About this template

The first thirty days set the tone for everything that follows. This template gives people teams and managers a structured first-30-days onboarding course that combines preboarding, paced orientation, a buddy system, and milestone checkpoints into a single guided journey.

The structure follows widely accepted onboarding practice published by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), so the steps match what most organizations already recognize as a healthy onboarding process.

Who this is for

• People and HR teams formalizing a consistent first-30-days experience
• Managers onboarding new direct reports without rebuilding the program each time
• Operations and enablement teams scaling onboarding across multiple locations

Best use cases

Use this template for full-time hires, contractors, and internal transfers who need a structured first-30-days plan. It is especially useful when the company has parts of onboarding scattered across documents, slides, and Slack channels and needs to bring them into a single guided experience.

What is inside

• Preboarding checklist covering access, paperwork, and welcome touchpoints
• Paced orientation across day one, week one, and the rest of the first month
• Buddy system playbook with check-ins, introductions, and unblocker prompts
• First-30-day milestones for new hires and their managers
• Editor source notes pointing to SHRM onboarding guidance
• Two knowledge checks covering policies, expectations, and buddy responsibilities

Source basis

This template draws on the SHRM onboarding process guidance. Editor notes inside the template reference the original guidance so reviewers can adapt examples and steps without losing the source trail.

Getting started

Preview the template, create your own copy, and replace the sample policies, tools, and milestone definitions with your company's. Keep the preboarding-to-milestones structure intact, then adapt language, owners, and quiz answers to match your onboarding process.