 

5) Would You Rather

“Would You Rather: Ice Breaker Edition”

would-you-rather

We’re all familiar with the classic game Would You Rather. In this game, you ask players if they would rather pick X or pick Y. For this orientation icebreaker edition, create questions about the workplace or work-life. For example, would you rather bike to work or drive? Or, would you rather work in a bustling environment or a quiet work environment? Don’t be afraid to get silly with this activity as well and throw in some non-work-related questions as well!

Why we love this new employee orientation icebreaker: This is a unique way to learn more about your new hires because it provides a little bit more insight into their preferences and can get pretty humorous too, which adds a lightheartedness to your orientation session.

Best for staff orientation groups of: 5 – 20 employees. This can work in a smaller or larger group as well, but you want to ensure you have enough people playing to both generate and answer enough Would You Rather questions.

How to get started: Get the ball rolling by creating a list of Would You Rather questions to kick things off, then encourage your new hires to come up with some questions of their own for the group.

 


Benefits Of Planning A New Employee Orientation Activities 

✅ Benefit #1: Makes new employees feel welcome and comfortable on their very first day, reducing nerves and anxiety.

✅ Benefit #2: Provides new employees with important company information in a concise and engaging manner.

✅ Benefit #3: Motivates new employees to dive right in and learn as much as possible about the company they’ve joined and their role.

✅ Benefit #4: Establishes the foundation for company pride and loyalty amongst your new employees.

✅ Benefit #5: Contributes to the creation of an effective and productive workplace by arming new hires with the resources needed to succeed.

 


New Hire Orientation Tips

Craft an agenda for your orientation day.

🗓 Create an agenda and share it with your new hires prior to the session so they know what to expect.

Create time blocks.

⏱ You want to be sure you’re breaking the day up so people don’t lose focus. Switch between activities and speakers and be sure to carve out breaks.

Keep your new hires fueled throughout the day.

🥨 Whether hosting an in-person or virtual onboarding session, you want to keep your new hires energized. Have snacks handy and lunch provided.

Keep it positive.

😊 It’s only the first day. Don’t expect your new hires to already know everything about the company. It’s more than okay for them to learn along the way. In fact, that’s really the goal of a new hire orientation.

Determine your technical and resource needs.

👨🏽‍💻 Based on your agenda, identify what you may need from a technical or resourcing perspective. For example, do you have A/V or tech needs that IT may need to assist with? Are there activity printouts or slides that you need to prepare? It’s important to identify and pre-plan so that you’re fully prepped and your ordination day runs smoothly.

Continually improve your new hire orientation.

📈 You want to ensure each new hire orientation is even better than the last. Be sure you’re keeping your new hire activities and content up to date and continue to evolve the process as you learn more about what works well and what does not.

Survey your new hires.

🙋🏽‍♀️ Provide your new hires with a brief survey before joining to provide your HR team with information on their interests, dietary restrictions, and hobbies so you can utilize these facts during the orientation session. Additionally, after the orientation session, send a follow-up survey asking your new hires if there are any lingering onboarding questions or feedback on areas for improvement as it relates to the orientation experience.


New Hire Orientation Strategies for Before, During & After

new-hire-orientation-ideas

Before

Let your new hire come in a little late

Starting a new job isn’t easy. Tell your new hire he can come in by 10 on his first day. This will give him leeway to sort out his commute and get over first-day jitters.

 

Set up a team lunch

Organizing a team lunch for a new hire to get to know his teammates will not only help him feel comfortable, but also help him get acquainted with the relationships and resources he needs to crush it during his first few weeks at work.

 

Decorate his/her desk with swag

There’s nothing like a balloon and some free company swag to make a new hire feel special on their first day. Before the new hire arrives, spruce up their desk with a curated welcome kit, welcome letters and all the practical information he/she needs in order for their first day to go smoothly. Newbies will match their co-workers, feel welcomed, and instantly look like “one of the gang.”

Swag.com makes the process of finding and customizing the perfect products a breeze. Use this site to get everything from branded backpacks to office supplies to fitness gear.

Pro-Tip: You can create a custom swag box that gets sent to new hires. This is a great way to kick-off a new employee’s experience at your company and show them that you care!

 

Ensure the new hire a 1-on-1 with his manager

Managers are busy, we know, but there’s nothing like a face-to-face with a direct manager to get a new hire understanding his priorities, why he’s an important member of the team and what he can do to get the ball rolling. Don’t let managers overlook this—it’s an essential step to a new hire knowing what’s up and feeling welcome. new-hire-orientation-ideas-2

 

Assign an office buddy

When you’re new, it can be hard to socially branch out past your team. An easy way to fix this problem is to assign an office buddy on another team member that can serve as a social ambassador and a useful source of insight into how the rest of the company operates.

Bonus resource: HR Cloud Onboarding Checklist

Get his or her name right before he walks through the door

Nobody feels comfortable when their name is mispronounced. Figure out how his name is pronounced, spelled, his preferred gender pronouns and if he likes to go by a nickname. Try to establish this before his first day and share it with others on his team.

 

Ask senior leadership for input

Senior leadership are responsible not only for generating revenue and building the business, but also for company culture and human capital. Before you develop your new hire orientation process, ask senior leadership for feedback on what information should be included and how new team members should be welcomed to the company.

new-hire-orientation-leadership

 

During

Give insight into company structure

Share the company’s bigger picture your new hire and detail how their work will help the company grow. Explain how the company is structured, each department’s function and who key company leaders are. This is a great time for the new hire to bring up what’s on his mind. Assure him that you’re happy to answer any question, big or small!

 

Bring the company to life

Your company is so much more than an org chart and a fancy logo. It’s a hive of innovation, driven by vibrant personalities and big ideas. Not showcasing these to new employees is a wasted opportunity.

Swap your text-heavy company history and floor plans for a video tour of where the company has come from and where it’s headed. Include brief features on key employees, especially your owner or CEO – even if they’re reluctant!

If your new hires are based in remote offices or work in a virtual team, share the tour with them through video alerts so that they aren’t neglected.

At SnapComms, they have personal bios written for every new staff member. New hires have their face and story displayed prominently to alleviate any awkward introductions, while they can read the bios of everyone else online to find ‘buddys’ with whom they can make a connection.

 

Share company history and core values

Give your new hire context into how the company came to be and what inspires the everyday decision making. By sharing the company’s history and the core values, this will give him social insight into the culture of the company and valuable guidance for how to navigate his role.

 

Introduce department heads

What better way to showcase company culture and structure than by introducing your new hire or hiring class to department heads. Giving the new hire the opportunity to speak with the leaders of the company not only gives him a chance to understand how the teams work together, but also how each department’s work ladders up to advance the company’s objective. If it’s unrealistic for department heads to meet with each new hire, have them talk to each hiring class. Be sure to include time for a Q&A so no questions go unanswered.

 

Clue your new hire into key unspoken rules

Every company has unspoken rules that determine the way the company operates and employees behave. Give your new hire a hand and share these up front during the onboarding process. They will be grateful and this small gesture will empower them to have a smooth transition into your company’s culture.

new-hire-orientation-idea-rules

 

Provide a glossary of company acronyms and buzzwords

Every company has their own professional world and company culture. Along with this comes a highly specific language consisting of specialized acronyms and words. Share these with your new hire so he doesn’t feel left out or confused. If you don’t already have a glossary on-hand, it may be time to create a working document that can be easily accessed and shared.

 

Set clear expectations

Write a list of the new hire’s responsibilities, who from the company he’ll be collaborating with for each project and upcoming deadlines he’ll be expected to meet. These sorts of details can fall through the cracks during the flurry of the first month on a job, or just seem obvious to the hiring manager and not to the new hire. Make it crystal clear, setting your new hire up for success. Present this list to your new hire and let him ask questions.

 

Give him a tour of the office

The very first office tour is an exciting activity for any hire since this will be their new working environment and where they’ll spend most of their time. Show him where different teams sit, where the bathrooms are and the kitchen with the best snacks. On an overwhelming first day, this information does wonders in easing the new hire’s feelings of disorientation.

new-hire-orientation-ideas-2

 

Offer tech help

Nothing sets back a new hire from getting started like a technology roadblock. Provide a cheat sheet with all the wifi, login and software info. If possible, have an IT person on hand to help your new hire set up his computer, troubleshoot tech problems and acquaint himself with the software your company uses.

 

Run through company benefits

Your new hire will likely have questions regarding your company’s corporate, medical and financial benefits. Take time to explain these in simple terms, and allow time for him to ask questions.

 

Introduce your new hire to his new friends

Let’s be real, starting a new job, and familiarizing yourself with a new team and company, can be scary and intimidating. One way to make the new kid on the block feel at home is to introduce him to his new office mates. So get out of your desk chair and onto the floor—walk the new hire around the office, introducing him to his team and the other people in the company he’ll be working with closely. This group should also include the go-to IT person, the office manager, the receptionist if they haven’t properly met, and his HR representative.

new-hire-orientation-ideas-meeting-the-team

 

In addition to physically walking the new hire around the office, have his manager send a company-wide email with a short intro about the new hire (potentially written by the new hire himself) on his professional background, who he is and where he comes from. This small gesture, coming from a manager, will make the new hire feel welcome and like his manager is proud to have him on the team, which is always a great feeling.

 

Ask his birthday

Companies celebrate employee birthdays in different ways. Whether they do this by giving the employee the day of their birthday off or by sharing some cake in the afternoon, be sure to ask whether he’s comfortable sharing this information with the team and celebrating as a group.

 

Celebrate with a happy hour!

Most people wouldn’t object to chatting with their new teammates over a beer and some bar snacks. This is also a great way for the new hire to familiarize himself with the team’s culture and learn about the work he’ll be doing in a low-pressure environment.

 

After

new-hire-roadmap

Give your new hire a roadmap for the next month

This should include a calendar of upcoming company events, along with key things he should learn in his first month to enhance his productivity and success.

 

Reinforce Orientation Ideas

Everyone know that the first days of a new job can be a whirlwind. To make sure all this information and introduction is solidified, you can easily roll out a comprehensive program that includes various elements of these orientation ideas with OrgLynx. OrgLynx’s mobile app and software allow new hires to learn more about your organization, connect with colleagues, quiz them on the essentials and more to create an overall culture and organization introduction.

New hires will be prompted to complete different types of challenges and tasks like snapping photos, taking videos, answering questions, providing feedback, scanning QR codes and more. The team at OrgLynx will help you get your program setup for you so implementation is a breeze, and the program can run completely automatically to give a personalized feel to each new hire you bring on. Program duration is flexible but best results see a program targeting the new hire’s first 90 days. OrgLynx performs equally well with a remote onboarding program. Best for companies over 100 employees.

 

Ask for feedback

After your orientation, ask your new hire for feedback. Does he have any remaining questions? Was there any information not included that he’d hoped to receive as a new employee? Did he feel the information he received was useful? Some companies like to provide a new hire orientation feedback survey, others have the HR professional leading the orientation ask casually. It’s up to you, but don’t skip the step. It’s crucial to improving the process over time.

After all is said and done, new hire orientations take a lot of work. But it pays off–with increased employee retention, loyalty and productivity, new hire orientations increase the success of the company overall.

 

Conclusion

Don’t overlook the importance of a thorough new hire orientation. A Bersin by Deloitte study calculates that “4 percent of employees leave after a disastrous first day and 22 percent of staff turnover happens in the first 45 days of employment.” First impressions matter, for the employee as much as for the employer.

Research also shows that new hire orientations play a critical role in helping new employees understand their responsibilities, grasp the role they play in their company’s broader mission and integrate into company culture. Capitalize on this opportunity to position your incoming employees for long-term success at your organization.

You have the power to help new hires start the job on the right foot and increase employee retention. Your effort here will certainly pay off.


People Also Ask These Questions About New Hire Orientation Ideas 

Q: How long should a new hire orientation activity last? 

  • A: A new hire activity should last between 20 – 60 minutes depending on the activity and the number of new hires in your orientation. An effective new hire orientation should warmly welcome your new employees while providing them with a meaningful introduction to your company’s culture, people, and policies.

Q: What are some unique employee orientation activities to play? 

  • A: Some unique employee orientation activities include Survey Says, Mission Statement Mad Libs, and ‘Who Am I’. While working your way through your in-office or remote employee onboarding checklist, be sure you have orientation activities towards the top of that list as they’re a critical piece of any strong onboarding program.

Q: What documents should I have for a new employee during new hire orientation? 

  • A: You should have your employee policy handbook and any new hire resource materials handy. Additionally, if there are supporting documents for any of the planned activities, have these ready to go too. Lastly, make sure your new hires have brought in the necessary HR new hire paperwork as well.

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