View and complete onboarding checklists

Employees

• Invite employee to Gusto (This is when you can send the new hire tax forms to fill out, like the W-4 and I-9.) 
• Assign an onboarding buddy
• Add their work email
• Create their software accounts (app provisioning)
• Order business cards
• Give a workplace tour

Scroll down and click the caret next to "Suggested tasks" to see more options.

US-based contractors and international contractors

• Invite contractor to Gusto

View and complete onboarding checklists:

1. Sign in to your Gusto admin account.
2. Click the People section.
3. Choose the Onboarding tab. This tab lists team members who have not yet been added to payroll. 
4. Find the name of the team member whose checklist you want to view.
   
   • If the team member is self-onboarding, look under the "Status" column to check the status.
5. In the "Progress" column, click View checklist.

From here, you can view and manage tasks. Some tasks (like filling out the I-9) cannot be deleted because they’re required by law. If a task becomes overdue, it's labeled on the checklist and primary admins receive an email.

Move a team member from the "Onboarding" to the "Active" tab

Once all tasks on a new hire's checklist are done, mark the checklist as complete. This will move the new hire from the Onboarding tab to the Active tab.

If you do not mark the checklist as complete, the new hire is automatically moved to the Active tab 30 days after their start date, as long as you've added them to payroll or set them up for contractor payments.

Cancel self-onboarding 

If you’ve invited an employee to Gusto and need to cancel their self-onboarding so you can onboard them yourself, follow these steps.

1. Sign in to your Gusto admin account.
2. Go to the People section.
3. Choose the Onboarding tab.
4. Find the new hire’s name and click the actions ⋮ menu.
5. Click View checklist.
6. Under “Tasks,” find the task called “Invite [Name] to Gusto.” Click the actions ⋮ icon. 
7. Click Cancel self-onboarding. 

You’ll be taken back to the beginning of the “Invite [Name] to Gusto” task. To onboard the new hire yourself, click Start in the “Onboard [Name] on their behalf” tile.

Adding tasks is only available to Plus and Premium customers—upgrade your plan at any time. Full access administrators and admins with “manage people” permissions can see all tasks. 

We recommend that you customize your onboarding checklist before you hire new people, so it’s ready to go before they start.

For employee checklists, you can specify what types of employees you want to be assigned any given task. For example, you can add a time tracking task and only have it included on onboarding checklists for hourly new hires.

Add a task

1. Sign in to your Gusto admin account.
2. Go to the People section and choose Hiring.
3. Next to "Onboarding checklists," click Customize templates.
4. Next to the checklist you want to update, click edit.
5. Click Add a task.
6. Fill out the task details:
   • Task title
   • Description (optional)
   • Assign the task (optional)
     • Tasks can be assigned to full access administrators, administrators with “manage people” permissions, and employees.
     • When an employee is assigned a task, they'll receive an email and a dashboard notification.
     • When an administrator is assigned a task, they'll receive an email. To review, go to the Hiring section. Next to "Onboarding checklists," click Customize templates.
     • If new hires are assigned tasks, they will not receive an email, but they will see a dashboard notification after you add them to payroll. 
   • Choose a due date:
     • Before Day 1: Any task that needs to be completed before the new team member starts.
     • On Day 1: Any task that needs to be completed by the end of the team member's first day.
     • After Day 1: Any task that can be completed after the team member starts.
   • If this is for an employee checklist: Choose who should have this task included on their new hire checklist—All new employees, or Specific types of employees. 
     • If you choose Specific types of employees, you can select as many fields as you want. You can specify by employment type, department, work state, and more. 
7. Click Add task or Add & create another. 

Track the status of a team member's checklist in the Onboarding tab. Gusto notifications are not emailed when tasks are completed.

Delete a task 

1. Sign in to your Gusto admin account.
2. Go to the People section and choose Hiring.
3. Next to "Onboarding checklists," click Customize templates.
4. Find the checklist you want to update and click edit.
5. Find the task you want to delete and click the three dots icon.
6. Click Delete task. 
   • Some tasks (like filling out the I-9) cannot be deleted because they’re required by law. 
7. Click Delete task.