Who Should be a Buddy?
The selection of a buddy can depend on various factors. It could be someone relatively new who has recently gone through the onboarding process themselves, yet has sufficient experience to offer reliable support to the new employee. Additionally, a buddy should be friendly and inclusive, and available to dedicate time to the new employee. Consider if the buddy should belong to the same job category as the new employee.
It is important that the buddy is available to the new employee during the first month to offer assistance, address questions, and refer them to the right resources. Consider if the buddy might need help from their manager to allocate time in their calendar for these responsibilities.
Examples of Buddy Tasks
The manager and the buddy must establish a clear agreement on the specific tasks the buddy will handle. Examples of tasks the buddy can perform include:
- Going through the Welcome Web Page with the new employee to ensure they understand the available resources and information
- Providing practical and social support to help the new employee acclimate quickly.
- Being available to address ongoing practical questions.
- Assisting with training on administrative systems.
- Having lunch with the new employee.
- Giving a tour of the garden and museum buildings if the manager is unavailable.
- Arranging a photoshoot for the personal profile page with Karsten Sund.
- Accompanying the new employee to Blindern to obtain an employee ID card.