New Starter Onboarding Checklist Template
Twelve things that have to happen before, on and after a frontline starter's first day. It is free, it is on this page in full, and it is yours in one click.
No email address, no sign-up, no watermark. Free to use, change and share.
New starter onboarding checklist
Template previewTwelve items across the first week. The order matters more than the list does.
- Employee name
- Role and site
- Start date
| Task | Owner | Due | Done |
|---|---|---|---|
| Right-to-work documents checked and copied | Manager | Before day 1 | Not done |
| Contract issued and signed | Manager | Before day 1 | Not done |
| Payroll details collected (bank, NI, P45 or starter checklist) | Admin | Before day 1 | Not done |
| Uniform and equipment issued | Manager | Day 1 | Not done |
| Site tour and fire evacuation walkthrough | Buddy | Day 1 | Not done |
| Health and safety induction completed | Manager | Day 1 | Not done |
| Introductions to the team, and a buddy assigned | Manager | Day 1 | Not done |
| App and login access set up and tested | Admin | Day 1 | Not done |
| Role-specific training started | Manager | Week 1 | Not done |
| First-week check-in conversation | Manager | Day 5 | Not done |
| Probation objectives agreed and written down | Manager | Week 1 | Not done |
| Four-week review booked in the diary | Manager | Week 1 | Not done |
Notes, and they are in the file too
- Right-to-work checks belong before employment starts. Doing them on day one is already late.
- The day-one items are about safety and belonging. Someone who has met their buddy, knows the fire exits and can log in feels employed.
- The week-one items are the ones small teams skip, and they are why some starters drift to a quiet exit in month two.
- Give every row a named owner. A checklist owned by everybody is owned by nobody.
- Blank rows are for the things only your site does. Add them once and reuse the sheet.
What is on this page is exactly what is in the file: both are generated from one source, so they cannot drift apart. Last reviewed 7 August 2026.
Twelve items that cover a frontline starter's first week: the legal checks that belong before day one, a proper day one, and the follow-ups that stop week-three surprises. The whole checklist is above. Copy it into whatever you already use, or take the spreadsheet.
Why the order matters
Right-to-work checks must happen before employment starts; doing them on day one is already late. The day-one items are about safety and belonging: someone who has met their buddy, knows the fire exits and can log into things feels employed. The week-one items are what most small teams skip, and they are why some starters drift to a quiet exit in month two.
Who should own each row
Give every row a named owner before the starter arrives, not on the morning. In practice three people share this list: a manager who owns the relationship, an admin who owns the paperwork, and a buddy who owns the first day feeling survivable. A checklist with a single owner quietly becomes that person's problem, and the parts they cannot do themselves are the parts that slip.
Running this without the spreadsheet
An onboarding checklist in a spreadsheet has one owner and no reminders. In OtisIO, the same checklist triggers automatically when a starter is added: documents route for e-signature, training assigns itself, and progress is visible per person, so nobody reaches week three without a login or a signed contract. See how it fits together on the HR and training page.
The checklist that runs itself
A checklist in a spreadsheet has one owner and no reminders
The list below is a good list. What it cannot do is chase anybody. Adding a starter should be the thing that triggers the work, not the thing that creates a document somebody has to remember to open.
- Adding a person sends the invite and collects their own details from them, rather than from you.
- Documents route for signature and are held against the record, with expiry dates that chase themselves.
- Training assigns itself on day one, and progress is visible per person, so nobody reaches week three without a login or a signed contract.
No card needed. Free forever for up to 10 people at one location, so the template may be the last spreadsheet you need.
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