3.3 Encourage managers and other employees to actively work to integrate new hires in their first year of employment
Content
Description of Best Practices
Ensure that newly hired women and men are equally introduced to important stakeholders
Establish social events (mixed-sex and women-only), informally and formally, to introduce new employees to other employees within the company, including managers and leaders
Create informal support structures for new hires, such as a buddy system[1] or networks (see below)
Create peer-to-peer learning groups, in addition to a buddy system, to support new women and men who join the organization
Integrate new female employees into the company’s existing women’s network/association or other networks in the workplace
Challenges of Implementation
Time constraints of management and peers
No person in place to develop the process and lead initiatives
Corporate or local culture may not be supportive of informal gatherings of women and men
What Success Looks Like
All new hires feel welcome and fairly treated, experiencing an inclusive work culture from day one
Women and men have the same opportunities to establish inclusive, informal networks
Resources and Tools
Report/Study: Onboarding New Employees: Maximizing Success (Society for Human Resource Management)
Article: Understanding and Designing an Inclusive Onboarding Experience (Medium)
Webinar: Building an Effective Onboarding Strategy (Ajilon)
Video: HR Basics: Onboarding (Gregg Learning)
Blog: Inclusion Starts on Day One: 10 Ways to Build an Inclusive Onboarding Experience (Asana)
[1] BUDDY SYSTEM. An onboarding and knowledge sharing method used to orient new employees where the buddy is an existing employee who guides the new employee through the first few weeks or months on the job. (Source: PMI, Implementing a Buddy System in the Workplace)