As a leader, one of the most important jobs you have is to ensure your team is motivated, engaged and productive. When a new team member arrives, there will be some adjustments that will need to be made in order to ensure a smooth transition for everyone. It’s just as important for your existing team members as it is for the new employee to feel included in the onboarding process. Every team member should be seen as both an individual but also as a contributing member to the team that needs to function as a unit as well. I have three tips that can assist in this transition.
Learn about your new employee I suggest taking the employee out for a coffee chat or lunch within the first week. When you take someone out of the traditional professional setting, the conversation becomes a bit more relaxed and it opens up opportunities to discuss prior experiences, expectations, motivations etc. It also allows for questions from your new employee. The more information you know about your employees, the better position you will be in to make adjustments along the way in your communication style and coaching.
Properly introduce your new employee to the rest of the team It is your job as their leader to ensure a smooth transition of the work that will be handled by this team member. A team meeting should take place that establishes what role this new team member will have and how they will contribute to the overall objectives of the team. Every existing team member should be encouraged to meet with this employee one on one as well to learn more about each other and the role each person plays. This eliminates any confusion as to each person’s job responsibilities. This is especially crucial in the event the job has been vacant for a while.
Establish a rapport Recurring one on one meetings are essential in ensuring that your relationship is healthy and that you are building trust with your new employee. While work can be discussed, meetings like this are critical in being able to assess how your new employee is feeling and in getting feedback to make adjustments as necessary.
Ensuring that every single employee on your team feels connected to you and each other is essential to ensuring the long-term success of your team. Your individual performance is being judged on the performance of your team as a unit. I challenge you to hold yourself accountable to making one step each week to making connections on your teams. If you have a question or are interested in learning more, connect with me.