That’s a bold statement, but think about it. When else do you set expectations for how an employee will be treated, how they should communicate issues and opportunities, and when they can expect to talk about their future?
And no, the annual performance review doesn’t count. An annual Career Planning Review would.
For most companies, these conversations simply aren’t happening. We are focused on getting the new hire to their manager so they can start producing.
And that's not to judge. Everyone, including the new hire, wants to get past the paperwork and to the real work. But if we can slow things down for just a bit and lay a solid foundation for their development at the company, I think we will see that they are better employees and will stay for longer. Maybe even their whole career.
I learned a lot about culture from the Army. After 9/11, the OPTEMPO was very high. The Army was training people aggressively and getting them overseas to relieve someone. So Soldiers were getting "onboarded," but not to a standard that was acceptable when the situation was reviewed. The saying now is that the Army chose Readiness Over Respect.
In the private sector, this is also an issue. The onboarding process has paperwork, a first-day schedule, maybe a welcome lunch. What many don't have is a process that was intentionally built, measured, and continuously improved.
New hires form their entire impression of a company in the first few days. That impression shapes whether they stay, how quickly they become productive, and what they tell others about working there. Onboarding isn't just orientation. It's the first real experience of your culture.
When that experience is inconsistent, rushed, or disconnected from what you actually stand for, the cost is real. It shows up in early turnover, slow ramp times, and a workforce that never quite connects to the mission.
Most leaders recognize that their onboarding could be better. The problem isn't awareness. The problem is they don't have a framework for thinking about onboarding as a system. It gets treated as an HR checklist rather than a cultural foundation.
Without a structured approach, improvement efforts tend to be reactive: fix the thing that broke last quarter, add a slide to the orientation deck, update the handbook. The underlying process never gets designed. It just accumulates.
FIREd by 50 is a plug and play culture framework that helps employers turn the culture they want into the way they actually recruit, onboard, retain, and develop people. Instead of starting from scratch, you plug the framework into the processes you already have and use simple, practical tools to make those processes work together. It gives you a repeatable way to identify problems, solve them, and keep improving. You bring the people and the business. FIREd by 50 provides the framework.
If you are ready to fix it, I can do that in one day. That's not to say that everything will be perfect; it never will. But you'll make a big step towards the culture you want AND you'll have the tools to improve it on your own.
1. Process Your Onboarding
Bring in everyone connected to it. We will work together to improve the Day 1 trajectory. If you want, I will train a facilitator. Then you can solve other problems on your own.
2. Build Practical SOPs & Job Descriptions
When expectations are not clear, disappointment isn't far behind. I’ll work with 3 people to get the standard set for your company.
3. Create Your Culture Differentials
To get credit for your Culture, you have to tell your story to recruits and clients.
The Deliverables:
· One day
· An improved Day 1 process
· Practical documentation
· A culture story
· An internal A3 facilitator
Cost: $5,000
· $2,500 to begin
· $2,500 when you're happy with the work
One Day. Over Zoom. Everyone included.
FIREd by 50 stands for Financially Independent, (able to) Retire Early by the age of 50.
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