Create better first days for your new hires: designing a Day One experience that works
Imagine starting a new job, eager to dive in—only to spend your first morning locked out of critical systems. No email, no files, no collaboration tools. Every delay means a call to IT, more tickets in the queue, and more time before you can actually contribute.
What’s your impression of the company now? Disorganized? Unprepared? Maybe even indifferent?
And for IT? It’s a flood of avoidable support requests, more time spent firefighting, and less capacity to focus on higher-value initiatives.
These early missteps aren’t just inconvenient—they’re costly. Trust is fragile at the start of an employer–employee relationship, and a poor first impression can take months to repair. Compared to employees who have a positive onboarding experience, those with a rocky start are far less likely to envision a future with the company. In fact, 67% of candidates with high onboarding satisfaction said they could see themselves having a long career at the organization.
(Gartner Voice of the Candidate Survey, Q1 2024)
The takeaway: A poor Day One drains IT and discourages employees. Getting it right means stronger retention, reduced support burden, and a smoother path to productivity.
In this post, we’ll outline four steps to a Day One experience that eases IT’s workload, reduces friction, and sets employees up for success.
Step 1: Assess Current Onboarding Friction
Before you can design a better Day One, you need a clear picture of where things break down today. Start by identifying the most common challenges new hires face — late device deliveries, missing credentials, or inconsistent communication.
Then, map the end-to-end onboarding journey across IT and HR. Document every handoff, dependency, and timeline. This exercise often reveals built-in bottlenecks that no one notices until they’re laid out visually. Seeing the entire process in one view makes it easier to pinpoint where delays and frustrations occur.
Step 2: Create Role-Based Day One Bundles
Once you’ve identified the friction points, the next step is to personalize the experience based on employee role. Identify the key personas within your organization and define the specific technology, tools, and support each one needs to be productive from day one. A field technician, for example, will have vastly different requirements than a developer or a sales rep.
With personas in place, design tailored “Day One bundles” that include the right device, accessories, and preconfigured software for each role. Reviewing your imaging and provisioning processes is critical here as well, to ensure bundles can be built consistently and shipped on time.
The goal is simple: a new hire should be able to open their laptop, log in, and start working without interruption.
Step 3: Curate a Branded Welcome Experience
Technology may power the experience, but emotion defines it. Beyond devices and logins, how you welcome employees on Day One shapes their perception of your culture.
Start with the tangible. Consider including leadership letters, personalized notes, or company swag alongside the device. Branded packaging can also elevate the experience, making the arrival of a laptop feel more like a welcome gift than a shipping box.
But don’t stop there. Plan for human connection as well—simple welcome rituals, team introductions, or a cultural checklist can help new hires feel included from the start. The small details add up, creating a first impression that’s memorable for all the right reasons.
Step 4: Define Success Metrics and Gather Feedback
Finally, no Day One strategy is complete without a way to measure its impact. Establish KPIs that connect onboarding to meaningful outcomes, such as time-to-productivity, early retention, or IT support ticket volume. These metrics show whether your efforts are reducing friction and improving the new hire experience.
Pair the numbers with qualitative insights. Gather feedback directly from new employees about what worked, what didn’t, and what could be improved. Their perspective is invaluable for spotting blind spots and ensuring the onboarding process evolves with your workforce.
The most successful organizations treat Day One design as an iterative process—continuously refining based on data and feedback. Over time, this approach builds an onboarding experience that’s not only seamless, but also scalable and sustainable.
Designing Day One with Intention
When you get Day One right, the benefits go far beyond that first day. Employees who feel supported and equipped are more engaged, more productive, and more likely to stay with your organization long term.
MCPC’s Day One by Design Workshop gives organizations the tools to uncover onboarding challenges, rethink processes, and intentionally design a first-day experience that reflects both business goals and culture. Through a structured, design-thinking approach, we help HR, IT, and business leaders work together to reduce friction, improve retention, and create a consistent onboarding experience that scales.
Your new hires only get one first day. Make it count.