What is an onboarding checklist?
Quick answer
An onboarding checklist is a written list of the tasks needed to get a new employee started, grouped by when they happen, such as before day one, day one, week one and the first 90 days. Each line names an owner and a due date so nothing falls between HR, IT and the manager.
Last updated
Updated · By Robert Breen
Why it matters for a small business
Employee onboarding is the whole process. The checklist is the tool that makes it repeatable. Without one, a small team relies on memory: the laptop gets ordered late, nobody books the payroll setup and the new hire spends the first morning waiting for a login. With one, the same steps happen for every hire, whoever is running them.
A good checklist is short and specific. "Order laptop (IT, 5 business days before start)" can be checked off. "Make them feel welcome" cannot. It should also hold the required paperwork, which depends on where you hire; in the US, for example, the Form I-9 has its own deadlines. Ask HR or an employment attorney which forms apply to you, then put them on the list so they are never skipped.
In a real lesson: Build an AI SOP Writer with a Custom GPT
Stepthrough has no lesson that builds an onboarding checklist. The closest is Custom GPT SOP Writer, where you build SOP Writer for Ridgeline Supply Co., a made-up warehouse and distribution business with 22 people and 2 shifts. The lesson's test is a receiving procedure, but its instructions already handle checklists.
One rule reads: "When asked for a checklist, use check boxes instead of numbers and keep each line under 10 words." Another: "If the notes are missing a detail, write [CONFIRM] in its place. Never guess." Both suit onboarding. Short check-box lines are easy to tick off on a first day, and a [CONFIRM] marker beats an invented start time or a wrong system name.
The GPT also only uses roles from Ridgeline-Operations-Handbook.pdf, its knowledge file. Attach your own handbook and it can assign each onboarding task to a real role instead of a made-up one.
Try this lesson free or read the step-by-step guide.
Common confusions
Onboarding checklist vs employee onboarding
Employee onboarding is the full experience of joining a company. The checklist is the working document that tracks the tasks inside it.
Onboarding checklist vs employee handbook
The employee handbook explains policies that apply to everyone. The checklist is a one-time task list for one new person, and reading the handbook is often one line on it.
Tips
- Start each line with a verb and end it with an owner and a date.
- Group tasks by timing: before day one, day one, week one, first 90 days.
- Keep one master copy and duplicate it for each hire.
- Add anything a recent new hire says was missing.
Related terms
More Business terms
Where you use it: free lessons
- Turn an Interview Debrief into a Scorecard and a Candidate Follow-Up (Recruiting & HR) (ChatGPT, 9 min)
More free tutorials
Frequently asked questions
- What should be on a new hire onboarding checklist?
- Paperwork and payroll setup, equipment and accounts, a day-one schedule, introductions, required training, a first assignment and check-ins at one week and one month. Each item needs an owner and a date.
- Who owns the onboarding checklist?
- Usually HR or the hiring manager owns the list as a whole, while individual lines belong to IT, payroll, the manager or a buddy. One person should check that every line is done.
- Can ChatGPT make an onboarding checklist?
- Yes, it can draft one from your notes or handbook in minutes. Check the forms and deadlines with HR, because legal requirements depend on where the employee works.