10 Examples of Welcome Packs for Onboarding New Team Members
The companies getting first impressions right: 10 brilliant onboarding welcome packs
It’s never easy onboarding new team members — particularly in a world of remote working, flexible teams and virtual onboarding.
Businesses are now merging:
recruitment
onboarding
employer branding
employee experience
and company culture
to not only attract the right talent, but to keep them too.
And honestly? First impressions matter.
According to a study by Glassdoor, a strong onboarding process can improve employee retention by 82% and increase productivity by more than 70%.
That’s huge.
One increasingly popular way businesses are improving the onboarding experience is through employee welcome packs (sometimes called onboarding packs, welcome kits or onboarding boxes.)
Different name, same idea:
your new employee arrives on day one to useful information, thoughtful gifts and a much warmer introduction to the business.
Surprise. 🎉
Why onboarding welcome packs matter
A good onboarding pack:
makes new hires feel welcomed and valued
improves employee engagement
supports company culture
helps remote onboarding feel more personal
gives employees the tools they need immediately
reduces confusion and admin on day one
improves the overall employee experience
In a competitive hiring market, details like this genuinely matter.
Especially for businesses embracing:
remote working
hybrid working
flexible working
virtual teams
distributed workforces
because culture has to be built intentionally when people aren’t sitting together in one office every day.
How a virtual assistant can help with onboarding
Let’s face it:
during recruitment drives and busy hiring periods, onboarding packs often end up at the bottom of the list.
That’s where a virtual assistant or virtual HR support team can help.
An Hive Mind expert can:
research onboarding ideas
source suppliers
manage branded merchandise
coordinate printing
organise onboarding documents
proofread welcome materials
build onboarding checklists
liaise with new hires
coordinate deliveries for remote teams
It’s the kind of operational support that saves internal HR and leadership teams a huge amount of time.
What should go inside a welcome pack?
Every company is different, but the best onboarding packs contain items that are:
genuinely useful
relevant to company culture
thoughtful
or simply fun
Some ideas:
reusable water bottle
branded notebook
reusable coffee cup
favourite snacks or sweets
office access passes
onboarding checklists
team structure guides
Slack and email login details
first week agenda
company values guide
remote working tools
wellness gifts
tech accessories
The more personal and intentional it feels, the stronger the onboarding experience becomes.
10 brilliant onboarding welcome pack examples
Brainly
Knowledge-sharing platform Brainly created a welcome pack featuring:
branded sweatshirts
personalised onboarding materials
clean, friendly design
The personalised onboarding booklet is a particularly nice touch and helps new hires immediately feel part of the team.
Syndicode
Software development company Syndicode leaned heavily into beautiful stationery.
Their onboarding packs include:
premium notebooks
branded stickers
desk accessories
Proof that sometimes the simple things are the most effective.
Atlassian
Software giant Atlassian sends onboarding packs before new hires even start.
That means employees feel connected to the company before day one arrives.
Their packs reinforce:
company values
employer brand
culture
and excitement about joining the team
Which is particularly powerful for remote onboarding and distributed teams.
LiveChat
Customer service platform LiveChat built onboarding around company traditions.
Their onboarding pack includes:
branded swag
illustrated onboarding materials
and even hidden cake recipes tied to company culture
Honestly, anything involving cake already has our attention.
KakaoPay
Digital wallet company KakaoPay created one of the sleekest onboarding kits around.
Their pack included:
bespoke notebooks
desk accessories
organisational tools
beautifully designed branded materials
It even won a Red Dot Design Award.
Not bad for a welcome pack.
Ogilvy
Global advertising agency Ogilvy used onboarding as an extension of their creative culture.
Their induction pack centred around founder David Ogilvy’s philosophy and creative habits, making onboarding feel meaningful rather than procedural.
A brilliant example of onboarding reinforcing company identity.
Frontex
Even more formal organisations can still create engaging onboarding experiences.
Frontex proved that professional doesn’t have to mean boring.
Their onboarding packs focus heavily on:
clarity
structure
practical onboarding tools
and thoughtful presentation
Which is especially valuable in highly regulated sectors.
GoDaddy
Web hosting company GoDaddy created custom onboarding merchandise including:
tote bags
reusable cups
branded notebooks
caps
team-building card decks
A fun example of employer branding done well.
Hotcha
Although Hotcha no longer exists, their onboarding concept still stands out.
Their new hires had to learn how to use chopsticks on day one — a small but memorable onboarding challenge that reinforced company culture immediately.
It’s proof that onboarding doesn’t have to be overly corporate to be effective.
Element Three
Marketing agency Element Three built onboarding around a “mission” concept.
Their onboarding pack included:
personal messages from leadership
onboarding checklists
company swag
milestone tasks
culture-focused activities
It transformed onboarding into an actual experience rather than just paperwork.
Why onboarding matters more than ever
As businesses continue shifting toward:
remote working
hybrid working
flexible hiring
distributed teams
virtual support models
creating intentional onboarding experiences becomes increasingly important.
People remember how companies make them feel in the early days.
And often, that shapes:
retention
engagement
morale
productivity
and company loyalty long term.
Need help creating onboarding packs?
Whether you need:
onboarding support
HR admin assistance
supplier sourcing
branded merchandise coordination
recruitment operations support
virtual assistants
or flexible operational help
our Hive Minds experts can help.
Get in touch to build an onboarding experience your new hires will actually remember.