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Agile onboarding: integrating new employees into agile teams
While onboarding is already a challenge in classically organized companies, this applies all the more to agile organizations and teams. We describe in an example how agile onboarding can succeed and what problems can arise.
Many people will be familiar with this situation: An agile team, for example in an IT company, gets a new colleague. The team is multifunctional. In addition to software developers, there is a graphic designer, a test manager, a product manager and an agile coach. All processes are rehearsed and ritualized, for example the morning stand-up meeting, the coffee breaks or the retrospectives.
For the new employee – a software developer, by the way – these are all unknowns that they first have to get to know in addition to the technical induction. If there are problems here, for example because there is no one to take the new colleague by the hand, this can have serious consequences, including the new employee leaving the company early.
Special challenges for onboarding in an agile environment
This situation shows that agile onboarding or onboarding in an agile environment is a real challenge. Of course, the standards of a well-thought-out onboarding process must also be taken into account here, such as the provision of induction plans and checklists. In agile teams, however, there are some special requirements on top of this. Due to the very close cooperation within the team, it is important to establish contacts quickly, understand the mindset of colleagues and ensure that the expanded team does not come to a standstill due to the new addition.
Formal requirements should not be forgotten. Over time, special processes and procedures have become established in an agile team, which must first be understood by the new colleague. Take Scrum, for example: how are the individual sprints organized, how long do they last, what phases are there in development and much more. Then there is the software used, such as agile tools like Jira, Asana or Confluence.
The beauty of agile teams is their own dynamic and that there is usually close cooperation. This can take various forms: While some teams listen to music together during work, others meet regularly in their free time. The new member of the team has to process all of this first.
Take responsibility quickly
Of course, onboarding cannot be completed within a few days, but jumping in at the deep end is particularly important here. This means: early integration into all processes, taking on initial responsibility from the start if possible and participating in all or at least the main team activities such as joint lunch and coffee breaks.
One of the first tasks can be, for example, moderating one of the regular meetings such as a retrospective or a stand-up. This is the best way for the new colleague to get to know the processes and learn first-hand what works best.
Not every colleague is equally capable or willing to integrate so quickly. For example, some people are more reserved by nature and find it more difficult to make new acquaintances than others. This also needs to be taken into account during onboarding. The key here is to create scope so that everyone can contribute as much as they want.
The role of a mentor or a central contact person who accompanies the new colleague, gives them tips and is on hand to answer questions can be helpful. Support with contacts beyond the team is also important, as agile teams also have interfaces with other teams, departments and areas in the company that need to be known. It is advisable to establish personal contact with the relevant contact persons.
Agile onboarding checklist
Standardized processes for agile onboarding are often offered. However, due to the inherent characteristics of agile teams, each environment is different and has its own requirements. This is why ready-made, off-the-shelf processes are of little use. It is better to have a checklist of points to consider. How these are ultimately integrated into agile onboarding must then be decided on an individual basis.
In addition to our general onboarding checklist, we recommend the following points for agile onboarding:
- Describe all important meetings, their purpose and content
- Prepare a list of important contacts
- Introduce everyone in the team, preferably including a description of special preferences and ideas
- Personally introduce important contacts
- Involve the new colleague in initial tasks at an early stage
- Prepare and introduce joint lunch and coffee breaks from the outset
- Describe the most important workflows and processes
- Explain “unwritten laws”, for example about the volume in the office
- Appoint a mentor
Summary
Anyone who has ever worked in an agile team knows the special features that exist there. These must be taken into account when integrating new employees. Agile onboarding therefore poses special challenges. We use various examples to describe what is particularly important and also provide a small checklist.
