A welcome letter for new employees: best practices

You can only make a first impression once, and an employer has several tools to do so. One of them is a welcome letter for a new employee sent even before he or she starts working for a given company. A good onboarding process cannot be done without this element. From this text, you will learn how to prepare such a message for a new person and what benefits it can bring to the organization and to new employees.

Why is it worth sending a welcome letter to a new employee?

This is perfect time to welcome a new hire to a new employee's position and start building a sense of belonging. Make sure that the good impression from the recruitment process doesn't disappear before the start date. Send the new employee a welcome email even before the start date and shake hands in person at the office. The new employee will feel supported and consider it to be a warm welcome to the team, and this will certainly reduce the first day jitters and allow them to prepare better for their new job title.

A welcome email for a new employee - one or several?

We are closer to the concept of several messages that take the new employee step by step through the initial stages of implementation. One employee welcome email, no matter how creative, will not be as engaging as several emails/messages adjusted to specific contexts/situations - the new employee onboarding process is saturated with them.

Considering a broader perspective, think about creating consistent communication grounded in several important welcome events during the onboarding process. Each of these is an excellent opportunity to connect with a new employee.

When should you specifically timeline your messaging? We have several suggestions:

A letter of welcome after the interview process and establishing terms of cooperation

Such communication usually comes from the HR team. Shortly speaking, congratulate the new employee on his or her success in the recruitment process, welcome him or her to the company's ranks and highlight the professional background. Also point out that you are just beginning the mutual onboarding to the new role.

Welcome email sent to a new employee during preboarding

Preboarding is a good time for a virtual handshake between an employee and a future employer. In a separate email, the manager can introduce the entire team, a buddy and describe briefly what other team members do.

Sending a welcome package

Let the new employee know that there is a welcome box waiting for him/her and confirm which address to send the package to. How about putting the selection of the gift set in his hands (psst... that's how it works in our app)? This is a great way to build the new team member engagement!

There's something else. While we primarily send a welcome message electronically these days, the welcome pack provides an opportunity to do it in a slightly more traditional, personal way as well - in the form of a welcome message attached to the package.

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First day at work

This is an additional reason to celebrate together with new colleagues and send a nice employee welcome email. It's also an opportunity to refer to how the implementation process has gone so far. You can summarize the most important information for the new employee at this point, and include a training sessions calendar and a plan for the first few days. This will keep the new employee up to date with the next steps of the implementation, and the first day will make the new employee feel comfortable and put him/her in a positive mood for the rest of the onboarding.

A welcome message from a new team member to the whole team

Indeed, this is also a part of the new employee welcome communication. It is worth encouraging new hires to write or record such a welcome message even before the start date. Share a few tips, such as what form to choose (text or maybe a short video?), what to include in such a slack message and how to send it (e.g., email, company messenger, private group on LinkedIn). For some, this will be a great opportunity to break the first ice and create a good start for building relationships with new coworkers. The new hire will no longer be so anonymous, which will have influence on better communication on the first day of work.

Remember, however, that not every new colleague will feel comfortable with such a task. Give the new employee the opportunity to say hello to the entire team, but don't push. Leave the final decision on sending a welcome email to the new hire.

What to write in a new employee welcome email?

We have prepared a small guideline:

• A short greeting - more or less formal, adjusted to the company's culture and the employee's job title. A new employee email subject line: "Hello, John," "Good morning, Anna" sounds better than "Dear Sir" or the impersonal "Good morning, welcome to the company."
• An onboarding agenda - that is, a timetable for the coming first few weeks. Include an onboarding plan and let the new employee know that you will be happy to discuss with him/her all the scheduled activities.

• Company essentials - send materials describing company values and the company's mission and vision. Refer to the company's social media as well. You can also mention something about the addressee's new position, but rather as a nice reference. Try not to write too much about it in the content of the welcome email because it cannot be too long.
• Instruction about formalities - provide the employee with a checklist of administrative tasks that he or she must complete. Specifically indicate when and how he or she should do it (e.g., fill out an online form, report for an occupational health examination at a medical facility with which the organization cooperates) and to whom to turn for help (HR team, IT department). You can also use this channel to discuss such formal issues as benefits or leave requests.
• Access to the intranet/onboarding tool - provide the employee with a channel/tool for further communication as part of the onboarding process. Include a link to the company online accounts along with login information. Likewise with the onboarding application - provide the necessary access along with a brief user guide.

New employee welcome email - best practices

There are a few rules that will help you create warm welcome communication with a WOW effect.

Personalization

A warm welcome email adjusted to the new employee's profile will make the new team member feel valued. Impersonal content sent out massively to all new hires will not make a good impression and may even leave a feeling of distaste.

Moderation

Don't overwhelm the new employee with information about the new job and upcoming responsibilities. The content of the warm welcome email should be engaging, not overwhelming.

Interesting form

Videos, infographics, interesting visuals, interactive content - anything that makes the message more attractive is a great asset.

It is also imperative that you make sure the information you send is readable. There is nothing worse than flicking through a text wall to extract first day schedule and important data, such as the place and time of the start date meeting.

Enthusiastic, engaging language

When creating the content of new employee introduction email, be sure to use a friendly and supportive language. Too formal content does not encourage building a relationship with current employees and engaging in the next steps of the onboarding process. Your goal? Bring a smile to the reader's face and excitement to their mind!

Consistency of the welcome letter with company culture and company branding

Employees are sensitive to any inconsistency in communication with their employer, especially at the beginning of the new job. The new employee introduction email is usually the first component of the bridge that connects the interview process to onboarding. Ensure that it is consistent with your recruitment communication and with all of your company values. This includes language, as well as visual identity or elements of your employer branding strategy.

Responsiveness

Give the new employee the opportunity to contact current employees who will be able to answer potential questions.

Ideally, you should indicate a contact for:

• a hiring manager,
• a buddy,
• HR managers.

By the way, clearly explain to the new employees what issues they can address to each of these people.

Well. And how to send such an employee introduction email?

Preferably in an automated way, so that you don't do everything manually. Especially if you have a dozen or more new employees at the same time. Then tools for sending collective emails will be helpful.

You can also automatize the sending of a new employee introduction email (or even a whole series) using an onboarding application. In Gamfi Onboarding, such warm welcome messages are sent automatically, according to your predefined criteria and parameters (e.g. date and time).

Now you know everything you need to know to write a new employee welcome email that will win the hearts of new team members. Looking for a solution to help you bring your ideas to life? Our app can be a very helpful tool for you.

Automate the sending of your heartfelt welcome to new team members.

Test the Gamfi Onboarding app for free!

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