A new hire's business card on day one: HR checklist

Plans: creating and duplicating cards is included in every plan; QR codes, Save Contact, email signatures and NFC in Starter and higher; employee sync from a file and departments in Enterprise.

To have a new hire's business card ready on day one, create the card before they start, hand it over on the first day and check at the end of the first week that it is being used. Printed cards depend on the print shop's queue and may not be ready on day one; a digital card can be prepared before the start date. This guide lists the business card steps to add to HR's onboarding checklist, with who does what and when.

The wider picture of running team cards from one panel is in managing team digital business cards. Here the focus is one person: the employee who starts on Monday.

Why the first week matters

A new employee's first week is full of introductions. In sales or procurement, the first meeting with a customer or supplier often falls in that week too. Without a card, the new hire either writes a number on a scrap of paper or says "my cards haven't been printed yet". Neither helps the company's first impression.

There is an employer brand side as well. In their first days, new hires tell their network about the new job, often with a post on a professional network. A card link carrying the company logo, the right title and current contact details presents the company well through the new employee's eyes. We cover cards and professional networks in digital business cards and LinkedIn.

Who does what, and when

The business card step is shared between HR, the manager and IT. Counting the start date as day 1, a workable order looks like this:

The exact days matter less than the order. A card created before the contact details exist tends to be forgotten as a draft.

Before day one

• Details: full name, title, department, company email, work phone. Confirm the title with the manager; it is how the employee will introduce themselves.
• Photo: ask for a clear photo on a plain background and say it will be public on the card. A card works without a photo for anyone who prefers that.
• Card address: "firstname-lastname" is usually enough. Printed QR codes and NFC tags point to it, so do not change it after publishing.
• Documents: sales and technical roles often carry a catalogue or deck; see how to add a catalogue or PDF.

Create the card by duplicating one

A colleague's card in the same department is the best starting point: company name, head office address, documents and links are already filled in.

1. On the Cards screen, press Duplicate on a card from the same department. The copy starts inactive.
2. The copy's address is the original's with "-copy" added. Change it to the new hire's name.
3. Replace name, title, phone and email. The copy also carries the original's profile photo, social accounts and About text; replace or remove them.
4. Before publishing, check in step 4 (Images and template) that the team's template is selected, and in step 3 that the addresses are right.
5. NFC tag codes are not copied. If the employee gets an NFC card, enter the code in the Publish and summary step.
6. On day one, turn on Card is live in Publish and summary. The card is live from that moment.
7. If the employee will use the panel, pick their user as the card owner in the same step once they have accepted the invitation; pending invitations do not appear in that list. They then see their own card when they sign in.

To create a card from scratch, follow how to create digital business cards for a team. On the Enterprise plan, the employee list can be imported from a file; changes are previewed first and applied after approval, which removes the one-by-one work in busy hiring seasons.

Does the employee need panel access?

Not everyone does. Invite people who will update their own card or see the leads it collects: on the Users screen press New user, enter name and email and pick a role. Invitations are valid for 7 days, and a pending invitation already takes a seat in your plan. Do not send it too early; the employee often gets their company mailbox on day one.

Day one: handover and the first five minutes

1. The employee opens the card on their own phone and checks the details.
2. They tap Save Contact to keep their own card in their contacts.
3. They put the card's QR code somewhere easy to reach on the phone.
4. They add the card link to their email signature, using the company-wide layout if there is one; see digital business cards in email signatures.
5. They practise sharing the card with a colleague, so the first client meeting is not the first try.

The payoff comes quickly. On day three, a new sales rep walks into a first client meeting, holds out the phone, the client scans the card and saves the contact. "My cards haven't arrived yet" is never said.

If printed cards are still needed

Some industries still expect printed cards. A digital card changes the order rather than replacing them: the employee starts with the digital card, and the QR code on the printed card points to the same page when it arrives. When details change, the printed card does not need a reprint.

The other side: when someone leaves

• Deactivate the card: turn off Card is live in Publish and summary. Visitors see "This business card is not published", and an inactive card no longer counts against your plan's card limit.
• Hand the card over: if the customer relationship moves to a colleague, update the card with the new person's details. The address stays the same, so old QR codes and email links reach the new owner.

If the leaver used the panel, deactivate their user on the Users screen too. If their NFC card goes to a successor, remove the tag code from the old card first; one code cannot be on two cards.

Three quick checks for HR

1. Was every new starter's card live on day one? A late card usually means the email address came late.
2. Are new starters' cards being opened? Each card's opens appear on its own Analytics page, linked from the card editor. A sales card with no opens in its first month means the card is not being shared. See digital business card analytics.
3. Were leavers' cards closed or handed over? The offboarding line mirrors the onboarding one.

Common mistakes

• Creating the card on day one: day one is full of orientation; create the card in advance and keep it inactive.
• Keeping the copy's address: an address ending in "-copy" becomes permanent once it is on a printed QR code.
• Publishing with the old photo: the copy carries the original card's photo.
• Sending the invitation too early: the 7-day window can expire before the employee starts.
• Forgetting offboarding: a leaver's card left online for months sends customers into a gap.

Frequently asked questions

Should interns and temporary staff get a card?

Anyone who meets people outside the company should. When the contract ends, the card is deactivated and the slot is freed.

Who should create the card, HR or the employee?

HR or the person who manages cards should create it, which keeps the company name, template and title style consistent. The employee can handle small updates later.

Can employees change their own card?

A user with editing rights can. Outside Enterprise, the editor role edits all cards; seeing only one's own card comes with the Sales representative pattern in Enterprise. If you prefer not to grant rights, employees send change requests to HR.

Is a photo required?

No. A card without a photo opens and works. A photo helps the other person remember who they met.

Which plan do we need?

Creating and duplicating cards is in every plan; QR codes, Save Contact, email signatures and NFC are in Starter and higher; importing the employee list from a file is in Enterprise. See pricing for card and user counts.