Milestone map
Milestone map
3 milestones
Audit Existing Onboarding and Identify Gaps
3 weeks
Conduct a structured audit of your organisation's current onboarding process by interviewing at least five recently onboarded employees (joined within six months) and three managers who have onboarded new reports. Map the current onboarding journey from acceptance through first 90 days, identify the three highest-impact gaps (moments where new hires most often feel lost, make preventable mistakes, or take longer than necessary to become effective), and produce a gap analysis document.
Proof required
Submit the onboarding journey map and gap analysis document (min 700 words) including interview notes or summaries from at least five new hires and three managers, with the three highest-impact gaps named and evidenced.
What gets checked
- Journey map covers acceptance through 90 days — not just the first week
- Three gaps are evidenced by interview data — not the submitter's assumptions
- Managers and new hires are both represented in the research — one perspective is insufficient
Common mistakes
- Audit interviews only recently-joined hires — misses the manager perspective on what makes new hires effective
- Gaps are identified from the submitter's intuition rather than from research
- Journey map stops at week one — the 30-60-90 day arc is where most onboarding fails
Resources
Foundationstart here
Depthgo deeper
What a verifier looks for
- Ask the submitter to name the three highest-impact gaps and explain which interview data supports each
- Confirm at least five new-hire interviews and three manager interviews were conducted
- Check that the journey map covers the full 90 days — not just orientation or week one
Design and Document the New Onboarding Program
3 weeks
Design a structured onboarding program addressing the gaps identified. The program must cover: pre-boarding (before day one), orientation (week one), role integration (weeks two to four), and performance ramp (days 30-60-90). For each stage, specify: what the new hire needs to know, who they need to meet, what they need to do, and how they know they're on track. Document the program as a runnable guide that a manager could run for a new hire without the designer present.
Proof required
Submit the onboarding program document (min 1200 words) covering all four stages, plus confirmation from at least one manager that the program is runnable and that they would actually use it.
What gets checked
- All four stages are covered with concrete know/meet/do/track guidance
- Document is written for the manager running it — not the designer who built it
- Manager confirmation is from a named person who reviewed and would use the program
Common mistakes
- Program covers orientation only — skips the performance ramp stage where most failures happen
- Document is a checklist of tasks rather than a structured program with rationale
- Manager review is skipped — program is validated by the designer rather than by someone who would run it
Resources
Foundationstart here
Depthgo deeper
What a verifier looks for
- Ask the submitter to walk through what a new hire does on day one, day 30, and day 90 per the program
- Confirm the manager reviewer is named and that they would run this program for their next new hire
- Check that each stage has a 'how do you know you're on track' element — not just tasks
Run the Program and Measure Effectiveness
13 weeks
Run the onboarding program for at least two new hires end-to-end. After each new hire's first 90 days, collect structured feedback from the new hire (how well-prepared did they feel? what was missing?) and their manager (how quickly did they reach effectiveness compared to previous cohorts?). Produce a program effectiveness report comparing findings, identifying what to improve, and making documented updates to the program.
Proof required
Submit feedback surveys or interview notes from at least two new hires and their managers (covering both questions above), plus the program effectiveness report (min 500 words) and the documented updates made to the program based on findings.
What gets checked
- Feedback from both new hires and managers is included — one perspective is insufficient
- Effectiveness report compares the two new hire experiences — not just summarises
- Program is updated after the review — specific changes are documented
Common mistakes
- Program runs once but no feedback is collected — effectiveness is assumed, not measured
- Feedback is collected but no changes are made — the program is treated as finished
- Only new hires are surveyed — manager perspective on ramp speed is not captured
Resources
Foundationstart here
What a verifier looks for
- Confirm at least two full onboarding cycles ran with both new hire and manager feedback collected
- Ask the submitter what specific changes they made to the program based on the feedback
- Check the effectiveness report compares both cohorts — not just describes each one separately
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