Document 01 of 10
Before Day One
The work you do before your hire arrives determines everything that follows.
Most managers treat onboarding as something that begins when the hire logs in. That thinking is why most global hires fail. By the time your hire arrives, your environment, systems, standards, and expectations must already exist.
Work through this document in order. Check every box. When you are done, your hire walks into a station that works.
Send this
At signing
Complete by
72hrs before start
Owner
Hiring Manager
Next doc
Expectations Agreement
Section 00
The McDonald's Model
McDonald's consistency across global locations comes from three pillars: specialization, documentation, and redundancy. Every role is defined. Every process is documented. The system is so robust that if one person leaves, the business does not stop. Another person steps in and executes because the system, not the individual, is the engine of the business.
The goal is not to hire great people and hope they figure it out. The goal is to build a great system and hire people who can run it.
Where this comes from
This is the central idea of Michael Gerber's The E-Myth Revisited: build a business that runs on a system so it does not depend on any one heroic individual, then hire ordinary people to run that system brilliantly. Gerber calls it the franchise prototype, and McDonald's is its archetype. The point of this entire document is to build the station before the person arrives, exactly as a franchise is built before a single franchisee is hired.
Section 01
Thinking in Stations
Most small businesses hire one person and ask them to do everything, making that person a single point of failure. When they leave, the entire operation stops.
The Generalist Trap
- Answering all inbound calls and inquiries
- Managing all client communication
- Scheduling jobs and coordinating contractors
- Sending and chasing all invoices
- Handling all complaints and escalations
- Stretched too thin to excel at any one thing
- Single point of failure for the entire business
The Station Model
- Sales specialist handling inquiries, follow-up, and pipeline
- Operations specialist handling scheduling, routing, and staffing
- Finance specialist handling invoicing, collections, and reporting
- Client experience specialist handling retention and escalations
- Each station has a clear SOP, checklist, and KPI
- Each role can be restaffed without stopping the machine
- Business scales without the owner as bottleneck
Think in stations, not chaos. When you hire at global rates this becomes genuinely affordable. That is the difference between a stressed operator and a scalable business.
Section 02
Define What Success Looks Like
This is where most managers fail before onboarding even begins. Clarity on outputs kills guesswork. Your hire should never wonder whether they are doing a good job. The metrics tell them.
Critical
Primary Outcome
The single most important result, in one sentence.
Process 50 support tickets per day with average resolution under 4 hours and CSAT above 4.5 out of 5.
Book 8 qualified discovery calls per week from outbound and convert at least 2 to proposals.
Ensure 100 percent of jobs are staffed 24 hours in advance with zero same-day cancellations.
Core Responsibilities
3 to 5 recurring tasks they own completely.
Respond to all Slack inquiries within 5 minutes. Update the CRM after every interaction. Send the weekly performance report Fridays by 3pm. Escalate unresolved issues within 2 hours.
Interfaces
Who they work with and how.
Reports to the Ops Manager. Coordinates daily with the Sales Lead on new client handoffs. Escalates technical issues to the CX Director within 2 hours. No authority for refunds above $200.
Performance Metrics
The numbers that define good performance.
Ticket resolution rate 95 percent or above. CSAT 4.5 out of 5 or above. Average first response under 4 hours. Escalation rate under 10 percent. Weekly report on time 100 percent.
Section 03
Build Their Station
A McDonald's fry cook does not source the potatoes, design the fryer, or invent the timer. The station is built. The tools work. The process is documented. The cook executes. Your remote hire deserves the same.
Test every system yourself before their first day. If you cannot log in and complete a task, neither can they.
Communication and Project Management
Files and Credentials
Documentation and Tools
The Critical Test
Section 04
Document the Workflow
A hire who does not understand how work flows will constantly stop and ask for direction. Every question is a delay. Show them the path from the moment a task is created to the moment it is done.
| Question | What to Document | Real Example |
|---|---|---|
| Where do tasks originate? | The specific channel, board, or inbox where new work appears. | All new support requests arrive in the support inbox on Slack and are automatically created as tickets in Zendesk. |
| How is work assigned? | Whether assignment is manual or self-directed. | CSRs self-assign from the open ticket queue in Zendesk each morning. Priority tickets are always addressed first. |
| How is progress tracked? | Where updates are posted and how often. | Daily standup in the standup channel by 9am. Ticket status updated in Zendesk in real time. |
| How is completion confirmed? | The exact definition of done for this role. | A ticket is closed only after the client confirms resolution or the issue is escalated with a written handoff note. |
Section 05
Assign a Manager
In remote teams, diffused ownership is the same as no ownership. Your hire needs a single point of contact for direction, feedback, performance review, and escalation.
Critical
Manager Responsibilities
Section 06
Communication Rules
Slack / DM
5 minutes
Unless in deep work or on a live call. If unavailable, acknowledge immediately.
30 minutes
During working hours. Email is for non-urgent communication. Urgent requests go on Slack.
Urgent
Immediate
Reserve this signal for genuine urgency only. Overuse destroys the signal and creates alert fatigue.
One Platform, No Exceptions
All Work Communication Is Public
Acknowledge Before You Deliver
Decisions in Writing, Always
Respect Time Zones
Section 07
Hotspot and Contingency Plan
The mobile hotspot requirement is non-negotiable. It is a professional standard, not optional equipment. Every hire must have a hotspot ready, tested, and confirmed before Day One.
Hard Stop
0 min
Outage Occurs
Switch to mobile hotspot immediately. The switch should take under 2 minutes. Continue working without interruption if possible.
30 min
Report to Manager
Notify your manager with what happened, current status, and estimated restoration time.
60 min
Relocate
Move to your pre-confirmed backup location and update your manager once back online.
This policy exists because the tools your hire uses require stable internet. A degraded connection is not the same as working. Sending incomplete messages or losing task updates mid-session creates downstream problems that take more time to fix than the outage itself. The hotspot policy removes the excuse.
Hotspot Readiness
Section 08
Performance Rhythm
Ambiguity about performance is one of the most common causes of early attrition in remote teams. When your hire knows exactly when they will be reviewed, what you are measuring, and how to report progress, they spend their energy on the work and not on wondering if they are doing a good job.
Daily
Standup Post
Posted in the standup channel by 9am local time. Format is Yesterday, Today, Blockers. Takes 60 seconds. Full team visibility without a meeting. Non-negotiable from Day One.
Daily
End-of-Day Summary
A brief written update covering what was completed, what carries over, and any issues. Builds the documentation habit and gives managers an accurate picture of daily output.
Weekly
One-on-One
30 minutes with their assigned manager. Three questions: what is working, what is stuck, what is next. Scheduled, consistent, and never skipped during onboarding.
Weekly
Metrics Review
The manager reviews the hire’s key metrics against targets. Any metric trending below target triggers a coaching conversation immediately, not at the 30-day review.
Weekly
Friday Wins
Each team member posts one win from the week. Builds a culture of recognising progress, not just managing problems. The manager reacts to every single post.
Monthly
Formal Review
Structured review using the 30-day template. Celebrates wins, addresses gaps, makes a clear retention decision. Never skipped.
Section 09
Company Goals
Context transforms task execution into invested performance. This work takes 20 minutes. The absence of it costs weeks of misaligned effort.
Top 3 company priorities this quarter
How this role supports each priority
On Day One you will brief your hire on these three priorities and show them explicitly how their role connects to each one. They should leave Day One understanding not just what they do but why it matters to the business right now.
Section 10
Prepare Documents
Full access from Day One builds confidence, signals professionalism, and eliminates the friction that makes the first week feel like chaos.
Day One Documentation
Section 11
Manager Readiness Review
Complete this before sending the Expectations Agreement. If you cannot check every box you are not ready. Fix what is missing. Your hire cannot succeed in a system that does not exist.
Role Clarity
Systems and Access
Communication and Workflow
Contingency and Accountability
When you have checked every box above, your hire is walking into a machine that works. That is when great hires become great performers.