Mastering Team Member Onboarding: Insights from a Developer and Mentor

Over the last few months, I've been giving extra time to mentorship because we've welcomed two new colleagues to our team. Luckily, they joined us two weeks apart, which gave me a chance to look at things from different and unique angles. I explored what strategies were effective and what could be better. Onboarding and showing someone the ropes is something I’m enjoying doing for more than 5 years on regular basis, and here, I got to make sure our team new members felt at home. When you're invested in the team's success and enjoy your work, helping newcomers is much more rewarding and impactful. What insights have I gained by guiding the recent additions to our team?

Understanding the Newcomer's Viewpoint

Starting a new job is often challenging. I was very fortunate to join Infobip as a 4th-year university student, and it's basically been my first and only job where I am working for over seven years. When helping someone new, we need to remember they don't understand everything the same way we do. They're still finding their feet and learning about the new team’s domain and projects, so it's our job as mentors to be there for them in every way we can.

Helping Newbies Grow

There are a lot of ways to support newcomers to your company or team. First off, try to see things from their fresh perspective – everything's new and exciting, and they're getting the hang of how things work. In one of my roles where I am overseeing internship programs and mentoring newcomers, I've noticed the high energy and enthusiasm all of them bring when diving into new challenges.

As mentors, we play an important role right from the start, before newcomers even start working. It's crucial to help them blend into the team smoothly. There's one thing we need to watch out for - if we wait to set up onboarding and mentoring until the newcomers already start working, we're already way behind on schedule. It's much better to have the onboarding process planned and in place before they step through the door.

Hit the Ground Running

It's beneficial for mentees to feel a sense of pride in their accomplishments from the start. Build up their confidence with easy wins early on. How? By assigning them simple tasks that they can complete quickly.

Yes, I know that it may seem extremely silly or ridiculous to hand mid-level or senior team members one-liners or straightforward tasks, but trust me - it's a great way to kick things off. Tackling these smaller tasks not only lifts their spirits, but also gets them familiar with the scope, team and their new role in no time.

Celebrate Small Improvements

Striving for perfection and being the best can lead to disappointment. Instead, focus on helping your mentees improve bit by bit every day. This approach encourages consistent progress and gives them a continuous sense of achievement.

I'm working on a presentation for the 2024 conferences where I'll go into the value of this mindset in engineering and tech and how it can help both mentors and mentees grow. I'll talk about how to utilize different mentoring techniques into your approach to help your mentees develop.

Grow as an Individual

Personally, I believe in being an original, not a copy of someone else. Sure, I learn from others and I am inspired by their good practices, but I don't want to just copy what they're doing. I want to be my own person.

Mentees should feel the same. Here, titles and years of experience don't make a difference. We're all here to learn and support one another. Encouraging individual growth means everyone brings their own unique contributions to the team.

Sharing Knowledge with New Team Members

I've dedicated many years to guiding new hires as they begin their journeys inside Infobip. One of my roles in Infobip is welcoming new team members to our company by teaching them about the ins and outs of working within the Infobip ecosystem. I also educate and mentor students in Infobip’s Internship Program, where I present hands-on lessons that dive into the practical parts of development.

This experience has taught me a great deal about effective mentoring and instruction. I'm eager to share with all of you practical advice and insights I've picked up along the way.

The Ideal Explanation

Picture this: You've just joined a company, and your mentor is constanly speeding through code, piling up explanations with no diagrams. Is this helpful? Do you understand everything? Or does it leave you, the newbie, feeling like it's all a bit pointless?

In my opinion, this is absolutely the worst way to explain any concept to someone who has just come to the team or company. This way won’t be very helpful for a person who's just joined the team. New members usually don't understand the projects well yet.

We, as guides, educators and mentors, should learn to put ourselves in the newcomers' shoes. Think about it: would you really like someone to explain things to you like that if you are new??? I believe in this golden rule and very simple principle: Explain things the way you'd want them explained to you. Strive for simplicity and clarity. And if your mentee is struggling with understanding you, that's your cue to try a different approach.

Get Visual

In my experience, more often than not, the best way to clarify things is to create visuals, like diagrams.

When trying to explain well, remember these points:

• It might sound odd, but try not to use pre-made diagrams too much. They can confuse mentees more than help. You might also struggle with explaining them.
• Instead, draw diagrams on the spot whenever you can. Seeing the process, the connections, and your thought pattern helps others understand concepts more deeply.
• I'm a huuuge fan of the classic whiteboard and colored markers for this. If you're in the same office, make the most of these tools!

Recognizing the Right Time for Details

Too much information can be overwhelming. As a mentor, you don't want to bombard newcomers with details that might just go over their heads.

What I've found works better is to focus on a small chunk of info—something you can explore in about an hour or so. When you zoom in on these bite-sized pieces, your mentees are more likely to remember what you've covered.

It's usually best to start with an overall overview—how different parts of the project link up, just enough knowledge for them to recognize things. The details can come later, as they'll pick up more over the upcoming weeks.

Hands-On Learning from the Start

Theoretical knowledge is all good and nice, but if you ask me - practical experience is where real learning happens.

I'm a firm believer in diving right in. For example, I get interns actively involved in our CI/CD process in their first 2 days. Remember that folks learn best by doing. When they perform tasks with our help rather than just watching, they really get to grips with how each step functions.

A key point here is: as mentors, we shouldn't jump in and fix issues for them. They should tackle problems on their own, with us providing helpful hints or steering them in the right direction. Show them the ropes, then let them have a go themselves.

Pay Attention to Non-Verbal Cues

Keep an eye on mentees' body language—it's often more revealing than their words. They might say they get it, but their body language might tell you they're still lost.

Remember the old saying: Repetition is the mother of learning. (Repetitio est mater studiorum.) If your gut tells you they didn't understand a concept you just went through, go over it again. It's worth those extra minutes, and they'll appreciate the effort.

Offer Feedback Honestly

Every newbie wants to know they're on the right track. You're keeping an eye on your mentee's progress, so share your observations with them. What are they acing? Where could they improve? What should they focus on? Remember, the mentee and mentor partnership is vital not just for their development, but also for their self-improvement!

Flexibility is Key for Mentors

Another key piece of advice I'd like to offer is about adaptability, a quality that's sometimes overlooked in mentors but is crucial. As a mentor, you want to transfer knowledge effectively, and to do this well, you need to recognize that everyone is different.

If your current method isn't working, be ready to switch gears and try a new one. Pay attention to what works well with your mentee, and adapt your style to make learning as straightforward as possible for them. For instance, a mentee of mine had a strong background and was good at drawing parallels and comparisons. He wasn't familiar with some of our team's concepts and tools, but he knew similar ones. So, I linked the new info to what he already knew which significantly simplified the onboarding process.

Remember, time is precious. Ineffective onboarding isn't just unhelpful—it's a waste of everyone's time. But get it right, and you'll make a real difference, paving the way for greater achievements!

Keep Learning from Fellow Mentors

Just as our mentees are learning, we, as their mentors, should also grow. With years of mentoring experience, I still look up to other great mentors for inspiration and guidance. I believe there's always room to improve and I grab every opportunity to learn more.

Being relatively young, one strategy I always use is experimentation. With each new chance, I test out new ideas to refine processes or introduce fresh concepts. Some ideas stick, others might not work, but it's all part of the learning journey. Collaborating with more seasoned mentors is also beneficial – I do that and together we can come up with creative solutions and learn from each other.

Mentoring Enhances Your Interpersonal Skills

Overall, I'd urge anyone to try mentoring. As tech professionals, we often focus on honing our technical skills, but mentoring allows us to develop our interpersonal skills. And these skills can be incredibly useful in our daily work.

Here's a parting thought: mentoring isn't confined to the workplace. It can extend beyond, into our personal lives. Every piece of advice you share, every bit of guidance you offer, counts as mentoring. So let's embrace this role and aim to foster a world where growth and learning are a natural part of our interactions.

Key Takeaways

Regardless of if you're a seasoned mentor or just starting with this adventure, the following takeaways summarize what makes a great mentor. Keep especially these principles in mind as you guide new team members and watch them—and yourself—grow and develop.

• Empathy in Onboarding: Welcome new team members by guiding them with a supportive and understanding attitude.
• Simplify Complex Ideas: Use diagrams and clear explanations to make complicated concepts more accessible.
• Hands-on Learning: Encourage new members to get involved with practical work immediately to help them learn quicker.
• Non-Verbal Communication: Watch for unspoken feedback and provide clear, helpful advice to aid development.
• Customized Mentoring: Adjust your mentoring approach to cater to the unique learning styles of different individuals.
• Collaborate and Improve: Work with other mentors to share insights and continuously seek ways to better your mentoring skills.
• Mentorship Beyond Work: Use mentoring skills to help not just with work stuff but also to build life skills and improve all sorts of relationships.

As you keep mentoring, think about how your help really makes a difference, not just in small ways, but in big ones too. You're not just giving advice; you're starting a spark in others, showing them what they can do and guiding future leaders. The time and care you spend on mentoring show you truly believe that people can always learn and grow. Hold on to that purpose and see how your hard work brings out the best in every new learner. 🌟