Introducing new members

This document is intended to help new members get up to speed with a new project and team. It is also intended to help the client and team get to know the new member, their strengths and focus areas.

For time-sensitive handovers

• Identify the new team member
• Layout and communicate the onboarding and the communication plan (with timelines) to the PMO team (or GitHub issues)
• Training period (usually 2 weeks)
• Introduction call - Introduce to the client and communicate the high-level onboarding plan.
  • Example: Today we just wanted to make introductions. We'll follow-up with the plan and timelines on email.
  • Being visible (on camera) to the client helps build trust.
  • Having your Project Manager / Account Manager or a member of the PMO team on the call is important.
• Formally communicate the plan: Directly post introduction call, send an email to the client with the introduction and onboarding plan with timelines.
  • Ensure the email is concise, specific and elicit’s confidence in our onboarding plan.
• Overlap period (of usually 2 weeks) where the new person is doing the actual work (~30% of the work) and the previous person is reviewing and doing the rest (~70% of the actual work)
  • 1-2 internal review checkpoints
• Ask for feedback from the client (in around 2 weeks from the start of the overlap period)
  • Having the Project Manager, Account Manager or a member of the PMO team be here often helps too.
  • Manage the feedback loop (with the client) and ensure the client is happy with the new member.
• Complete the transition and confirmation

In the overlap period

The new member should be doing the actual work, not just shadowing the previous person.

Danger

Step back and really think about the communication plan. It is as much as about technical onboarding as it is about communication with the client.

For non-time-sensitive handovers

The same as above, but without the time pressure.

Further reading

• How to on-board yourself