Employee onboarding template

Employee onboarding template

This employee onboarding template helps HR teams, managers, and team leads organize the full onboarding journey in one clear structure. It covers essential areas such as pre-boarding, company introduction, administrative setup, tools and systems, team integration, support network, role-specific responsibilities, learning and development, reviews, and long-term growth.

Use this template to prepare new hires before their first day, guide them through company policies and tools, assign training tasks, introduce key contacts, and plan 30/60/90-day reviews. It helps ensure that every new employee receives the information, support, and structure they need to become productive and confident in their role.

Employee Onboarding

Use this shared onboarding workspace to plan, run, and improve the entire new-hire journey. Keep documents, tasks, training, contacts, check-ins, and review milestones connected in one visual map.

Share the map with HR, the manager, buddy, and other collaborators.

Growth & next steps

Establish a foundation for ongoing performance, continuous learning, career development, and long-term engagement.

Continuous Learning

Add resources and habits that support ongoing learning.

Growth Opportunities

List opportunities that can help the employee grow after onboarding.

Career Development

Outline possible development paths and future responsibilities.

Role-specific path

Clarify responsibilities, expectations, goals, and performance standards associated with the role.

Role overview

Give a short summary of the role, team context, and main objectives.

First project

Give the new hire a first meaningful project or assignment to help them apply what they are learning.

Add a project brief, due date, owner, and related links.

Due date

Set a realistic deadline for the first project or milestone.

Project brief

Summarize the goal, context, expectations, and deliverables for the first project.

Attach the brief or add it as a note.

Performance Expectations

Explain what good performance looks like in the first weeks and months.

Use this as a reference during reviews and feedback.

Job Responsibilities

Clarify the main duties and ownership areas of the role.

Reviews & feedback

Track onboarding progress through regular reviews, feedback discussions, and milestone evaluations.

90-Day Review

Confirm the new hire is ready to work more independently, discuss performance and development, and capture improvements for the next onboarding journey.

Performance discussion

A space to discuss achievements, expectations, feedback, and future development goals as the employee moves beyond onboarding.

60-Day Review

Review progress on role-specific work, team collaboration, and ownership. Adjust goals if the role, workload, or priorities have changed.

Team collaboration

Reviews how the new hire is working with teammates, joining meetings, communicating, and becoming part of the team’s daily workflow.

First project progress

Tracks how the new hire is progressing on their first assignments, including what has been completed, what is still in progress, and where support may be needed.

30-Day Review

Check whether the new hire understands the role, has completed core training, and knows where to find support. Focus on clarity, confidence, and early blockers.

Training progress

Keeps required training, learning modules, certifications, or internal courses visible and easy to review.

Ramp & learn

Tracks how the new hire is building role knowledge, learning internal processes, and becoming more comfortable with their responsibilities.

First Week Review

Used to capture early feedback after the new hire’s first few days. The manager, HR, or buddy can note what went well, any questions or blockers, and the new hire’s first impressions of the role and team.

First impressions

A place for the new hire to share how the role, team, tools, and onboarding experience feel after the first few days.

Questions or blockers

Used to collect anything the new hire is unsure about or anything preventing them from moving forward, such as missing access, unclear expectations, or unanswered questions.

What went well?

A space to note positive moments from the first week, such as smooth setup, helpful meetings, completed tasks, or early wins.

Learning & Development

Deliver training, learning opportunities, and development resources that support employee growth and role readiness.

Development Opportunities

Capture learning opportunities that can support the employee after the basic onboarding period.

Add links to resources or create follow-up tasks for later review.

Role-Specific Training

Add training that helps the new hire succeed in their specific role.

Mandatory Training

Share diagram with learning and development professionals, trainers, and managers to coordinate required training programs, monitor completion, and provide learning resources.

Pre-boarding

Prepare everything before the employee's first day to ensure a smooth and welcoming start.

Add documents, first-day agenda, start-date confirmation, welcome email, and equipment preparation tasks.

Start date confirmed

Confirm the official start date with HR, the manager, IT, and the new hire.

First-Day Schedule

Use notes to capture key information, schedules, and preparation details that help ensure a smooth and organized first day.

Employment Documents

Collect and organize the documents the new hire must review, complete, or sign before starting.

Team Integration

Help employees build relationships, understand team dynamics, and connect with key stakeholders.

Team Culture

Explain how the team works together day to day.

Suggestions: Meeting habits, communication style, decision-making norms, team rituals.

Key Stakeholders

List the people the new hire will work with most often.

Team Introductions

Plan how the new hire becomes part of the team through introductions, stakeholders, culture, and communication habits.

Tools & Systems

Provide access to the software, equipment, and internal resources needed for daily work and collaboration.

Security training

Add required security, privacy, or data protection training.

Internal Resources

Add links to the employee handbook, knowledge base, company intranet, or onboarding portal for quick access.

Equipment Setup

Track device setup, workspace preparation, and equipment delivery.

Software Access

Share this diagram with IT administrators and system owners to manage account creation, software provisioning, and access permissions for new employees.

Support Network

Connect employees with the people who can guide, support, and assist them throughout the onboarding process.

Onboarding Buddy

A peer contact who helps the new hire settle into the team, understand informal workflows, and ask day-to-day questions more comfortably.

Team Directory

A reference point for key team members, departments, roles, and contacts the new hire may need during onboarding.

Meeting

A place to schedule or link to regular buddy check-ins, intro calls, or onboarding support meetings.

Email

A quick place to add the buddy’s email address or a direct contact link.

HR Contact

The HR representative who supports the new hire with onboarding steps, paperwork, policies, benefits, and general employee questions.

Hiring Manager

The manager responsible for the new hire’s role-specific ramp-up, priorities, expectations, and early performance guidance.

Administrative Setup

Complete essential HR processes, compliance requirements, employee records, and benefits-related activities.

Signed agreements

Track signed contracts, NDAs, policy acknowledgments, and other required agreements.

Employee Records

Create or update the new hire’s official employee profile and HR records.

Policies & Compliance

Export this topic and related resources as a PDF or document for easy distribution to new employees.

Payroll & Benefits

Keep HR, payroll, compliance, benefits, and employee records organized in one place.

Company introduction

Introduce new hires to the organization's mission, values, culture, policies, and overall structure.

Key departments

Introduce the departments the new hire should know about.

Company history

Give brief context about the company’s background and important milestones.

Organizational Structure

Show how teams, departments, and reporting lines fit together.

Policies & Guidelines

Add important policies, rules, and expectations that the new hire should know.

Remote work policy, communication guidelines, security policy, leave policy, and code of conduct.

Mission & Values

Help the new hire understand the company’s purpose, structure, history, policies, and key departments.