Unfamiliar faces, unknown tools, new roles and a mountain of information. The first days within a new job can be overwhelming. Or they can be fun.
Tektit’s company culture as well as all our consulting services are based on the same foundation: the Tektit value system, which is reflected in the mode we operate and the way we communicate.
Based on our framework of values, principles and actual outputs the team members write short stories from their daily business that help us reflect on what we have learned. These value stories we want to share to a bigger audience now. They might inspire others to think about their own values and how they want to work. Join us on our journey and tell us which values come to your mind while reading the story - let us know in the comments.
Value Story (I): Onboarding
When I came to Tektit the welcome was not only warm and gentle, but effective as hell. The approach: Get her into the water and stand by her side until she swims.
The first two days were closely timed: Icebreaker with the team, talking about expectations (from and towards me), getting in touch with every Tektitan, the values, vision and strategy of the company, having a look at the most common tools, regular meetings, main products and clients. Phew. I felt every piece of information that ever came up in the company’s history was shared. But I felt no stress or pressure. Everything was perfectly prepared and presented in small bites on a Miro-board. Nobody expected me to remember anything right away (apart from the link to the board). When I need to look up something, I always know where to start. Beyond that deep dives to the different topics are offered whenever they are needed.
The only thing I had to focus on was merging into the team, becoming a Tektitan more and more. Every team member invited me to coffee-talk-sessions during the first two weeks - if I had taken that literally, I would have had a heart attack due to all the caffeine. This served several purposes: 1. Satisfy curiosity: Everyone wants to know what the colleague is like - the newbie as well as the veterans. 2. Remove hurdles: After the first meeting it is so much easier to approach someone with a question or problem. 3. Show responsibility: Onboarding is not a task of a single colleague or team, but it concerns all. Everyone in a company is needed to guide the way through the new-job’s-jungle.
That works pretty well. Lucky me! My second week two colleagues became indisposed. Instead of having some internal projects first as provided in the onboarding-plan, I was asked to join two clients' projects. Though I wasn’t prepared for every task I still felt no pressure but honour. I was part of the team already. They trusted me - and I could trust them.
“Work with one Tektitan - work with all Tekititans!” is one of our taglines. From the clients’ perspective it means benefitting from a bouquet of expertise. For a new colleague it stands for being backuped, learning with and from each other. It is the foundation for a smooth transition from unknown situations to daily business - a world in which work makes me happy & fulfilled.