If the welcome for a new hire is not in place after the hiring decision, confusion starts right after joining and can lead to early departure. At a small Japan office, onboarding tends to be put off.
- It has not been decided what the new hire will do on the first day
- The manager is busy and cannot explain enough to the new member
- Building ties with headquarters and sharing internal rules are delayed until after joining
- The new hire has not been told about goals or when evaluation takes place
This article explains how to run onboarding at a Japan office to support retention after hiring.
Why Onboarding Gets Put Off
At a small Japan office, existing members are busy with their own work and find it hard to spare time for a new member. As a result, the new hire often goes on not knowing what to do after joining.
At foreign companies especially, there is a lot a new member at the Japan office needs to understand first, such as headquarters' procedures, tools, and reporting lines.
What to Do at Each Stage
It helps to sketch out the flow from before the start date to about three months after joining.
| Timing | What to Do |
|---|---|
| Before joining | Send the start-day meeting time, what to bring, and the first-day schedule, and prepare equipment and accounts |
| Day one to week one | Introduce the team and headquarters contacts, explain tools and internal rules, and share near-term goals |
| Days 30 to 90 | Set step-by-step goals and check progress and concerns in regular one-on-ones |
| Around three months | Review against expectations and discuss the role and direction for growth from there |
Design It to Include Ties With Headquarters
For members of the Japan office, building relationships with headquarters contacts directly affects how easily work proceeds. Setting up an online introduction early smooths later coordination.
Listening to the people who have joined and revising the onboarding content helps the next round of hiring.
Summary
- Without a welcome in place after hiring, there is a risk of early departure
- Sketch the flow from before joining to about three months and decide what to do at each stage
- Include building ties with headquarters contacts in the onboarding design
- Keep revising the content based on feedback from new members
Contact
JBN supports foreign companies from hiring in Japan through to building the structure to welcome new members.
To discuss designing your onboarding, please contact us.