How To Implement a Buddy System at Work: Your 2024 Guide
Did you know that a buddy system at work can make your employees more productive and engaged and boost retention rates? It’s also a brilliant way to make a strong first impression with new hires and help them feel supported and welcomed into the organization.
A report by Gallup shows that 88% of employees believe their company’s onboarding process is ineffective, while Glassdoor has found that an effective onboarding program can boost retention rates by more than 80%.
So, if you want to improve your onboarding efforts, increase retention, and boost morale at your organization, implementing a buddy system could be the perfect solution.
Contents
What is a buddy system at work?
Why is a buddy system at work a good idea?
6 steps to developing a buddy program in your organization
Buddy system at work examples
New employee buddy program checklist
What is a buddy system at work?
A buddy system at work is designed to provide knowledge and support to new employees as they’re onboarded. Each new hire will be paired with an existing employee for the first few weeks or months of their employment, and the existing employee will act as a beacon of advice and encouragement to help the new hire adjust to their new role. A buddy system is also sometimes implemented when an employee moves to a new team or is promoted to a new role.
The onboarding buddy system will often be used to introduce new hires to their team, help them navigate company policies and procedures, share knowledge and tips, act as a sounding board, and even provide friendship.
Why is a buddy system at work a good idea?
There are many benefits of a buddy system in the workplace. Let’s explore some of the key benefits below.
1. Improves the onboarding process
A well-considered buddy system helps to create a positive onboarding experience for new hires by giving them a reliable and friendly point of contact for any questions they have or support they may need.
Over 93% of employers believe that onboarding plays a crucial role in an employee’s decision to leave or stay within a company, while another survey found that 70% of employees who reported liking and excelling in their jobs also reported having a streamlined onboarding experience.
2. Increases productivity levels
Research by the University of Warwick has found that employees who are part of a buddy system at work when they first join are happier and 12% more productive than their counterparts. When an employee has help settling in and is actively made to feel a part of the team, it goes a long way to improving morale and therefore, communication, collaboration and performance.
3. Encourages casual learning through socialization
A buddy program helps new hires develop their knowledge and skills through social interaction with existing employees and facilitates informal learning. The new hire has a chance to watch their buddy at work and mirror them, which aids them in developing their own skills and confidence.
4. Accelerates the integration into the company culture
Although a new hire may be very talented and equipped with the knowledge and skills to do their job, not everyone has the social skills or extroverted personality that helps them settle into a new work environment. A buddy program for new hires increases the chances of all new employees settling in faster to a new organization, reduces nerves, and helps them feel at ease.
5. Better staff retention
Recruiting staff is one of the most expensive costs for any business, which is why improving retention rates is so important. If your new hires feel valued and settle in well with their team and new workplace, there’s a much greater chance they’ll want to stick around.
6 steps to developing a buddy program in your organization
Here are some simple steps to help develop an effective buddy training program at your organization.
Step 1: Establish the criteria for selecting the right buddies
The first step is to determine the qualities you’re looking for in a buddy so that you can enlist the right people. Ideally, you will need volunteers from all departments.
Limiting buddies to the HR department will put a strain on the team and isn’t ideal when trying to assign buddies to new hires from different departments. If you are struggling to find volunteers, try incentivizing it by offering a bonus or some form of gift.
HR tip
Look for people who are approachable, friendly, enthusiastic, positive, knowledgeable of the company, have relevant skills and experience related to the new hire’s role, are willing to invest time in helping others, are patient and caring, and naturally good at teaching.
Step 2: Pair up new hires with suitable buddies
The best way to ensure you pair up new hires with suitable buddies is to ask your new hires some questions so that you can match them with someone with a similar personality, learning style, and professional goals. You could directly ask them how they learn best or what kind of person they would like to be paired with. Sometimes a more introverted, shy person may want to be paired with someone more extroverted and sociable to balance them out and encourage them to step out of their comfort zone.
There are many free peer-matching tools that can streamline the pairing process. They use data and algorithms to recommend the most suitable buddy for each new hire, reducing a lot of the work.
Step 3: Provide the right buddy training
To ensure your buddies are equipped to perform in their roles and successfully help new hires, it’s important to provide them with the right training. This could be done through coaching, a workshop, or even an online course.
In other words, don’t expect your buddies to be experts from the get-go. As long as volunteers display a good sense of natural attributes, they can be molded into strong buddies. Setting up a group chat for all buddies is also a great way for everyone to share knowledge and tips.
Step 4: Give buddies a checklist of activities to complete
The next step is to ensure you have a checklist of all the tasks you want your buddies to complete. They need to know what’s expected of them and can keep track.
This can include:
- Introducing the new hire to their team
- Explaining their role and daily responsibilities
- Helping them get set up with new equipment and software
- Sharing the company culture, values, and mission
- Answering any questions they have or referring them to someone who can assist them.
Having a physical checklist that the buddy can tick things off is really helpful in staying on track and not forgetting anything.
While having a checklist is important, you should also make sure that your buddies know not to be too regimented in their approach. Encourage them to use their judgment as they learn through their experiences helping new hires.
Step 5: Set expectations for both buddies and new employees
Make sure there are clear expectations for both your buddies and new hires. For example, encourage your new employees to ask questions, communicate any challenges they’re having, and seek support where needed. Encourage your buddies to provide clear guidance, answer questions as best they can (or refer to someone else), and regularly check in with their new hire to see how well they’re adjusting and settling in.
It’s also a good idea to decide how long the buddy relationship will last (a few weeks or months), and set an end date.
Step 6: Regularly check in and gather feedback
The final step to developing a successful onboarding buddy program is collecting feedback from your buddies and new hires to gauge how well the program is going and see how it can be improved. It’s essential that you’re open to feedback and willing to address any issues so that your buddy program is beneficial to everyone involved.
Buddy system at work examples
Here are some examples of successful buddy programs for new hires at work.
| As part of their onboarding process, managers of Google’s new hires (known as Nooglers) are sent an email the Sunday before their first day at work with a checklist of tasks to complete. One of these tasks includes matching the new hire with a peer buddy. Statistics show that when managers follow this checklist, their new hire becomes effective in their role 25% faster than when managers do not follow the checklist. | |
| Apple | At Apple, all new employees are carefully matched with a work buddy to help them settle into their new role. Buddies are carefully selected to ensure they get the culture at Apple and are able to provide support, reassurance, and field any questions the new hire has. |
| Buffer | Buffer has a three-buddy system in operation for the first 45 days that every new hire spends in the company. Each new employee will be paired with a leader buddy (someone with lots of experience, like a manager), a role buddy (a peer who has a good understanding of the new hire’s role), and a culture buddy (an experienced employee who helps the new employees understand the company’s culture, vision and goals). |
| Microsoft | Mirosoft tested its onboarding buddy program by comparing the efficiency of new hires assigned buddies versus those not. After their first week in their new role, new hires with buddies were 23% more satisfied with their onboarding experience than those who did not have buddies. Microsoft has since taken steps to expand its buddy program by setting up an internal site for hiring managers to match new employees with buddies. |
New employee buddy program checklist
Here’s an example of a checklist HR can use to help new buddies prepare for helping a new hire.
Create a digital checklist that can be amended as needed and followed by HR every time a buddy is partnered with a new hire. You can also save our image to use as a checklist.
Key takeaway
Implementing a successful buddy system at work can vastly improve your onboarding process and lead to happier and more productive employees as well as higher retention rates. To develop an effective buddy system, selecting the right buddies and providing them with the right training, creating suitable matches with new hires, providing all buddies with a checklist of tasks, setting clear expectations, and gathering feedback from both parties. Ensure that you use this valuable feedback to make tweaks and improve your buddy system over time.
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