Welcome back to “Daycare Onboarding Made Simple,” our course that will have your staff excited and ready on day one. This is Lesson 3: Creating Your Onboarding Process.

Recap from Lesson 2

In the last lesson, we talked about:

• Things you need to do before your new assistant or teacher starts
• How SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) can simplify the onboarding process

In this lesson, we’ll dive into what you can include for better onboarding, how to customize the process, tools to use, and how to automate onboarding. Let’s get into it!

Starting Onboarding Before Hiring

We’ve mentioned before that the onboarding process should begin even before hiring. Now, let’s talk about what to include during onboarding.

Customizing Your Onboarding Process

Every daycare business is unique, so your onboarding process should be too. When I hire a new assistant, I give them the parent treatment. This means giving them a detailed tour, just like I would a new client, but going deeper. I share the vision and goals for my daycare business, why I started it, my background, and my future plans. I also discuss our values and mission.

Why do I do this? It helps my new assistant understand what we stand for and why our business exists. For example, I tell them that I got the inspiration for my business name from a real estate flyer. It’s a fun, behind-the-scenes story that helps them feel invested from the start.

So, what can you share with your new hire? Think about:

• What your daycare business stands for
• How your team contributes to it
• Your team values

These points can be incorporated into the hiring process, onboarding, and ongoing training.

Making Onboarding Welcoming and Memorable

Remember, we’re aiming to make your onboarding process welcoming and memorable. I’ve included a worksheet for you to jot down some things you want to share with your new hire. You can find it in the download section of this lesson.

Avoiding No Training Mistake

One of the biggest mistakes daycare owners can make is not providing training. I’ve been guilty of simply putting a new assistant in a room full of children and expecting them to catch on. Usually, this happens because I’m too busy to train them properly. This is where the Staff Starter Pack comes in.

The Staff Starter Pack

The Staff Starter Pack includes everything your new hire needs to do their job. My new assistants get:

• A notebook
• An employment agreement
• A T-shirt
• A link to all our online resources

They also get a rundown of where everything is and what they need to do. I talk to them about their goals, why they’re here, and what they want to achieve. We discuss the daycare culture, our mission, and values. This makes them feel genuinely welcome and sets a positive tone from the start.

First Day Questionnaire

At the end of their first day, I give them a questionnaire asking about their experience. Questions include:

• How did your first day feel?
• Did you notice special things about the environment?
• What did you notice that is different from where you worked before?

This helps them reflect on their first day and feel more connected to the daycare.

Automating Your Onboarding Process

To save time, consider automating parts of your onboarding process. Here are some ideas:

• Email a short welcome video
• Send a link to your SOPs or handbook
• Schedule a first-day follow-up questionnaire

By automating these steps, you can ensure consistency and make sure nothing is missed. Plus, your staff can refer back to these resources when needed.

Resources for You

I’ve included several resources in this lesson:

• Create Your Staff Starter Pack Worksheet: Customize and create your own staff starter pack.
• Behind the Scenes Cheat Sheet: List things you can share with your new hire to help them feel like part of the team.
• First Day Questionnaire Template: Get new hires to reflect on their first day.

What’s Next?

In this lesson, we talked about things you can include for better onboarding, how to customize it, tools to use, and how to automate the process. Be sure to download the worksheets below this video before moving on to the next lesson.

Coming up next, we’ll tackle training and tune-ups, how to avoid dependency, and determining who stays and who needs to move on. I’ll see you there!