Balancing Real Experience with Training for New Hires

Borrowed

"People are your foundation. Great people will help you soar. Mediocre people will bog you down. Bad people will drown you."

From " Scale at Speed: How to Triple the Size of Your Business and Build a Superstar Team" by Felix Velarde [Book]

Learned

When it comes to hiring and onboarding a new employee, there’s always that tough balance between throwing them in and creating a structured plan that doesn’t get them exposed to real work soon enough.

In the past, we’ve made mistakes in both directions, but with a new hire starting this week (in an entry-level role), we hope to find a middle ground. They’ve got solid industry experience running a brand but haven’t worked in this capacity at an agency. The plan is to get them on accounts immediately and let them learn through real experience.

But what about “training”?

Over the years, we’ve developed all sorts of processes and systems. Walking someone through everything in the first few weeks can feel like the right move, but in reality, they’re unlikely to retain most of it. Worse, we’ve seen it overwhelm people or focus them on the wrong areas. For this hire, we’re sticking to a few key meetings to help them understand the critical aspects of their role and how we work at Barrel.

The goal is to give them enough information to take on responsibilities, navigate the work, and trust that questions will naturally arise as they dig deeper into projects.

Lastly, we’re starting this hire on a three-month temp-to-perm contract—much like I did when I joined Barrel. On my first day, I was in a client meeting, and from then on, I learned how things worked by taking on projects with the team around for support when needed. I appreciated the autonomy and the chance to take ownership right from the start.

I remember feeling a bit uneasy about the contract, but it gave me something to work toward. It’s not the right fit for every role, but for driven, motivated people, I think it works well, especially in more junior roles. It also ensures both sides feel good about the fit before making a full-time commitment. The key is to have regular check-ins, give feedback, and keep them updated on how things are progressing toward a full-time offer.

We’ve experimented with many versions of onboarding, and I know it’ll continue to evolve. For me, the key is accepting that there’s no perfect approach and using every new hire as an opportunity to learn and improve.

Thought

How can I create an environment where learning feels natural for new hires?