Think back to all your past jobs in your software development career. If you’re like me, you’ve had many. Now ask yourself, do I remember my first day at each one?
I certainly remember most of mine - very clearly in fact. From those where the first day was almost perfect to those where I literally cried driving home because I was so upset at the mistake I’d made.
The point is, the first day matters to new employees - a lot! So why do managers and employers treat it as if the first day doesn’t matter? Why do they not seem to care about it?
Here are some of the things I have experience on my first day during my career:
No hardware on day one
No introductions to my new team members
No onboarding materials
No credentials or access to email or other systems
It’s crazy, right? I mean, how hard is it really?
Think about the experience that you’re presenting. Think about the long-lasting opinion that this person is going to have based on those first interactions with you, your teams, and your company. And think about how excited and motivated they are when they first join. Why would you want to ruin all of that within the first few hours?
Do the right thing, people. Put your mostly unnecessary busy work aside for a minute and spend some quality time on the new person who can actually make your job easier.