New Team Member Onboarding - Operations SOP
Owner: Operations Lead (originally Rico Rejoso)
Latest Update: April 22, 2026
Status: Active
Purpose
To streamline and standardize the onboarding process for all new hires at Brainforge, ensuring a smooth transition, proper access to tools, cultural integration, and operational alignment from day one.
Scope
This SOP applies to all new contractors or employees joining Brainforge across departments. It is executed by the Operations team in collaboration with team leads and the executive team.
This document enables self-service onboarding - executives can now run the full onboarding process without waiting for Operations.
Quick Start: One-Command Onboarding
For the full automated experience, use the agent with:
"Create onboarding for [NAME] with email [PERSONAL_EMAIL] joining as [ROLE] in [DEPARTMENT]"
Resources
- Google Admin Console
- HR Notion Database
- Brainforge Financial Model
- Onboarding Slides
- Contracts Templates
- Tools SOP
Guiding Principles
- Prioritize a warm, informed welcome experience
- Provide immediate access to tools and teams
- Ensure operational compliance and documentation
- Set clear role and project expectations
- Foster early connection and collaboration
Procedures
1. Initiating the Onboarding Process
Preferred method: Executive submits request via Linear ask in Slack
Required information:
- Full name
- Personal email address
- Role/Department
- Start date
- Employment type (Full-time/Part-time/Contractor)
- Hourly rate or salary
2. Contract Preparation (if applicable)
For new contractors requiring contracts:
-
Create contract folder:
- Go to Non-Executed For Approval Contracts
- Create folder with new hire’s name
- This is for Uttam’s review (can be deleted after signing)
-
Use Combined Contractor Agreement template:
- Go to Contract Templates
- Copy “Combined Contract (NDA + Independent Contractor)”
- Rename with new hire’s name
- Fill out all highlighted fields
-
Review process:
- Share contract in Linear or mention Uttam on Google Doc
- Once approved, convert to PDF
- Upload to Documenso
- Move to “contractors” folder once signed
- Add signers: Uttam (uttam@brainforge.ai) and the new hire
3. Create Brainforge Email (Google Workspace)
Format: firstname.lastname@brainforge.ai
Via Google Admin Console:
- Navigate to Directory → Users → Add new user
- Enter First and Last Name
- Format email as:
firstname.lastname@brainforge.ai- Example:
r.davisdunham@brainforge.ai
- Example:
- Set temporary password
- Send login credentials to the new hire’s personal email
Via gws CLI (for automation):
gws user create \
--first-name "R." \
--last-name "Davis Dunham" \
--email "r.davisdunham@brainforge.ai" \
--send-welcome-email "rdavisdunham@gmail.com"4. Grant Access to Tools
AI Team Tools Required:
- Brainforge Email (already created)
- Slack - Guest access to platform channel
- 1Password - Vault access
- GitHub - Org invite
- Linear - Team access
- Notion - Workspace access
- Clockify - Time tracking
- Cursor - License assignment
- ChatGPT/Claude - AI tool licenses
Tool Access by Department:
| Department | Tools |
|---|---|
| AI Team | Brainforge email, Slack, 1Password, GitHub, Linear, Notion, Clockify, Cursor, ChatGPT/Claude |
| Data Team | Fivetran, Portable.io, Snowflake, BigQuery, DBT Core, Rill, Metabase, Amplitude, GitHub |
| Sales/Marketing | Brainforge email, Notion, HubSpot, Slack, 1Password, Figma, Zoom |
| Operations | Brainforge email, Notion, Linear, Slack, GitHub, Clockify, 1Password, Figma, Zoom, Ramp, Documenso |
| Legal | Documenso, Slack, Notion |
| Finance | Ramp, Clockify, Notion |
| HR | Notion |
| PM Team | Slack, Linear, Clockify, Zoom Premium, GitHub, ChatGPT, Operating, 1Password (admin), FigJam, Cursor |
| Engineering | Brainforge email, Slack, GitHub, Linear, Notion, 1Password, Cursor, Vercel, Railway |
5. Create Linear Project & Onboarding Checklist
Agent command:
"Create Linear onboarding project for [NAME] joining as [ROLE]"
Manual steps:
- In Linear → Projects
- Create new project named:
[Full Name] Onboarding - Create issue using “New Hire Checklist” template
- Rename and assign to the new hire (or to yourself as the onboarding lead)
6. HR Notion Database & Financial Model Update
Add to HR Notion Database:
- Go to HR Notion Database
- Add new page with:
- Name
- Role
- Department
- Work email (Brainforge email)
- Start Date
- Employment type
- Rate/Salary
Update Financial Model:
- Open Brainforge Financial Model
- Navigate to Payroll Changes tab
- Add details:
- Name
- Contract Folder (link)
- Hours per Week
- Department
- Rate (hourly or salary)
- Status/Capacity (Full-time or Part-time)
7. Notify Finance
Send Slack message to Finance team:
Hi Finance Team!
We have a new employee joining us who needs to be added to Payroll and send invite to Ramp. Here are the details:
Name: [Full Name]
Start Date: [Date]
Role/Department: [Role]/[Department]
Employment Type: [Full-time/Part-time/Contractor]
Email: [brainforge email]
Please let me know if you need any additional details or documents to proceed. Thank you!
8. Send Team Introduction Slack Message
Channel: general or team-announcements
Hey Brainforge Team, @here 👋
I'd like to introduce our new team member, @[Slack handle], who's joining us as [Role] under the [Team/Department]!
We're excited to have you on board and can't wait to see the great work we'll achieve together.
Let's all give a warm welcome! 🎉
9. Final Checklist and Orientation
Use Linear Checklist to track progress.
Schedule and conduct Brainforge Orientation:
- Use Onboarding Slides covering:
- Company background
- Team introductions
- Role expectations
- Tool overviews
Add to Core Team meetings for the team they are joining.
Schedule 1:1s with Core Team members during first week.
Required Check-in Schedule:
| Timeline | Meeting |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | Meeting with Dept Lead & Uttam |
| Week 2 | Meeting with Dept Lead & Uttam |
| 30 days | Progress review |
| 60 days | Progress review |
| 90 days | Progress review |
10. Visual Assets & Final Steps
- Request a headshot from the new hire
- Share with Design Team for client presentation updates
- Let new hire know:
- They can use Slack’s Linear Ask feature to request access or help
- Operations team is available for support
Responsibilities
| Task | Responsible |
|---|---|
| Submitting onboarding request | Executives |
| Email and tool access | Operations / Executives (self-service) |
| Contract creation and handling | Operations / Uttam |
| HR/Finance updates | Operations / Executives |
| Orientation facilitation | Operations / Department Leads |
| Core team integration | Operations + Department Leads |
| Final review | Operations |
Automation Reference
Creating a Brainforge Email
Option 1: Via Google Admin Console
- https://admin.google.com → Directory → Users → Add new user
Option 2: Via gws CLI
# Install gws if needed
# Then:
gws user create --first-name "First" --last-name "Last" --email "first.last@brainforge.ai"Adding to Slack (Guest - Specific Channel)
- Go to https://brainforge.slack.com/admin
- Click “Invitations” → “Invite members”
- Enter personal email
- Select “Guest” role (can access specific channels only)
- Choose platform channel (or relevant channels)
- Send invitation
Platform/Supabase User Creation
For AI engineers requiring platform access:
-- Add user to internal users table if applicable
INSERT INTO internal_users (email, name, role, department, created_at)
VALUES ('r.davisdunham@brainforge.ai', 'R. Davis Dunham', 'AI Engineer', 'Engineering', NOW());Related Resources
Change Log
| Date | Change | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-07-30 | Original SOP created | Rico Rejoso |
| 2026-04-22 | Added self-service capabilities and automation | Agent |