From grimoire
Structures a new direct report's first 30–90 days with explicit goals, relationship introductions, and early wins so the hire builds context and trust before taking on full scope.
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Structure a new direct report's first 30–90 days with explicit goals, relationship introductions, and early wins — so they build context, trust, and confidence before taking on full autonomous scope.
Structure a new direct report's first 30–90 days with explicit goals, relationship introductions, and early wins — so they build context, trust, and confidence before taking on full autonomous scope.
Adopted by: Watkins's "The First 90 Days" is the most widely used executive onboarding framework in the world, cited in onboarding programs at McKinsey, Bain, GE, and the US Army War College; Google's re:Work research on new manager effectiveness identified new-hire onboarding as a primary driver of 180-day performance; SHRM's onboarding body of knowledge is the HR industry standard; BambooHR's 2023 survey (1,500 HR professionals) is the largest recent dataset on onboarding outcomes Impact: BambooHR (2023) found that employees who experienced great onboarding were 18× more likely to feel highly committed to the organization; SHRM research shows effective onboarding improves new hire retention by 82% and productivity by over 70%; Watkins's research on executive transitions found that 40% of senior leaders fail within 18 months — and that the primary cause is inadequate onboarding, not lack of skill; the cost of a failed hire is 50–200% of annual salary (SHRM replacement cost studies) Why best: Leaving a new hire to figure out the environment, relationships, and expectations without structure produces the two most common failure modes: (1) the new hire optimizes for the wrong goals because expectations were never made explicit; (2) the new hire fails to build critical relationships during the window when it is socially easy to ask foundational questions; structured onboarding creates a scaffold for both
Sources: Watkins "The First 90 Days" (HBS Press, 2013 updated ed.); Google re:Work "Guide: Improve Your New Manager Effectiveness"; SHRM "Employee Onboarding" practice guide; BambooHR "The Definitive Guide to Employee Onboarding" (2023)
Before the new hire arrives:
Day 1 is not for giving work. It is for establishing the relationship and removing anxiety:
The first 30 days are a listening and learning phase. The new hire should be absorbing context, not driving change.
Manager's role in the first 30 days:
New hire's role in the first 30 days:
30-day checkpoint: Meet explicitly to assess:
In this phase, the new hire begins producing work and taking on meaningful responsibilities — but with clear guidance and feedback loops.
Manager's role in days 31–60:
delegate-work)60-day checkpoint:
By 90 days, the new hire should be operating largely independently within their role scope.
Manager's role in days 61–90:
"It's been 90 days. I'd like us to reflect together:
- What's gone well that you want to build on?
- What's been harder than expected?
- What do you need from me going forward that you're not getting?
- What are your goals for the next 90 days?"
This conversation closes the formal onboarding period and opens the ongoing development relationship.
A peer buddy (a colleague, not the manager) provides the new hire with a safe person to ask questions they might feel awkward asking their manager. The buddy answers tactical questions: how do I submit expenses, who do I talk to about X, what does the manager care about?
The manager is not the buddy: the manager provides strategic context and expectations; the buddy provides social safety and tactical guidance. Both are needed.
npx claudepluginhub jeffreytse/grimoire --plugin grimoireDesigns a structured new employee onboarding program covering preboarding, day-one experience, 30-60-90 day ramp plans, buddy assignment, learning curriculum, and check-in cadence.
Generates onboarding plans for new hires with pre-start checklists, Day 1 schedules, Week 1 tasks, 30/60/90-day goals, contacts, and tool access. Customizes by role and uses connectors if available.
Generates structured 30-60-90 day onboarding plans for new hires, contractors, or reorganized teams across engineering, design, product, marketing, and operations roles.