What is a company handbook and how to write one

17 of October, 2022

A company handbook is a document that is used during the process of welcoming new employees into the organization. Its objective is focused on reporting important information about the company, its goals, its operation, its business culture, among others.

In this case, we can use Sesame HR as an example, an HR software designed with a very intuitive interface.

What is a company handbook?

As we already mentioned, it is a business document that is used in the process of onboarding new employees. Its objective is to inform employees about all the company guidelines. To mention a few examples: business goals, operation, business culture, among others.

It should be noted that this is not a new tool, but it is true that it plays a very important role. And this is because it is the first sign of affection, respect and admiration that can be felt towards a new worker.

We have all gone through those nerves that arise on the first day at work in a new company. We may be the person with the best profile for the vacancy, but we all always feel insecure at the beginning of a new professional adventure.

What should a company handbook contain?

The company handbook must contain the following points:

• History and reason for existence of the company.
• Values and business philosophy.
• Obligations and rights of the worker, as well as vacations, schedules, salaries, among others.
• Specify the employee’s position. As well as the tasks to be carried out and the goals to be met.

These are the most basic points that, depending on the type of company, will take up more or less space. Others can also be added, as long as the organization considers them relevant.

Benefits of an employee handbook

In addition to fulfilling its main objective, which is to reduce the insecurities of the first days, preparing an employee handbook offers other benefits:

• For employees: Helps them know what tasks they are expected to do and what goals need to be achieved. It provides information about the ideal client of the company. It helps workers be more focused, hence more productive. 
• For companies: it allows them to explain from the beginning the most basic aspects of the organization. A more favorable work climate is generated, where everyone knows what their tasks are and who they should turn to in case of need. The performance of new workers will be much higher from the first day, since they will not depend on third parties to carry out their work.

How to prepare an employee handbook?

When preparing this manual, it is important to choose well who will be the person responsible for writing it. In large corporations, these documents are usually very institutional. This makes them not easy to understand and, sometimes, they do not properly reflect the reality of all company departments. Taking into account the importance of the person who is writing the manual, proceed to gather the main people in charge of your team and answer the following questions.

1. What is the history of our company and what has brought us to the present moment?
2. What are our values?
3. Working days, schedules, holidays, sick leaves or leaves of absence.
4. Wages.
5. How many departments are there in the company and how many people work there?
6. Internal phone numbers.
7. Communication channels in the company, both internal and external.
8. Tasks and goals of the vacancy that the new employee of the company will cover.
9. Special days of the company and usual customs.
10. Types of clothing, if necessary.

So that you can facilitate the process and make it much easier and faster, you can count on Sesame HR. A human resources software that will allow you to design your onboarding process and share it with your new employees.