Onboarding Tips for New Grads Entering Your Workplace

New graduates entering the workforce could use some help in making their transition from the academic world. That starts with your organization being clear about its expectations for employees.

“Lay out expectations early and often [around] what’s expected of them when it comes to cultural norms,” said Shayna Royal, director of talent acquisition at Cincinnati-based HR software provider Paycor. That includes things managers may assume that new employees know. For example, when are employees expected to use Slack instead of email?

Spelling out expectations in an employee handbook can be helpful, although norms could vary by department. Paycor’s handbook includes Zoom etiquette, such as:

• Zoom call backdrops. Is it OK to use them, and if so, what is and is not considered work-appropriate?
• Punctuality. How early are employees expected to log in to calls?
• Camera use. For new employees especially, appearing on camera is important in building their brand and establishing relationships, Royal pointed out.

“It helps people connect as actual people and not [appear] just a blank screen and a voice,” she said.

• Minimizing distractions, such as roommates or a pet making a sudden appearance during a business call.

Afraid of a Misstep

“There is a fear of failing, of doing the wrong thing,” said Rob Porter, head of market and business development at CoSo, an all-remote firm in Plainfield, N.J., that focuses on customized e-learning.

Along with conducting regular check-ins with new employees, he said it can be helpful to have “a safe place for them to communicate, to say, ‘I don’t get it, I don’t understand. Did I do something wrong?’ ”

Some approaches for creating a welcoming atmosphere include:

• Having an employee resource group (ERG)—also known as a business resource group (BRG)—dedicated to young professionals. This can provide a safe space where members can support one another, Porter noted.

Nearly half (46%) of college students are first-generation attendees, according to Lumina Foundation, a private foundation in Indianapolis focused on making learning opportunities after high school available to all. 

Those first-generation students often become what First-Gen Talent founder Bernice Maldonado calls “first-generation professionals” (FGPs)—entrants to the workforce who come from working-class backgrounds. A study that First-Gen Talent conducted with FGPs found they were nearly twice as likely as non-FGPs to report they found ERGs helpful during their first job (23% and 12%, respectively). 

• Assigning a workplace buddy. Pair the new employee with an internal workplace buddy who can offer insights and answers that the new employee may feel embarrassed to ask their manager, Royal said. This is different from a mentor, who typically is not immediately paired with a new employee.

Connections and Pathways

Providing connections—both with other employees and to the employer’s mission—is important.

“You can’t expect to hire a new grad and just say, ‘Here’s your job’ and leave them to do it,” Royal said. “Of course you’re going to hire someone who takes initiative, but you really have to provide some support and make sure they know their way around [the organization]. Help them understand the big picture of the company, how they make money.”

There are several ways employers can accomplish this:

• Define career pathways. Based on Paycor’s survey of its new hires, the company’s No. 1 attraction is the opportunity for growth and development, Royal noted.

“We know that’s what they want, and we have a responsibility to help them at least plan their way,” she said. “We talk about it early, we talk about it often,” and new employees meet quarterly with their managers to talk about their goals and how Paycor can help them pursue those goals.

Porter recalled one large employer CoSo worked with that employed a large number of young adults who were good workers but didn’t stay on the job long.

“They identified how they were communicating with their employees … [and found] they weren’t showing them a path of how they move forward,” he said.

• Create culture champions. Paycor has a program that randomly matches employees for 15-minute Zoom meetings to help employees—tenured and new—to build connections across the company. It’s a way, Royal said, to replace what formerly happened organically when employees would see others in the elevator, in the lunchroom, or at the office printer.

Additionally, in 2023 Paycor launched a program that brings together employees who share a common geography an opportunity to participate in community service and other area-based activities.

“It’s really cool to see the engagement, and we’ve had positive feedback,” Royal said.

• Personalize training. Consider how your organization is communicating with young adults and fostering engagement and immediate feedback.

“We’re nurturing a workforce,” Porter said. “Personalization is crucial for onboarding any sort of new employee. Period. There’s a balance [to] learning methods—person-to-person versus virtual, even if you’re a virtual company.”