Finding qualified new candidates for a position is hard enough these days when employers have so many outlets through which to seek out jobs. But what’s even worse is when you find that perfect candidate, they accept the position and by the time their first day rolls around, they’ve changed their mind.
Whether they received another offer, were convinced to stay at their current job or just got cold feet is immaterial. The fact is, if your employee’s start date is weeks or months after the hire, you lose momentum and stand a significant risk of losing that employee. So, what’s the solution? One possibility is a new concept known as “pre-boarding.”
What Is Pre-Boarding?
When most of us start a new job, we experience “on-boarding,” those first day activities that include getting necessary paperwork out of the way, being shown around the office, perhaps shadowing or going to lunch with an experienced worker and the like. The idea of pre-boarding is to shift some of these activities to that down period between hiring and the first day, which both saves time and keeps the new hire connected to the company until they are officially on board.
What Are Some Good Pre-Boarding Activities?
The goal of pre-boarding is to make the new hire feel connected to the company as soon as possible. You can do this in several ways, such as by:
- Having Lunch: One way to do this is to schedule a lunch with the new hire and the rest of the team. This can provide a more casual environment where the employee can get to know and bond with other team members, which will help them feel more comfortable when they first arrive in the work environment.
- Giving a Tour: The office tour that often happens the first day can be shifted to a pre-boarding exercise. Again, this is an excellent way for the new employee can get acclimated to the office in a low-pressure environment. The employee doesn’t have to worry about not knowing his or her way around when they show up to work.
- Setting up Payroll: One more important activity you can get out of the way during the pre-boarding phase is new employee payroll issues. Handling payroll for new employees before they ever start work can relieve a lot of anxiety on the part of the employee and help them hit the ground running when they arrive. There’s no reason why your new hire should object to filling out required payroll paperwork on their own time, including W-4, I-9 and other relevant tax forms, as well as direct deposit banking information, emergency contact forms and benefit forms.
BCM Payroll Services, Inc. for New Employee Payroll
If you are working with BCM Payroll Services, Inc. to handle your payroll needs, we can easily help to onboard your new employee and add them to the payroll system whenever you want. If you aren’t working with BCM Payroll Services, Inc. yet and your business operates in southcentral Pennsylvania or western Maryland, this is the perfect time to get started. We offer a number of payroll services that you can customize to your business’ specific needs to streamline your operation and help you avoid tax issues.
For more information on BCM Payroll Services for new employees, call us now at 717-264-7374 or contact us online.