Employee onboarding checklist from offer to day 90
A new hire arrives and the laptop is not ready, nobody has their login and lunch is awkward. This prompt has your todo.is agent build a dated onboarding checklist for the specific role, with an owner for every task, and can even remind each owner before their task is due.
The prompt
- Create an employee onboarding checklist for a new [JOB TITLE] starting on [START DATE] at [COMPANY AND TEAM]. Their manager is [MANAGER NAME] and their buddy is [BUDDY NAME]. Our tools and systems: [TOOLS THEY NEED ACCESS TO]. Split it into: before day one (paperwork, equipment, accounts, welcome email), day one, first week, first 30 days, 60 days and 90 days. For each task give the owner (HR, IT, manager, buddy or new hire), the due date based on the start date, and a short note. Include check-in meetings and a 30/60/90-day goals section for this role. Deliver it as an Excel file with one row per task and a status column, plus a one-page PDF welcome schedule for the new hire's first week.
What to change
- [JOB TITLE]: e.g. "Junior Graphic Designer" or "Warehouse Associate".
- [START DATE]: e.g. "Monday, November 2". Due dates are counted from this.
- [COMPANY AND TEAM]: e.g. "Mosaic Studio, brand design team of 6, hybrid".
- [MANAGER NAME]: Who owns the first 90 days, e.g. "Lena Fischer".
- [BUDDY NAME]: A teammate who answers everyday questions, or "no buddy yet".
- [TOOLS THEY NEED ACCESS TO]: e.g. "Google Workspace, Slack, Figma, Asana, payroll app".
Example result
- Before day one
- • HR, Oct 19: send offer paperwork, tax and bank forms, and the employee handbook
- • IT, Oct 26: order laptop, set up email, Slack, Figma and Asana accounts
- • Manager, Oct 28: send a welcome email with start time, address, dress code and who to ask for
- • Buddy, Oct 30: send a short hello message and lunch plan for day one
- • Manager, Oct 30: prepare a first small design task and a list of brand files to read
- Day one (Nov 2)
- • Manager: 30-minute welcome, team introductions, office tour
- • IT: laptop handover, password manager, two-factor login on every tool
- • Buddy: lunch, then a walk through the shared drive and folder rules
- • New hire: read the brand guidelines and set up a Figma profile
- First week
- • Manager: explain the role, how work is assigned and what good looks like
- • New hire: shadow two client briefs and one design review
- • HR: benefits enrollment session
- • Manager, Nov 6: end-of-week check-in: what is clear, what is not
- First 30 days
- • Deliver first client asset with feedback from the senior designer
- • Meet each department lead for 20 minutes
- • Day 30 check-in: agree on 60 and 90-day goals
- 60 days
- • Owns small client requests from brief to final file
- • Presents work in the weekly design review
- 90 days
- • Runs one full project with light supervision
- • Day 90 review: feedback both ways, end of probation decision
- 30/60/90 goals for a Junior Designer
- • 30: knows the brand systems and tools, ships first asset
- • 60: handles 3 to 5 small requests a week on time
- • 90: leads one project and gets positive client feedback
How to do it with todo.is
- Copy the prompt and fill in the role, start date, people and tools.
- Paste it into todo.is on the Today screen, or send it to your agent on Slack. Attach your current onboarding notes if you have them.
- You get an Excel tracker with owners and dates, plus a one-page PDF schedule to send the new hire.
- Want nudges? Ask your agent: "Every weekday at 9, message me on Slack with onboarding tasks due today."
Tips for a better result
- Start before day one. Accounts and equipment ready on the first morning matter more than any welcome speech.
- Give every task one owner. "Team" as an owner means nobody does it.
- Plan the first real task for week one. People feel useful faster when they ship something small.
- Schedule the day 30, 60 and 90 check-ins on the calendar when you make the checklist. With Google connected your agent can add them after your OK.
- Ask new hires at day 30 what was missing, and update the template for the next person.
employee onboarding checklist: FAQ
- What should be on an employee onboarding checklist? Paperwork, equipment and accounts before day one, a structured first day, introductions and training in week one, and goals plus check-ins at 30, 60 and 90 days, each with an owner and date.
- How long should onboarding last? Most teams plan at least 90 days. Complex roles can take 6 months or more before someone is fully up to speed.
- What is the difference between orientation and onboarding? Orientation is the first day or two of introductions and paperwork. Onboarding is the whole process of getting someone productive and settled, usually over months.
- Can todo.is remind people about their onboarding tasks? Yes. A recurring to-do can message you every morning on Slack, email, WhatsApp or Telegram with the tasks due that day, so you can nudge the owners.
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