How to Create an Employee Welcome Packet for Your New Staff

...and create a solid foundation for their work with your child

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When you hire new staff, you want to make sure they feel welcome….and happy about their decision to work for you. That time after they’ve been cleared by the FI but before the start date with your child is such a valuable window for you to set a foundation.

Right now, do you just let your staff come in and start their first day? Or do you have a system in place to make the most of that window before the first day of work?

If you don’t have a system, you’re not alone. I’ve met many families who complain about “the lack of good staff” or “the lack of educated staff who knows about autism” etc.

When I get a family, who has had a terrible staffing experience, the Fortune 500 System I’ve created (and use with my own child’s staff) is always at the top of my list to have them implement. In my opinion, that system is absolutely critical to the success of any child or individual with special needs — no matter if you are doing traditional services or self-direction.

You don’t have to use that specific system but just have some form of a system. Because more often than not, it’s something that’s neglected in families who receive traditional OPWDD services and self-direction, and it really makes a difference.

If you don't have a system well today is your day to change that: commit to creating a surprisingly powerful tool: The Employee Welcome Packet.

Interested? Read on to find out exactly how to create an employee welcome packet that creates a great first impression — and ultimately lightens or eliminates any staffing issues you may have during the self-direction process and beyond!

What is an Employee Welcome Packet?

Let’s start with the basics. When I say employee welcome packet, for most families I’m talking about a 2- or 3-page PDF that contains important information about the work you expect your staff to do with and for your child as well as the rules they must follow and/or your no-no’s, heck no’s, hell no’s 😉. I recommend creating a master version and customizing it with the staff name and agreed upon details.

You should give it to your staff immediately after they have been cleared to work by the FI (Fiscal Intermediary), but before the first day they actually begin working.

Your employee welcome packet is and can be many things: it’s partly a welcome wagon, part staff roadmap, part FAQ. And while it may sound simple, it’s actually a very powerful tool for guiding your new staff and starting your relationship off on the right foot. Because as I teach in the Fortune 500 System, with self-direction you are the head honcho, the end all be all, the buck stops with you…you get the picture!

If you’re reading this, you probably are over staffing issues and want to have someone great for your child. That’s good cause that means you’re ready to tackle the first goal of the employee welcome Packet:

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1. Manage Expectations

…both yours and theirs

Often times staff come into the relationship (yes this is a relationship) with a lot of unanswered questions. Many of them are around the mechanics of working together: How often will I need to work on a goal? Can I use my phone while working? How quickly will I get a raise? This section of your employee welcome packet tells them exactly what to expect.

Your mission: Make expectations crystal clear.

How you’ll do it: Think about all the things that has irked you with past staff or babysitters or even family members who take care of your child...

Ready? do you have your list together? Now write... include basics like your take on being late, how many late or no show without calling are they allowed? What constitute probation and or termination? Then cover the expectations you’ll have for the client: attending mandatory trainings, no phone while working (if that’s a no-no for you), and other items critical to your child and family dynamic.

Tough as it is, now is also the time to address the potential consequences of not meeting those expectations. Specifically, you’ll want to convey that not meeting them could impact their pay rate, remaining employed, or both.

Feeling hesitant? That’s common — I get it. Many families find this part tricky to navigate. It can feel like a “buzzkill” to bring up problems before they occur.

Well, I get it — but I still recommend doing it. And I say this after not only doing this myself and maintain my staff for the past 5 years but also from helping other families get themselves out of some very sticky situations with staff and implementing this system only to see success.

It’s much easier to deliver your “rules” under the sunny skies of the start of a new job — when routines and relationships are still forming — than it is to explain the rules long after you’re deep into trouble with "bad staff."

You’re right to be cautious, though. Take your time fine-tuning your policies now, with special attention to tone. You can even add a dash of humor here, if it matches your personality (Like my son’s packet is titled Welcome to Nasaiah’s World he’s grown up from the street”. If you click the link you'll understand 😄

2. Ease your client into the new processes

Think about things your new staff needs to learn in order to work with your child effectively. Will they need to learn a new software? A certain procedure? Your in-house color-coding system for schedules? You don’t want their confusion to create bad experiences when they’re just getting started.

Because honestly the difference between a "good staff" and a "bad staff " can be as simple as setting the expectation, training and follow through.

Your mission: Teach them everything they’ll need to work with your child. Let’s be honest, do you want to start a new job and just be thrown in there—I’m sure your answer is no!

How you’ll do it: First, map out the important things for your staff to know. Make special note of any areas that are unique to the way your child operates or likes things. If your new staff will have to learn how to use a speech device, offer them an orientation video (or annotated screenshots) and links to resources. If it’s extra-complex, describe the training session you’ll schedule with them so they know what to expect. I can't say this enough, DO NOT expect that things are "common sense" and your staff will/should automatically know certain things. I guarantee you that you will be setting yourself up for a bad staffing experience and bad staff experiences are like pimples who the heck wants those!

3. Final step, review & assemble:

Once you’ve got everything drafted, it’s time to actually assemble your employee welcome packet. Keep in mind that you’ll need to customize parts of it for each new staff. For the “standard” content, you’ll want to be sure to:

Finalize, organize and proofread your content. Have your broker review it to make sure you are not asking your staff to do anything that is against the FI, OPWDD or medicaid's guidelines; as well as for errors.

And there you have it! Follow these steps in this post, and you can create an employee welcome packet that can truly enhance your relationships with new staff and ultimately set your staff, your child and yourself up for success!

The icing on top is that your child will benefit because a happy staff is a good staff, is a staff that treats your child well, is a staff you can trust, is a staff that will stick around for a long time, is a staff…well you get the picture!

Do you have an employee welcome packet for your staff? Has your broker ever mentioned one to you?

Post pics of your employee welcome packet below, I would love to see it!