Episode 69:

New Employee Onboarding and Business Planning Strategies

What You Will Learn:

Rock’s top strategies for more effective new employee onboarding and quarterly business planning
Why Rock plans and sets his life in 90-day increments rather than waiting until the end of the year to plan for the next year
Why Rock suggests dividing your business into four key planning areas: traffic (leads), nurture (funnel), sales, and fulfillment
What important practices Rock recommends to keep moving forward and stay prepared and on plan for each quarter
Why you should continually be reviewing what is and isn’t working and making minor adjustments to improve your systems
What important lessons and growing pains Rock experienced in his own real estate business during its growth
Why hiring the right people for the right roles is the key to growth, and why new employee onboarding requires understanding both the position and candidate
How Rock’s “Me-We-They” hiring and training system helps new employees get a high-level understanding of their role and develop confidence
Rock shares the details of a series of mistakes he made hiring personal assistants, and he discusses the important lessons he learned
Why business leaders need to transition their mindset from trying to save money hiring talent to seeing the value new hires add to the organization
Why Rock measures results and doesn’t micromanage how employees spend their time or when they choose to do their work

New Employee Onboarding and Business Planning Strategies

As your business scales up, so must your processes and practices. New employee onboarding and business planning are two key areas you need to master to continue growing your business beyond the seven-figure mark. This week’s guest, Rock Thomas, understands how important these strategies are. As a bestselling author, respected speaker, thought leader, and real estate entrepreneur, Rock has mastered these key skills. In this episode of the Elite Entrepreneurs podcast, Rock shares invaluable insights and lessons he learned on his own entrepreneurial journey that can help you get the right employees into the right roles and strategize for your business year-round.

Planning Every 90 Days

In his efforts to master new employee onboarding and business planning, Rock Thomas realized that looking forward to the future only at the end of the year wasn’t enough. Instead, he plans everything in 90-day increments. He then periodically tracks his progress throughout that 90-day period so that he can adjust his strategies to lean into what is working for his business and correct for what isn’t working. By paying close attention to his business all year long, Rock is able to pivot when needed and ensure that he meets his goals. If the only time you’re setting aside time for planning for your business is at the end of the year, you miss opportunities to refine your systems and strategies for the other eleven months. Instead, do periodic check-ins on your progress and allow yourself the time and room to maneuver around unexpected challenges. As Rock said, take ownership of both your big wins and your mistakes.

More Effective New Employee Onboarding

Rock uses what he calls a “Me-We-They” strategy for new employee onboarding and training. First, he has the employee spend time observing someone else doing the job at a high level, to set their expectations for the role. Then, the employee and the person training them work together so that the employee gains the skills, experience, and confidence to work independently before they are asked to do so. Then and only then, the employee is fully integrated into their role. As Rock said during the interview, “first we date before we get married”. In other words, the employee is given a probationary period to get familiar with the role and to ensure that it’s the right fit, both from the employee’s perspective and for the needs of the business. This careful and proven new employee onboarding process empowers the new team member to take ownership of their role and of their productivity. Throwing an employee into the deep end of the pool right away can cause them to struggle to meet expectations, but giving them time to learn and grow confident helps ensure that they can do the job to the best of their ability.

New Employee Onboarding

About Rock Thomas

From humble beginnings on a small Canadian farm near Montréal, Rock Thomas became a self-made millionaire, running several successful businesses and six award-winning RE/MAX franchises.

While the financial success was a huge accomplishment, Rock felt like there was something missing and knew there was more to life, so he embarked on a quest for personal growth, traveling the world and studying with acclaimed teachers like Tony Robbins, T. Harv Eker, Deepak Chopra, John Gray, David Deida, David Wolfe, Anthony Robbins, Jack Canfield, Dr. Wayne Dyer, and Stephen Covey.

He absorbed success systems, life and business strategies, and countless life-changing experiences. After assimilating all he’d learned and talking with people from all walks of life who were seeking more, too, he founded Rock Thomas International to bring the best-of-the-best to the world. His programs blend his extensive knowledge about personal development with cutting-edge success formulas designed to produce whole-life wealth.

Striving to be an inspiration for others by living an authentic and healthy life, Rock is always seeking new ways to learn and to teach, impacting people wherever he goes with supercharged tools, motivation, and zest for life. Founder of the #IAMMovement, he is known as “the man who “redefines lives.”

Through targeted keynote speeches and seminars, best-selling books, and life-changing programs Rock helps people turn ideas into action and action into success. His personal and executive coaching sessions help individuals break down barriers and make massive, focused changes in their lives. His Goalcast video touched over 100 million lives!

Dedicated to helping businesses and individuals maximize their full potential, Rock is committed to bringing the absolute best to the M1 Mastermind Community, his #IAmMovement Podcast, and the live events he hosts around the world.