Gusto is no stranger to creative employee handbooks, and this playbook likewise wears its infographical heart on its sleeve, but that’s the kind of thing you have to experience firsthand, with your eyeballs (we fully recommend it). In the meantime, we’ll hit you with some quick handbook facts and best practices:
Employee handbooks are not a legal requirement, nor are they legally binding documents. But written proof of company policies and notices to staff does carry legal standing if you ever need to make your case in court. Really, don’t make it a legal thing. Including contractual docs like NDAs or non-compete clauses is verboten (and just plain bad form).
Graphics and storytelling can enhance an employee handbook. It needs to fulfill a logistical purpose, of course, but another objective is getting people interested enough to read through it at all.
How should you structure the info? Try this general flow: an introduction with the company’s story —> defining this new employer/employee relationship —> the meat of it, your actual workplace notices, policies, and the like.
Do you have to publish a physical handbook? Nope: it doesn’t even have to be in digital ebook form either – consider something like an interactive website or swipe file.
Never ask “What should an employee handbook look like?” again. This easy-to-follow guide isn’t only an explainer, but also a visual lesson in creative handbooks. You’ll learn how to make a good employee handbook (even if you’re just a small business). Get it right with checklists, a chart to help you sketch out policies and reasoning, and templates for introducing your company and outlining benefits.
