Onboarding Programs That Foster Growth

Stop “welcoming” new hires. Give them a win in 30 days instead. When I first hired 8 years back, I thought the best onboarding was all about making new hires feel at home. I was wrong. New hires actually struggle with: → Understanding the business and their role. → Aligning with company culture and expectations. → Getting that first “win” to build momentum. → Building relationships with colleagues. I’ve now completely changed our onboarding process. The only goal is to get new hires to their “first win” fast. Instead of generic training, we work backward from their first big achievement. Here’s the framework: Step 1: Define the “first win” (within 30 days) Every new hire gets a specific, meaningful milestone. 1. It should be important enough that not doing it has a business impact. 2. Something that pushes them but is achievable with team collaboration. 3. It should give them real insight into how we operate. Our new Demand Gen Marketer’s first win was securing Market Development Funds (MDF) from a partner. To do this, they had to: - Work with our internal team. - Engage with a partner manager. - Propose a campaign relevant to both companies. This wasn’t just a task (it was a meaningful contribution). Step 2: Provide context (without overloading them) Most onboarding programs drown new hires in endless presentations. We limit training to what they need for their first win. 1. A 45-minute deep dive on the company’s journey, priorities, and challenges. 2. Targeted learning on only what’s relevant for their milestone. 3. Hands-on guidance instead of passive training. For the Demand Gen hire, we focused on: - Who the partner manager was and their priorities. - How the partnership worked. - What MDF campaigns typically get approved. Step 3: Align them with our work culture Culture isn't learned in a handbook. It’s experienced. Every new hire is paired with a mentor to guide them through: → Quality Standards → What "good" looks like in our company. → Processes & Tools → How we work and collaborate. → Feedback Loops → How we review, iterate, and improve. The result? New hires achieve something meaningful within their first month. They feel pride, momentum, and confidence (not just onboarding fatigue). Great onboarding isn’t about information. It’s about impact. 💡 How do you set up new hires for success?

When I was 24, I built the recruitment department for a billion-dollar hedge fund hiring traders from MIT and Caltech . Here’s how I got the smartest kids in the world to work for me: 1/ Go where they are I wasn’t just recruiting. I was selling a completely different world to engineers and mathematicians. To meet them where they were, I’d sponsor coding competitions and poker bot games. After the event, I’d take the winners to a fancy dinner in a limo. It was about showing them that I understood their skills and how valuable they were. A handful of these dinners turned into some of my best hires ever. 2/ Choreograph the experience Recruiting isn’t just interviews. It’s a performance. For Superdays, I obsessed over every detail: • Hotel proximity • Welcome notes in their rooms • Goody bags on check-in These small touches set the stage for something unforgettable. Even the social events were choreographed…. I matched candidates with the right people—like pairing a cerebral candidate with my head of algorithmic trading. This helps because: 3/ Intentionality ensures the right person lands at the right place. At GrowthAssistant for example, I interviewed a DMA for a client. Talking to her I realized she would be a killer EA for another client, so I asked her and got them started. She’s been there 2 years now. 4/ Thoughtful transitions Our 6-week onboarding program was a game-changer. Classroom time, simulations, and small group projects gave hires the confidence to excel. We even designed sessions to teach managing up and navigating office culture. By the time recruits walked into the office, they already felt at home. And I brought this with me: At GrowthAssistant I am extra careful because these are remote GAs working from thousands of miles away. I get them integrated into the client’s slack, team activities, and prep onboarding plans that make them feel like part of the team. 5/ Build bonds The magic of onboarding wasn’t just the training; it was the cohort experience. We planned group projects, simulations, and activities that created strong peer bonds. When people feel connected to their team, they’re not just joining a job—they’re joining a community. Years later, many of these cohorts still keep in touch, and some have gone on to epic careers. This also led to incredible bonds with my GrowthAssistant team in the Philippines… 2 years ago, Raffy joined as a part-time video design GA. Last fall when she became a lawyer she wrote me one of the most thoughtful emails I’ve received for supporting her in her journey. These experiences and connections are everything.

I once worked with a team that was proud of their onboarding process. New hires got swag bags, welcome lunches, and long orientation decks. But here’s what no one was tracking: How long it took those new hires to make a real impact. In one case, it was 90+ days before someone delivered their first key result. Not because they weren’t capable—because we hadn’t built a runway for them to land on. So we reworked onboarding completely. Not as an HR checklist. As a business acceleration strategy. We asked questions like: • What does success look like in the first 30, 60, 90 days • What’s their first deliverable that actually moves the needle • Who are the people they need to build trust with quickly • What tools, data, or decisions are they missing to get started • How do we shorten the time from “welcome” to “impact” The result? Time to productivity was cut in half. Confidence went up. Retention improved. So did results. Because when onboarding is done right, it’s not about orientation. It’s about acceleration. #HRRealTalk #OnboardingMatters #EmployeeExperience #TalentDevelopment #NewHireSuccess #HRLeadership #PeopleStrategy #TimeToProductivity #WorkforceEnablement #FutureOfWork

Most new hires don't fail because they can't do the job. They fail because we don't teach them how. We spend months recruiting the perfect candidate, then throw them into the deep end with a laptop and "good luck." But the best companies know something different. They understand that the first 90 days aren't just about orientation - they're about transformation. Here's the 30-60-90 framework that turns confused new hires into confident contributors: Days 1-30: Learn & Assimilate Focus on cultural integration and foundational knowledge. Give them small wins to build confidence while they absorb your mission, systems, and workflows. Days 31-60: Contribute & Collaborate Shift to independent contribution. Assign real projects with deliverables.  Expand their network through cross-team collaboration and establish regular feedback loops. Days 61-90: Lead & Innovate Full autonomy on core responsibilities. Encourage strategic thinking and fresh ideas. They should be mentoring newer hires or learning from senior team members. The magic happens when you combine three elements: → Structure: Clear expectations for each phase → Ownership: Let them shape their own learning journey → Support: Pair them with a buddy and celebrate small wins Most companies treat onboarding like a checklist to complete. The best companies treat it like an investment to maximize. A strong 30-60-90 plan doesn't just help new hires succeed - it transforms them from "just another seat" into high-impact contributors who stay, grow, and refer others. What's the biggest onboarding mistake you've seen companies make?