Companies are making far more considered policies for when it comes to rolling out the red carpet for new recruits
Gone are the days of a firm handshake from the CEO and the HR manager showing you where the toilets and coffee cups are located (ideally, they’re not in the same place) by way of induction to a new job.
Onboarding of new employees has become a crucial tool in helping new starters immediately feel an integral part of their new workplace. According to a recent survey, a staggering 53% of new employees leave their role within six months of starting, so the amount of investment, both financial and in terms of time spent, on recruitment, businesses can ill-afford to let new recruits drift away before they’ve even had the chance to bed themselves.
As a result, making new recruits feel settled has become big business, with some employees going way more than the extra mile to make their new team members feel settled from minute one. As well as a bag of swag that is likely to contain some cool branded products such as hoodies, branded books and notebooks, pens, mugs and backpacks, there are essential items such as employee handbooks and company culture guidelines, organisational charts and key company contacts.
Starter kits can cost many hundreds of pounds, but may pale into insignificance if that person you’ve invested thousands of pounds to source, interview, vet and ultimately recruit then walks in those crucial early stages.
Emma Thompson is marketing director at WTTB.co.uk, one of the UK’s largest independent print specialists, who produce a vast range of branded items, including mouse mats, mugs, employee handbooks and notepads. She’s taken a look at some of the coolest onboarding kits from some big name employers to offer inspiration for your own new starter needs.
It will come as no surprise that Google offers its new starters an envious pack of goodies. Notepads, sweaters, water bottles and, of course, their now famous and incredibly geeky ‘Noogler’ caps, that have a dainty propeller on top. Employees are encouraged to wear these during their first days in the office to let all other staff know they’re a new Googler. I might just pass on the Noogler cap, thanks.
L’Oreal
The skincare giants use the welcoming of a new starter to cleverly underline its brand values, offering a thoughtful self care pack.
All the items, which include water bottles, skincare items and even plants and a yoga mat, are all eco-friendly and made from sustainable items, underlining their own environmental commitments.
Just Eat
Did somebody say ‘cool starter pack’? Just Eat’s irreverent tone of voice is carried through in its new employee starter packs, with a range of products that are used to offer new recruits key messages. Backpacks come full of swag, but a pen is elevated and rebranded to an ‘ideas catcher’ a hardback notepad instead becomes the keeper of ‘true stories’. chargers, mugs and even headphones are given similar clever treatments to underline the strength of their brand. There’s even a branded pizza wheel to offer a ‘cutting edge’. Clever!
Ogilvy
Ogilvy’s ‘induction box’ became famous when it was unveiled some ten years ago. Surely one of the most aesthetically pleasing packs, it can come as no surprise that one of the world’s largest advertising and communications agency’s go to great lengths to produce something so visually pleasing.
The pack is rumoured to contain founder David Ogilvy’s short book, The Eternal Pursuit Of Unhappiness.
It’s his insights, unavailable to anyone other than Ogilvy staff, into the principles behind creative communities. Inspirational messages, notepads, pencils and an all-important onboarding guide for one of the world’s biggest communications agencies complete the pack.
Salesforce
Salesforce, the global CRM and sales support giants, appreciate the importance of personalisation, despite growing to operations with more than 70,000 staff across dozens and dozens of nations. Making sure each and every individual feels appreciated and seen, it personalises each of its welcome packs and flexes their content dependent on job role and team function.
It’s rumoured that bosses there secure exclusive on-screen performances from the likes of Lionel Richie and Alicia Keys for some online organisation-wide catch ups during Covid. It’s a step up from Keith from accounts strangling Living On A Prayer during a Thursday night team-bonding karaoke session, that’s for sure.
Apollo
You might expect a competitor to Salesforce follow suit with cutting edge tech gadgets and gizmos. Instead CRM and sales software specialists Apollo are another who use the introduction of new team members to underline their commitments to staff wellbeing. Oversized fluffy hoodies, comfy joggers, beanies and inspirational books from leading authors instead make up their welcome packs. That’s quite the comforting message for a new starter that their wellbeing is front and centre from the off.
Deloitte
One of the world’s biggest financial and business consulting firms go hard on personal wellbeing as one of their core values, and this is well represented in their new starter packs. Stress balls, water bottles, notepads with inspirational and motivational messages and even gym bands in distinctive on-brand colours complete the set. A very positive reminder for any new starter that they have their staff front and centre of their considerations.
UNRVLD
What they lack in vowels in their name, they more than make up for in their super-stylish onboarding packs. Surely the most aesthetically pleasing and coolest of the bunch, and proof that you don’t have to be a global giant to offer great packs to your starters. Unrvld is a digital marketing agency with five based across the UK and one in Europe. Black water bottles and coffee mugs, hoodies, t-shirts and wireless chargers in their distinctive brand colours will let any new starter know they’ve joined a super-slick organisation.
Livechat
Livechat, the helpdesk solutions provider, has a new starter tradition I think we can all fully get behind. They encourage all new staff to bake a cake for their new teammates and bring it in to share.
So, as well as the usual swag, they also include a cake making recipe hidden in the box. Let’s get the kettle on!
Boxed
Here’s someone who should get it right. Boxed is a US-based company specialising in the delivery of wholesale goods and products in well, a boxed format. Their new staff get the full treatment accordingly and are packed full of useful items for their home or office working life. Neat desk tidies with mini staplers, paper clips and post-its are matched with pens, highlighters and notepads.
Original Article: HR News
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