Let’s say you’ve just landed the dream hire. After countless interviews (and maybe a hefty bill from a recruiting agency), you’ve finally found “the one.” Naturally, you’re ready to sit back, cross your arms, and watch them work their magic. Except… that magic doesn’t seem to happen.
At The Metiss Group, we hear clients say all the time, “If I’ve truly hired the right person, I shouldn’t have to hold their hand as they settle in.” This couldn’t be further from the truth. Even superstars need your help to set them up for success.
In this article, we’ll explore why a team member could be a superstar at one company and a total dud at another. Spoiler: it all lies in the relationship of the dynamic duo (the new hire and their supervisor). We’ll discuss:
- Even First-Round Draft Picks Need Support
- What Does New-Hire Support Actually Look Like in the Workplace
- One-on-One Meetings Are The Secret Weapon To New-Hire Success
- Add a Professional Advisor to the Mix
- What About If The New Hire Doesn’t Work Out?
Even First-Round Draft Picks Need Support
One of my favorite questions to ask leaders during speaking engagements is this: “Can you name a first-round draft pick in the NFL who was a superstar their first year?”
You know what happens? Crickets. Everyone kind of looks around the room, waiting for someone else to come up with a name. Eventually, someone might hesitantly throw out a player. But then they pause and realize, “Oh wait, no, their first year wasn’t actually great.”
And that’s the point. Even the most hyped college player — the one who’s supposed to be the best of the best — rarely comes out of the gate looking like a superstar.
Think about what we do to these kids: we uproot them from their environment, give them a new boss, new coworkers, an entirely different playbook, and sometimes even move them across the country. Then we sit back and expect them to transform the worst team in the league into champions overnight.
And every single year, when these players can’t accomplish the impossible, people shrug and say, “Guess they weren’t that good after all.”
It’s no different in the workplace. Your new hire might be an all-star, but if you toss them into a brand-new environment with no support, they’re going to struggle. As a leader, it’s your job to set them up for success.
What Does Superstar Support Actually Look Like in the Workplace
Too often, a new hire is handed a handbook, pointed toward a desk (or Zoom link), and told, “Go do the job we hired you to do.” What they actually need is guidance to navigate the new terrain.
Clear Communication
For starters, new hires need to know who’s in their corner. They should have a clear sense of who to turn to for questions, guidance, and support. Without this clarity, they can end up feeling lost or hesitant to ask for help.
It’s important to help new hires understand the best ways to communicate with their supervisor and their team. You can use multiscience data to create a comparison report that accomplishes this: it puts behavioral styles and motivators side by side so the direct report and supervisor can avoid any landmines in communication.
For example, one of our team members is a major people-person. She brings enthusiasm to the workplace, but people with this behavioral style tend to be overly optimistic. When working together on a project, I have to give her gentle reality checks to make sure she sees both sides to every decision.
By laying out these differences from the very beginning, it’s easier to have these conversations around disagreements when they come up. And you’ll build trust with your direct reports much more quickly.
Job Scorecard
Another way to set team members up for success is to clearly define milestones and success factors. We create The Job Scorecard™ for our clients to accomplish this task. Any way to track progress toward goals will not only make the team member feel more confident in their role, but it’ll also make you feel more confident about that team member’s ability to bring success to your organization.
This is especially important in the beginning of a new hire’s employment. Understanding how they should spend their time and prioritize tasks can give them a clearer perspective, which means less hand-holding from their supervisor.
Development
Finally, you should guide the team member toward a development plan.
Back to the NFL analogy: a coach doesn’t just expect the players to do their best at practice and on game day. Instead, they push their teammates to prioritize their nutrition, sleep, strength workouts, and more.
Similarly, you should push your direct reports to follow a development plan. It can be reading books, taking online courses, or attending conferences. Check in on this progress during one-on-ones. After all, you don’t want a team full of people who haven’t learned anything in your industry since college.
One-on-One Meetings Are The Secret Weapon To New-Hire Success
The most important factor in a new hire’s success is a regular cadence of one-on-ones with their supervisor. Dynamic duos who prioritize the relationship have a strong foundation of trust, and you can’t get to high performance without trust.
These meetings aren’t about status updates or task lists. They’re about connection.
Weekly check-ins should cover:
- How things are going at work (and outside of work).
- What they’re enjoying and where they’re struggling.
- Personal development goals.
- Honest feedback — both ways.
These chats create trust and give your new hire the runway to shine. Then, at least once a quarter, take it up a notch with a formal review of milestones and success factors, using a document like The Job Scorecard™.
Add a Professional Advisor to the Mix
There’s another layer to new hire success: coaching. According to the 70-20-10 rule, at least 20% of learning happens through coaching.
Sure, you can get plenty achieved just by doing everything else we’ve mentioned so far. But a professional advisor holds both sides of the dynamic duo accountable for success. That’s what we do with our service, The Accountability System™.
Through this service, an advisor can act as a sounding board for both the new hire and their supervisor, helping smooth out the rough patches that often come with building a new working relationship. Think of it as having a guide to navigate the trickier moments. Someone who helps you get on the same wavelength faster.
A coach typically has individual, monthly check-in meetings with both the supervisor and the new hire. These conversations aren’t about mediating conflict or solving specific problems but rather about identifying patterns, refining communication, and strengthening the overall dynamic.
The coach will also use these meetings to update The Job Scorecard™ as needed. In a new-hire’s first quarter, they may be in learning mode, so some expectations may not be applicable. Then as proficiency increases, there may be a change in expectations to take on more or different activities.
Using behavioral data as a foundation, the coach can help both parties understand how to work with each other more effectively. For example, how does the supervisor’s feedback style mesh with the new hire’s preferences? What’s the best way to manage expectations on both sides?
This kind of coaching also gives the new hire permission to be human — to make mistakes and learn without fear of judgment. And when a leader and new hire both know missteps are part of the process, trust deepens, and the relationship becomes more collaborative.
Ultimately, a professional advisor doesn’t just support the new hire. They help set the tone for a successful working relationship right out of the gate.
What About If The New Hire Doesn’t Work Out?
Not every hire is a home run, and that’s OK. Here’s the silver lining: when you invest in a proven process for holding a new hire accountable, you’ll quickly see if someone’s a true fit — or not.
If it’s not working, you’ll have the confidence of knowing you did everything possible to help them succeed. This’ll make parting ways easier on both sides. Expectations were crystal clear, and if a separation conversation is inevitable, the new hire will probably be expecting it.
The Bottom Line
Look, we get it. You just spent all that energy trying to find the perfect hire, so the last thing you want to do is work even harder to get up to speed.
But if your plan is to hire a superstar and expect them to hit the ground running, you might as well light dollar bills on fire. It’d be like if you planted a tree but didn’t water it, fertilize it, or surround it with mulch. Talent needs nurturing. Don’t waste your money bringing in top talent if you can’t take the time to set them up for success after the hire.
At The Metiss Group, we’ve seen firsthand how our The Accountability System™ transforms leader-direct report relationships. Whether you’re onboarding a first-round pick or a seasoned pro, the right support system makes all the difference.
Now that you understand why new hires can’t just hit the ground running, the next step is to understand the cost of The Accountability System™ at The Metiss Group so you can decide if this service is right for your needs.
