You’ve hired a new employee, congratulations! This is the perfect opportunity to welcome new employees and promote your company culture, from the very moment the employee says yes, I accept! You want new hires to feel welcome, valued and a part of the team, before they even walk in the door on Day One.

Taking steps now to properly welcome new employees could result in greater employee satisfaction and retention down the road, which will save your business time and money and contribute to a better company culture for all. This post presents some creative ideas for onboarding new employees in a way that is fun, easy and impactful.

4 Creative Ideas to Welcome New Employees

1) Create a Perfect Pre-Start Package

The best time to extend a sincere welcome is before a new employee even starts. Your onboarding process should begin the moment the employee accepts the job offer. One idea is to add a “pre-start package” to your onboarding process. This is a personalised welcome package that is sent in the mail to the new employee before or shortly after they start the job. You could include a welcome card signed by the employees’ supervisor or team members. Another effective strategy is to include branded company merchandise in the pre-start package, such as a t-shirt, tote bag or keyring.

new employee welcome kit

 

For the best pre-start package, consider items that are functional and wearable, so the employee not only feels valued, but also has some great gear to wear outside of the office to help promote your company! We can place your company brand and logo on a range of products, like a handsome and high-quality tote bag or on custom pin badges that the employee can wear on their jacket, hat or backpack with pride, showing off the fact that they work for a high calibre company! Another creative idea is to include a special name badge with the company logo. Aside from being great identifiers which can help create an immediate bond and familiarity between your staff and clients or customers, badges are also a very personal, special way to welcome and inspire your new talent.

corporate name tag

Think about how employee onboarding can be leveraged to help your new staff form better connections, too. For example, both hospitals and large retail stores can be bustling places. When a new employee starts, send them a pre-start package with a personalised name badge and then send an email to all staff to look for “Susan” on her start date in her specific area of the hospital or store. The simple act of introducing a new member, providing a clear name badge and encouraging your veteran employees to say hello can also contribute to a great experience.

2) Outfit their Workstation

Picture your new employee arriving at a personalised, fully-outfitted desk on day one. Now that’s a positive, memorable start! You can set this perfect tone with a wide range of branded items. It not only demonstrates that your company is thoughtful and well-organised, but it gives the employee some welcome swag to use at the office and beyond. Some popular and effective workstation products that we’ve made for our top corporate and HR clients include branded pens, mugs, mousepads, laptop stickers and branded notebooks and stationary.

welcome new employees mug

3) Keep your New Employee Inspired

Here’s a clever idea that has helped inspire people at a number of diverse businesses: gift your new employee a branded desk plant! The symbolism is clear: let’s focus on growth. We offer a lovely, biodegradable flower pot that contains a mix of petunia seeds, presented in a branded cardboard box.

welcome employees flowers

Another idea is to gift your new employee a special mix of flower or plant seeds in a branded bag; encourage them to bring in their own special pots to plant the seeds. Inspiring new hires with a unique and environmentally friendly gift will showcase your company culture, which in turn may help elicit employee respect and motivation for their job. As a bonus, plants are healthy and will brighten the look and feel of any office space.

And don’t forget about your existing staff! You don’t have to wait for your next new hire to gift special items like branded desk plants. Consider gifting one to all staff or to a particular team for a recent job well done. You could even incorporate this into a team-building activity with multiple staff members, and bring in pots and soil for a “planting party” over lunch time.

4) Reward their Accomplishments

Recognition goes a long way towards employee satisfaction and retention. Strive to make your employees feel appreciated and valued when they are doing a good job, hitting their targets or going above and beyond what’s expected of them. Honour these moments with special, higher-end branded gifts like award badges, corporate jewelry like cufflinks or crystal and glassware. (Many of these items can still be produced at a low cost but have a high perceived value.)

One creative idea is a stylish and elegant decanter with a large engraving area for personalisation – either your corporate image or a message to a specific employee or team. We’ve heard from many of our clients that these gifts help build pride of place, whether the employee displays them at home or at work.

No matter which product or occasion you celebrate, one last idea is to give your employees a choice in the matter. For example, for a new hire or for a ten-year anniversary celebration, you could design both a branded backpack and a fleece running jacket and let each employee pick which item they would like. This promotes an inclusive company culture and ensures that your team receives something they actually want to wear and use.

 

Smart hiring is a critical component of any successful business today. Maximise your employee onboarding plan with some of these creative, fun and very doable ideas to give your employees a proper welcome and boost morale and culture at your workplace.

Please get in touch with us today to brainstorm other ideas and find the perfect products for your particular people!