Baltimore Sun Sunday

New hire checklist

Conversati­ons about dress code, behavior, social media should happen on day one |

- By Emily Richett

Despite the sometimes unfair stereotype­s about millennial­s in the workforce, new graduates and young people can be a great boost to a small business. Millennial­s usually are eager to learn, open to feedback and generally willing to trade a higher salary for a foot in the door and training opportunit­ies. That said, managing a young team does have some challenges.

For starters, young workers often have little or no experience when it comes to certain social and profession­al norms. They may not be prepared for seemingly simple actions, such as client interactio­ns and writing business emails, and may not be aware of how to properly dress for a more formal office atmosphere. It puts more pressure on business owners to get them started out right.

The best way to prevent awkward situations is by being proactive. It’s worth investing the time to define your company culture for your team, even if your business is small or just staring out.

Creating an employee handbook that proactivel­y outlines how to handle blurry situations will be useful as your business and team grows, while also saving you some difficult conversati­ons.

Here are five potentiall­y awkward situations that need to be addressed with new hires, especially those just starting out in their careers. and have them keep up with industry trends so that they have topics prepared to discuss with clients. Offer subscripti­ons to local business journals or trade newspapers, and have them available in the office or sent to your team’s inbox so they can be read by everyone.

One easy way around that is to require that employees set up work profiles on various social media sites appropriat­e for business contacts. This builds your brand’s social media footprint without having to also give your audience a look into your employee’s vacation photos.

Have a conversati­on with new employees about what is acceptable on these sites that are tied to your brand. Use examples, both good and bad, and emphasize engagement without offending anyone. Tell them to re-read before posting, and if something seems tacky, inappropri­ate or offensive, don’t share it or like it.

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