The first week at a new job is awkward. You do not know where things are. You do not know who to ask. You smile a lot and hope you are doing it right.

For employers, this is a critical window. How you communicate with new hires during these early days determines whether they stay engaged or start updating their resume.

The Problem with Silence

Most small businesses make the same mistake. They assume new employees will figure things out. Ask questions if they need help. Speak up when they are confused.

They will not.

New hires are afraid of looking stupid. They do not want to bother anyone. So they stay quiet, pretend to understand, and slowly disengage.

Research backs this up. Gallup found that only 12% of employees strongly agree their company does onboarding well. The rest feel lost, confused, or ignored. Many leave within months.

The fix is not complicated. It is about communication.

Set Expectations Early

On day one, tell your new hire exactly what success looks like. Not vague goals like “get up to speed” but specific milestones.

“By the end of this week, you should be able to handle customer emails on your own.”

“In two weeks, we expect you to run your first client call.”

Clear expectations reduce anxiety. People perform better when they know what they are aiming for.

Check In More Than You Think You Should

New employees will not tell you when they are struggling. You have to ask.

Schedule brief daily check-ins during the first week. Ten minutes is enough. Ask what is going well. Ask what is confusing. Ask if they have everything they need.

This is not micromanagement. It is showing that you care. And it catches small problems before they become big ones.

Write Things Down

Verbal instructions disappear. People forget. Especially when they are overwhelmed with new information.

Create simple documentation for common tasks. How to access tools. Who handles what. Basic processes are explained step by step.

This saves time for everyone. The new hire does not have to ask the same question twice. You do not have to answer it twice.

Solutions like FirstHR help small businesses organize this information in one place. Welcome messages, task lists, documents, and training materials all live in a single system. New hires know exactly where to look.

Introduce Them to the Team Properly

A quick “this is Sarah, she is new” is not an introduction. It is a formality.

Take time to explain who does what. Help the new person understand how their role connects to others. Facilitate conversations instead of assuming they will happen naturally.

The faster someone builds relationships at work, the more likely they are to stay.

Encourage Questions Without Judgment

Say this out loud: “There are no stupid questions here.”

Then prove it. When someone asks a basic question, answer without sighing. Without making them feel small. Your reaction to early questions sets the tone for all future communication.

If people feel judged, they stop asking. And when they stop asking, they stop learning.

Communication Is the Whole Game

Onboarding is not paperwork. It is not setting up email accounts. It is not a checklist to complete and forget.

Onboarding is communication. It is how you make someone feel welcome, informed, and capable. Get that right, and everything else follows.

Get it wrong, and you will keep losing good people before they ever had a chance to shine.