sop · People, Operations & Finance
Employee Onboarding
Employee Onboarding
Purpose
Provide a consistent process for preparing a new team member, introducing the company and role, provisioning appropriate access, and establishing a clear first-week path.
Use the Employee Onboarding Checklist to execute and verify each onboarding. This SOP owns the process; the checklist should not redefine it.
When to Use
Use after an approved candidate has accepted the applicable employment/internship engagement and before they begin normal work.
Owner
People Operations coordinates onboarding. The team/department lead owns role-specific onboarding, work expectations, and the initial work/learning plan.
Preconditions
Before onboarding begins, confirm:
- accepted offer/appointment/engagement documentation;
- agreed start date;
- role and reporting relationship;
- responsible lead/manager;
- required systems/tools/access;
- equipment/workspace requirements where applicable.
Procedure
1. Create the onboarding plan
People Operations coordinates the onboarding timeline and identifies who is responsible for each preparation item.
Do not provision unnecessary privileged access simply because previous employees in a similar role had it.
2. Prepare required records and equipment
Prepare applicable employment/HR records, workspace, equipment, and required administrative documentation before the start date where practical.
Sensitive personal/employment information must remain in the appropriate controlled system/location.
3. Provision identity and tool access
Provision only the tools required for the role. Depending on the role, this may include company email/identity, ClickUp, Google Drive/Workspace resources, approved communication tools, approved password manager, and department/project systems.
Use least privilege. Privileged/client access should be granted only when required and through the applicable access/security process.
4. Send pre-start communication
Provide the new joiner with the information needed to arrive/start successfully, including start date/time, location or joining instructions, point of contact, and any required pre-start actions.
5. Conduct company orientation
On or near Day One, People Operations covers company context, relevant culture/values, employment basics, key policies, working expectations, security/confidentiality, communication/escalation channels, and the SOP Library.
Do not reproduce entire policies during orientation; link/provide the canonical policy resources.
6. Conduct team/role orientation
The responsible lead/manager introduces the team and collaborators, explains role outcomes, confirms reporting/communication expectations, introduces relevant projects/clients, identifies required SOPs/resources, assigns the initial work/learning plan, and identifies a mentor/buddy where required.
7. Complete first-week setup
Verify that the new joiner can access required tools and understands where to find work, documentation, support, and escalation paths. Provide initial tasks appropriate to role/readiness.
8. Establish review/check-in expectations
Explain how early performance/learning feedback will work, including probation/internship check-ins where applicable. Use Performance Review for formal/recurring evaluation.
9. Close onboarding
Complete and retain the applicable Employee Onboarding Checklist. Onboarding is complete when administrative setup, required access/equipment, role clarity, immediate priorities, policy/security orientation, initial work/learning plan, and check-in expectations are complete, with any outstanding issue assigned to an owner.
Exceptions / Escalation
Escalate when approved role/terms differ from onboarding instructions, critical access/equipment will not be ready, requested access appears excessive, required documentation is incomplete, or responsibility is unclear.