Making a Solo Pre-Onboarding Checklist
Onboarding starts before a new hire's first day on the job. The impression you make before Day 1 can be a lasting one, so it's worth the time to get Pre-Onboarding tasks in a Checklist to ensure your new hire has as positive of an employee experience as they can at the start of their journey with you. Our Checklist feature is a powerful tool where you can combine task items for Employees and Admin Users to complete. Although you can have a Checklist with both Pre-Onboarding Tasks and Onboarding Tasks mixed, if you prefer a Checklist for the sole purpose of Pre-Onboarding, there are specific steps that need to be taken (meaning, the new employee will have no items for them to check off ahead of their start date) to get a head-start on to set your incoming employee for success.
Creating Your Pre-Onboarding Checklist Template
From your Admin User profile, go to the main menu on the left side of the screen and select Checklists > Configure > Templates, then select the "Add Checklist Template" button on the top right.
Just like making any other Checklist Template, the screen below will pop up, which first asks you to name your Template and provide a short description (for your records). You will then start adding Items to your Pre-Onboarding Checklist. Any previously used Checklist Items will appear greyed out on the right-hand side, for you to drag and drop over to the left, should you want to reuse them. To add a new item, click on the green "Add New Checklist Item Below" button as shown below:
When making a Pre-Onboarding Checklist, you'll need to ensure all Checklist Items are 1) not visible to the Employee and 2) that the Employee does not need to check the item off. The Item should also have the option for an Admin User to check it off. Please take a look at how the Checklist Item is set up below. Once you've established your new Checklist Item, select 'Save'. If the employee has no items to complete and view, they should not receive an email to complete this Pre-Onboarding Checklist.
Pro-Tip: It may be helpful to make a specific Onboarding Email Template so the messaging the new employee sees once they have access to their ESS Portal on Day 1, lets them know why they don't see any items for them to complete because they will be able to see this Checklist Template itself. You can create this Email Template in Checklists > Configure > Emails.
Assigning Your Pre-Onboarding Checklist
Once your Pre-Onboarding Checklist Template is set up, you can assign it to your incoming new hires.
As a reminder, if there are no items for the employee to complete and view, they should not receive an email to complete this Pre-Onboarding Checklist, but they will be able to see it in their ESS Portal when you give them access to it.
To assign the template, go to Checklists > Assigned and click the green "Assign Checklist to Employee(s)" button on the top right of the list. When the below screen opens, you can select your Pre-Onboarding Checklist Template from the dropdown, then type in the names of the employee you want to assign it to under "Recipient List". You can also select a Checklist Email Template (if you made one) by selecting the 'Use Template' icon next to 'Message'. Once you're ready to assign this Pre-Onboarding Checklist, select the green 'Assign' icon on the bottom right corner.
A Pre-Onboarding Checklist should look something like this to your new hire from their ESS Portal:
