Building a successful onboarding process is particularly important for part-time employees. Not only do part-time and hourly employees experience 4 times higher turnover rates than that of full-time and salaried employees, but it is exponentially more likely to occur in the first year than in any other time of employment.

The first year, and thus an employee’s first impression of their new workplace, is therefore critical to the success of any organization. Consider these tips when building a program for part-time employee onboarding:

Do Forms Before Their First Day

If an employee’s first day is occupied by filling out countless forms and signing paperwork, their first impressions are not likely to be very rosy. Send them this kind of information once a job offer has been completed. It makes you look organized and gives them time to prepare the necessary information.

Automate What You Can

Submitting availability and finding out their schedule is one of the most important elements of part-time employee onboarding. This is because with limited hours and other commitments outside of work such as school, they are more concerned about these aspects of the job than employees with set schedules. Use technology to your advantage with employee web-portals where staff can enter personal information, contact details, availability, and time-off requests.

Create a Checklist

Security badges, company email accounts, important keys, name tags, and a uniform, should all be ready for the employee on their first day. A checklist of these items as well as any other tasks that are required before their first day is critical to a good part-time employee onboarding program.

part-time employee onboardingMake the First Day Special

Ensure that existing staff will be prepped and prepared to greet the new staff member. Being introduced immediately to other team members and their manager is essential. If possible, go the extra mile and give them card or other personal touch from the company on their first day. Many companies also find it helpful to provide new employees with a mentor or “buddy” as part of their onboarding program to help answer questions and guide them through their first week

Keep the Process Going

A Part-Time Employee Onboarding Program doesn’t end after the first day, week, or month. A good program will include 30, 60, and 90 day goals, to keep employees on track and motivated. These check-ins also provide an excellent reminder to find out if new employees have the resources they need, and if they are meeting productivity targets.