A few weeks ago, we hosted our semi-regular ode to Onboarding. Ah, Onboarding. It's so damn important, and yet many of our companies have no idea how to do it! Making the new hire experience awesome is a topic we see pop up again and again in OrgOrg, and it's one of the most fun areas for us to share advice and tips. Since each company's culture and personality is different, we can steal each other's ideas and make them our own.  :)

While we've been collecting resources in the OrgOrg Resources Library (including video and slides from past events!), these in-person events are a great way for us to connect in realtime with each other, and for us to gather interesting tidbits that we can share with the larger community as well, since many of our members are outside San Francisco.

First of all, thanks to our panelists:

• Kate Jennison, Director of People at Tilt
• Tianna Johnson, People Operations and Technical Recruiter at Github
• Mara Martin, Recruiting Programs Specialist at AppDynamics
• Camille Merritt, General Manager at Eden. 

Thanks to Daily Dining/ Rebecca Jean for the delicious noshing, and uber thanks to our heroes at Tilt for not only hosting us (and setting up our donations/ticket sales) and but also recording the event, so that it will live on forever (and is available to those who couldn't make it). Watch below - enjoy!

Written by guest contributor and OrgOrg member Katharine Bierce

​​Ever been waiting for next steps on a project from a colleague or supervisor who is swamped with multiple projects?  

Here are some tips for managing your time in the midst of bottlenecks.
1.       Read the company website and social media feeds.
Especially if you’re a new hire, it helps to know what your company does - and how your company is positioned in the marketplace.  This is especially key if you’re in sales, marketing, business development or other customer-facing roles, but is also helpful for context even if you’re in back office operations or a technical role.

2.       Read the company intranet and get to know what’s going on and who’s who.
You never know what interesting things you can learn about how your company works – on the company wiki, SharePoint, Confluence or other portal for employees only.  You can find presentations from past conferences, catch up on HR processes, and find out more about what other projects are ongoing in different departments that might pique your interest. Maybe even send an email to a colleague who posts some interesting content and you can make a new friend or at least build your professional network!  Or better yet, invite someone to lunch.  It also can’t hurt to memorize the names, faces, and titles of the top 10-20% of the leaders at your company (e.g. Director/VP level and above), so that when they walk by in meetings, even if they’re not at your office regularly, you can say hello and then become known by senior stakeholders.  

3.       Read best practices blogs.
Stay on top of news in your industry vertical and/or department.  Set up a Google Alert for topics of interest and see what’s going on in the news.

4.       Come up with long-range strategy for your area and an action plan to achieve it.
If your supervisor is the one who is really busy and has been running from one meeting to another, he or she will really appreciate your taking the time to think about how to meet your company’s strategic goals.  This shows leadership potential, vision, and thoughtfulness.

5.       Come up with 30 day, 90 day, and 1 year goals for yourself and an action plan to achieve it.
Be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Relevant and Time-Bound with your goals. For example, don’t say “I want to be a better public speaker,” think “I will research local Toastmasters groups today, join one, and give my first speech within the next 30 days.”  Some great goal setting and visioning resources are in this ebook here: www.hive.org/20s as well as this article on visioning (which you can do for yourself, not just for your company).

6.       Take a micro-break and stretch!
Experts recommend taking breaks at least every 30 minutes when you are doing a repetitive motion, such as typing.  No one likes carpal tunnel!  You can also combine productivity techniques like the Pomodoro method with a free app like StretchClock to stay healthy.

​In the spirit of Administrative Professionals Week, OrgOrg held a “Secret Admin” gift exchange (think Secret Santa, but non-denominational...and in April)! We had 30 OrgOrger’s participate with gifts ranging from decorative plants to gummy bears! The following are some comments and pictures from the OrgOrger’s that participated!

Monica, from Teradata, was the first to send me her picture telling me, “I got my secret admin gift today....a foam roller, It is exactly what I wanted! I was so excited when I opened it and saw it. I know Admin Week isn't until next week but super happy by this early surprise. :)”

​I can feel the excitement coming from Sounita with all those exclamation marks, “I love him!!!!”

Kim, loving her Aerolatte!

I am the person that places the office orders so when I signed for a package with my name on it, I was caught off guard and a little confused. I opened it immediately and I literally could not stop smiling. Made my day. :) ​Me and my Himalayan salt candle holder and double wine bottle carrier!