To build a joining kit employees actually want to keep, make it useful, personal, high-quality, and easy to use—not just branded merchandise.
Start with usefulness, not branding
Ask: What will a new employee genuinely need during their first week?
Include items such as:
- A clear first-week guide
- Team and company contacts
- Building access or workspace information
- IT setup instructions
- A simple organizational chart
- A list of useful tools, links, and FAQs
All this information can come in a welcome card with note on the top. And this becomes the most important go to part for the joinee.
Personalize it
Personalization makes the kit feel intentional rather than mass-produced.
Consider including:
- The employee’s name
- Their team or role
- A message from their onboarding buddy/ HR team
- Items based on their work style or location
Choose fewer, better items
Employees usually keep items that are:
Examples
- A high-quality water bottle or travel mug
- A useful tote or laptop sleeve
- A compact multi-port charger
- A quality notebook
- A comfortable hoodie or neutral apparel
- A desk plant or small sustainable item
- A local food or coffee gift card
Avoid
- Cheap plastic gadgets
- Oversized logos
- Poor-quality clothing
- Generic stress balls
- Excessive packaging
Make the unboxing experience simple
The kit should feel considered, not wasteful.
- Clear labels
- A logical order
- Short explanations for each item- if needed
- QR codes linking to relevant resources
- Packaging that can be reused
Design for different types of employees
A good joining kit should work for:
- Office-based employees
- Remote employees
- Hybrid employees
- Contractors
- International hires
- Field or shift workers
Test it before rolling it out
Give the kit to a few recent hires and ask:
- What did you use in your first week?
- What did you ignore?
- What was confusing?
- What would you remove?
- What did you wish had been included?
- Which item would you still want six months from now?
The key principle
Every item should either help the employee do their job, feel connected, or make their first week easier. If it does none of those things, leave it out.
