Hiring Your First Employee? Here’s What You Need to Know.
Hiring your first employee is exciting. It usually means your business is growing and you're finally ready to bring someone else onto the team.
But there's a lot more to hiring an employee than posting a job and finding the right person.
Suddenly, you're responsible for payroll, employment paperwork, workplace policies, onboarding, and a whole list of HR requirements you may have never had to think about before.
The good news? You don't need to become an HR expert overnight.
You just need to know what needs to be done and have a process for doing it.
Here's a simple breakdown of what small business owners should consider when hiring their first employee.
1. Get Your Business Ready to Hire
Before you bring your first employee on board, make sure your business is set up to legally and practically employ someone.
Depending on your location and business structure, this may include:
Obtaining an Employer Identification Number (EIN)
Setting up payroll
Registering for applicable state employer accounts
Understanding your state and local employment requirements
Obtaining workers' compensation coverage when required
Setting up a system for tracking hours and time worked
Determining whether the person should be classified as an employee or an independent contractor
Don't assume that calling someone a "contractor" automatically makes them one. Employee classification is based on the actual working relationship, not simply what you call the person or what paperwork you give them.
Tip: Employment requirements can vary by state and even by local jurisdiction. Make sure you're familiar with the requirements that apply to your specific business.
2. Create a Clear Job Description
Before you hire someone, take the time to clearly define the job.
A good job description should generally include:
Job title
Primary responsibilities
Required qualifications
Preferred qualifications
Schedule or expected hours
Compensation information
Physical requirements, if applicable
Who the employee reports to
Any important working conditions
A job description isn't just something you post on Indeed or LinkedIn.
It helps you and your employee understand what success in the position looks like. It can also become an important reference when you're providing feedback or addressing performance concerns later.
If you can't clearly explain what you expect from your first employee, it's going to be much harder to manage the position once they're hired.
3. Make the Hire Carefully
Once you've found your candidate, don't rush through the hiring process just because you're excited to have help.
Use a consistent interview process and ask questions that relate to the candidate's qualifications, experience, and ability to perform the job.
Avoid questions about protected personal characteristics or other topics that aren't relevant to whether someone can perform the job.
When you've decided to make an offer, put the important details in writing.
Your offer should clearly communicate things such as:
Position
Start date
Pay
Expected schedule
Supervisor or reporting structure
Any applicable conditions of employment
Benefits, if applicable
A clear offer helps prevent misunderstandings before the employee even starts.
4. Complete Your New-Hire Paperwork
This is where many first-time employers realize just how much goes into hiring an employee.
New hires may need to complete or receive several forms and documents, including:
Form I-9
Form W-4
Applicable state withholding forms
Direct deposit authorization
Emergency contact information
Employee acknowledgments
Required state or local notices
Company policies and handbook acknowledgments
The exact paperwork you need can vary depending on your location, business, and circumstances, so make sure you're using current forms and meeting the requirements that apply to your business.
And don't just collect paperwork and throw it in a drawer.
Create an organized employee file from the beginning and have a consistent system for maintaining employment records.
5. Establish Your Workplace Policies
You may only have one employee right now, but that doesn't mean you should wait until you have ten, twenty, or fifty employees to establish workplace expectations.
At a minimum, think about the policies and expectations your employee needs to understand from day one.
Depending on your business, these may include:
Attendance and punctuality
Timekeeping
PTO and time off
Workplace conduct
Confidentiality
Use of company technology
Social media
Anti-harassment and respectful workplace expectations
Safety
Dress code
Communication expectations
You don't necessarily need a 50-page employee handbook before your first employee walks through the door.
But you do need clear expectations.
The more clearly you communicate expectations at the beginning, the easier it is to hold employees accountable later.
6. Plan Their First Day Before They Arrive
One of the biggest mistakes first-time employers make is treating onboarding as an afterthought.
Your employee shouldn't walk in on Monday morning and hear:
"Uh...give me a few minutes to figure out what we're doing today."
A little preparation can make a huge difference.
Before their first day:
Prepare their new-hire paperwork
Set up their workspace
Create their email and other necessary accounts
Gather any equipment or supplies they need
Prepare a first-day schedule
Let them know where to go and what to bring
Make sure anyone involved in their training knows they're starting
On their first day:
Welcome them to the team
Complete required paperwork
Introduce them to coworkers
Give them a tour
Review important policies and expectations
Explain their role and responsibilities
Review their schedule
Explain how communication works
Begin job-specific training
During their first few weeks:
Don't assume that onboarding ends after the first day.
Schedule check-ins with your new employee to see how things are going, answer questions, provide feedback, and make sure they have what they need to be successful.
A good onboarding process doesn't have to be complicated.
It just needs to be organized and consistent.
7. Document From Day One
One of the best habits you can develop as a new employer is good documentation.
Keep appropriate records of employment-related information, including things like:
Hiring paperwork
Employee acknowledgments
Performance conversations
Training
Attendance issues
Disciplinary actions
Changes to compensation or position
Important employment decisions
Good documentation isn't about trying to "build a case" against your employees.
It's about creating a clear, consistent record of what happened and making sure you're managing employees fairly and consistently.
If an issue comes up six months from now, you shouldn't have to rely on your memory to remember what happened.
8. Don't Forget That You're Now an Employer
This is probably the biggest mindset shift when you hire your first employee.
You aren't just hiring someone to help you get more work done.
You're becoming an employer.
That means you now have responsibilities related to payroll, employment laws, workplace expectations, employee records, benefits, safety, and more.
You don't need to know everything.
You just need to know when you need help.
As your business grows, having an HR resource you can turn to can help you avoid expensive mistakes and make sure you're building good processes from the beginning.
Ready to Hire Your First Employee?
You don't need an HR department to create a professional onboarding experience.
The Moxie HR Onboarding Kit was created specifically for small-business owners who are hiring and onboarding employees without a dedicated HR department.
Instead of starting from scratch, you can use ready-to-go tools and templates to help you organize the new-hire process and give your employee a great start.
Hiring your first employee is a big step… and you don't have to figure out the HR side of it alone.
Moxie HR Consulting helps small businesses handle the people side of their business with confidence, clarity, and a little more moxie.