Member Onboarding Handbook 2023[Discontinued]
Version 3.0 [Effective 01 Jan 2023–31st Dec 2023]
Content:
- Introduction
- Onboarding Phases
- McKinley Rice’s Buddy Program
- Pre-Joining Phase
- On Joining
- Company and Policy Awareness Quiz
- Post Joining
- At the end of Probation
1. Introduction
Research supports that senior executives and people operations believe that 86% of new hires make a decision to stay with a company long-term within the first six months of employment. That is why the onboarding process is critical to shaping the culture, enhancing member satisfaction as well as improving retention.
Anyone’s first day at a new workplace starts with two things; high expectations and anxiety about how the new workplace will be. Thus, it is important to make the individual feel comfortable and warm so they feel that they belong.
2. Onboarding Phases
Pre-Joining Phase: Getting everything ready for the new hire and executing the New Hire Orientation (NHO) before they join.
Joining Day: A warm welcome with a customized hamper, getting acquainted with the team they would work with, the McKinley Community Team, the policies, the processes, etc.
Post-Joining Phase: This is carried out during the probation period to assess growth, check skilling and work progress, help create the skill enhancement plan, and provide encouragement and assistance needed.
3. McKinley Rice’s Buddy Program
In order to overcome a new joiner’s hesitation to interact and counter the anxiety, We have introduced the Buddy Program as a part of the Onboarding Process!
The Project buddy will be from the same Employer that the new hire will be working with.
Benefits of the Buddy Program:
- Increase role clarity
- Convey the mission & vision of the Employer and McKinley Rice Community
- Make the new hire feel included in their team
- Provide new hires with a clear point of contact for queries
- Troubleshoot any software or hardware issues as the new hire gets set-up
- Be an advocate for their induction into our community culture
Now let’s have a look at different Phases of onboarding for a Mckinley Community Member:
4. Pre-Joining Phase:
New Hire Orientation(NHO) Program:
Pre-hiring member orientation is a critical process of welcoming new hires to the McKinley Community. The purpose is to get new members ready for their `roles and douse the anxiety one gets while joining a new organization.
We at McKinley Rice recognize this gap, and we want our prospective members to feel comfortable, even before they join our family! The NHO Program also sets the stage for what members can expect when they join us.
The premise for NHO
Once someone is selected and is all set to join the community, they are invited to meet the Company Lead(we don’t have managers, we have leaders!) heading their project to better understand the community environment and the Employer specific processes they would be aligned with. The main aim of inviting the selected candidate is to give them a flavor of the workplace and the office environment they will be working in. This enables setting the right expectations about the process and the community before they even join.
NHO Implementation
This will be a casual meeting for both the new joiner and their respective Company Lead to understand the background of the new joiner and clear their inhibitions, if any, and make them feel comfortable and prepared for their first day. To ensure confidentiality is not compromised, no official documents or client information will be shared with the new joiner on the day of their NHO.
Think of this as chilling with your Company Lead over a cup of coffee/tea, knowing more about the McKinley Community, and having fun before joining! During the meeting with the Company Lead, the new joiner will also be informed about the respective Project Buddy. The new joiner will meet the Project Buddy on the Date of Onboarding.
How will an NHO be Scheduled?
Any prospective candidate, who is set to join the community, will be asked for a free slot, 10–12 days prior to their Date Of Joining to come to the respective office and meet and greet the Company Lead. As mentioned above, this is a casual meeting to introduce the new joiner to the environment that they will be working in soon! Alternatively, if the candidate joins a different community location than their Company Lead, a virtual meet will be set up for the Company Lead and the new joiner.
The recruiter they have been in contact with throughout the recruitment process will do the scheduling of the NHO. The details for the meeting will be shared with the Company Leads in advance on mutual consensus on the timing.
The Onboarding Process will be taken over after the New Hire Orientation is completed.
5. On Joining:
Day 1: First Half
The day would start with a personalized warm welcome by the Department of Member Experience (DOME), physically or virtually as suited. This would be followed up by a proper orientation program taken up by the assigned Onboarding Master.
Alongside this, the DOME would facilitate the creation of all the necessary credentials such as the email IDs, and logins for JIRA, Confluence, Slack, etc. in the first half itself of the session.
Around the close of the first half of the day, the new joiner(s) would be inducted and introduced to their Project Buddy(s) and their team member(s).
Day 1: Second Half
It’s time to help the new joiners meet their Project Buddy. Before the new joiner meets the team, the Project Buddy will coordinate with their respective new joiners and have a 15–20 minute informal meeting in order to get to know them. Project buddies will be allotted by the company leads during the NHO.
Here are a few things one must do as a Project buddy:
- Get to know them! Where are they from, likes and dislikes, experience, hobbies, favorite anime/drama, etc.?
- Tell them about the Employer, the Project, and their role.
Then, as per the team’s convenience, the Project buddy will introduce the new joiner to the project team. It is mandatory that the Project Buddy gives the introduction to the new joiner.
The Team and the Project Buddy can start the required Knowledge Transfer for project absorption.
6. Company and Policy Awareness Quiz
At the End of the Day, around 5:45 pm there will be a Company Policy and Awareness Quiz conducted by the Onboarding Master. It is mandatory to pass this quiz in order to proceed with the Knowledge transfer and get inducted into the team.
In case an individual does not pass the test, they will be given extra time to go through the community policies(on the next day) and will be quizzed later either by the Onboarding Master, the Learning and Development Coach or even the Community head based on availability.
Post the EOD for the new joiners, a welcome kit would be given out to the new joiners by the McKinley Community HR for the location. Now in case, the new joiner has joined virtually, the welcome kits will be sent to their current address or when they shall join the office.
7. Post Joining
Along with the help of the Project buddy, the new joiner will dive into the knowledge transfer required for the domain/project that they will work in.
There will be a review of the progress made on the Skill Enhancement after 1–2 months from the date of joining. The skill enhancement plan can be revised if so required on the basis of the review, however, the changes should be made with due reason and should get approval from the Company Lead and Client.
After 1 month :
On completion of 1 month, the new joiner would be acquainted with their work as well as would gain clarity on their career progression goals.
The McKinley Community Learning and Development Coach (LDC)will conduct a Personal Development Plan(PDP) session in order to guide the new joiners. This session will help them to create a systematized plan using the SMART Goal methodology to work on their skill Enhancement.
Each individual would be given 7 days (including the weekends) to research, brainstorm and create a PDP and get it approved by their Company Lead. Refer to the complete Skill Enhancement Policy 2022 here.
8. At the end of Probation:
At the end of the probation period, the monthly scores as per the Performance Evaluation Policy will be considered in addition to the approval from their Company Lead on their performance for their confirmation. If required, a formal performance evaluation would also be conducted.
After the confirmation from the respective Company Leads, the people completing the probation period are also given the Confirmation Hamper (We call it the Black Box!) and the Confirmation Certificate.
