Building Blocks Part 1: Purpose & Ownership

The Building Blocks of Onboarding is a practical guide to designing onboarding that connects people, culture, and performance.

This is the second article, focusing on where to start.

All Articles

• Intro: What this series is about (& why onboarding is important)

• Part 1: Where to Start (Purpose & Ownership)

When designing onboarding, where do you actually start?

An effective onboarding program helps people understand what matters, build connection with their team, and start contributing quickly.

To do that successfully, you need to intentionally define its purpose and outline clear ownership across every part of onboarding.

But most companies wrestle with competing goals and no shared sense of what success actually means.

Is onboarding meant to…
- Ensure setup and access to all tools?
- Teach how the company operates?
- Build belonging and connection?
- Reduce turnover in the first 6–12 months?
- Accelerate time-to-productivity?
- Strengthen alignment with mission and brand?
- Reduce anxiety and build confidence?

It’s all of these. But not all at once.

Every new hire has a lot to learn. That’s why the focus should be on helping them feel confident and supported, so they can learn, adapt, and grow.

When done well, onboarding turns new hires into active carriers of your culture.

Intentional design matters.

Gallup argues that there are 5 key questions that new hires need to have answered in order to thrive in their role:

1. "What do we believe in around here?"

2. "What are my strengths?"

3. "What is my role?"

4. "Who are my partners?"

5. "What does my future here look like?"

1. Start with a Purpose Statement

Create a 1 - 2 sentence purpose statement about why your onboarding program exists. Purpose gives onboarding meaning, the first step in transforming it from a checklist into an experience.

When you’re clear on the why, it becomes easier to design the how.

Most purpose statements are fluff that do not help teams as they are vague.

❌ Our onboarding program exists to help new hires feel welcome and set up for success.

A purpose statement is useful as it acts as a north star to center back on, for all stakeholders.

✅ Our onboarding exists to create clarity, connection, confidence, and momentum, turning new hires into carriers of our culture and catalysts for how we work.

✳️ Try this: Write one sentence that finishes the phrase

Our onboarding program exists to _____,
so that _____.

2. Clarify Who Owns What

There are many parts to onboarding (company, role, team). The stakeholders should be working together to build clarity, capability, and connection for the new hire.

One of the biggest breakdowns happens when ownership is unclear:
HR assumes the manager owns it, the manager assumes HR does, and the new hire falls through the cracks.

Onboarding works when ownership is explicit and visible.

Example Ownership Grid

Company Orientation

Primary Owner(s): People / HR (with L&D in larger orgs)
Focus: How the Company Works. Understanding how the company operates, its values and culture, its pay, policies & benefits, and building belonging.
Specifics
- Why the company exists (history, mission, vision, customers, and business model)
- How work gets done (general employee tools, processes, and communication norms)
- Employee essentials (policies, pay, benefits, and logistics)
- Culture & belonging (values and connection to purpose)

Role-Specific Onboarding

Primary Owner(s): L&D (large orgs) or Hiring Manager (smaller orgs)
Focus: How to Be Successful in the Role. How to do this role at this company, org-wide context and goals, and role-specific tools, skills, and training needed to succeed.
Specifics
- How to do this role at this specific company
- Clarity on org-wide goals, key stakeholders, and success measures
- Org rituals and recurring events
- Role-specific tools, processes, and skills needed to succeed

Individualized & Team Onboarding

Primary Owner(s): Manager with team support
Focus: Individual performance & Team Integration, Setting individual expectations, introduction to team processes, building team and cross-functional stakeholder connections, and personalized ramp plan.
Specifics
- Long-term definition of individual success
- Expectations from manager on role and performance
- Employee ramp plan (early deliverables, feedback rhythms, and learning milestones)
- Team operations and collaboration (priorities, practices & rituals, communication norms, and decision-making)
- Building relationships (manager, peers, cross-functional partners, and stakeholders)
- Ongoing feedback and performance development

Clear ownership keeps things from slipping, ensures every topic has a home, and gives new hires a consistent experience no matter who they report to.

✳️ Try this:

• Create a simple table with three columns: Stage, Owner, Focus.

• List every major onboarding element (orientation, role onboarding, team integration) and assign an owner.

• Share it with your People team and managers for feedback.

• Anywhere you get hesitation, that’s where you’re misaligned.

• Ensure you define the roles clearly, and each stakeholder knows what is expected of them

Wrapping it up

When purpose and ownership are clear, onboarding moves from a simple new hire setup to becoming the foundation for confidence and belonging.