Victoria Cooke’s path to HR wasn’t typical—and that’s exactly why her insights stand out. A former large-scale event planner, Victoria now sees onboarding as an experience to be designed, not a box-ticking exercise. As Manager of People and Culture at Happy Money, she joined Erin Rice on the Employee Onboarding Podcast to share her secrets for creating authentic, high-impact onboarding processes.
Victoria’s event-planning background gives her a unique edge. She spots overlooked moments in onboarding that build trust and engage employees from the start. Her approach? A blend of empathy, creativity, and simplicity—crafted to make onboarding both human and memorable.
Why pre-boarding is the secret weapon you’re ignoring
Most companies think onboarding begins on a new hire’s first day. Victoria flips the script. “Onboarding starts the moment someone signs the offer letter,” she explains. This “pre-boarding” phase is a golden opportunity to engage new hires and set the tone for their experience.
Think of it like sending an invitation to an event—the anticipation and lead-up are just as important as the event itself. Happy Money embraces this by creating thoughtful touchpoints: curated welcome packages, personalized communication, and early check-ins that build excitement and trust long before Day One.
How to simplify onboarding without lowering standards
When resources are tight, companies often cut corners on onboarding. But Victoria argues that simplifying doesn’t mean sacrificing quality. Her advice? Focus on high-impact moments that feel personal and authentic.
Instead of overwhelming workflows with endless tasks, Happy Money prioritizes meaningful interactions:
- Personalized Slack emojis that introduce new hires with a touch of humor and personality
- Virtual coffee chats with executives to create early connections with leadership
- Custom Zoom backgrounds during team meetings—think of them as digital welcome banners
Building trust is the real “wow” moment
Forget over-the-top onboarding events. According to Victoria, the true “wow” moment happens when new hires realize that everything they were promised during recruitment aligns with reality.
“It’s about consistency,” Victoria says. “What you pitch during hiring should match what new hires experience every day.”
Authenticity builds trust, and trust keeps employees engaged and invested long-term.
Remote onboarding? Time to rip up the playbook
Remote work isn’t just in-person onboarding via Zoom. Victoria’s team crumpled up the old playbook and started from scratch, designing experiences tailored to the virtual world.
The results:
- Curated welcome kits delivered to new hires’ homes
- Fun, small virtual touchpoints to replace casual watercooler chats
- Robust launch plans to ensure every new hire feels set up for success
“It’s not about copying the office experience online,” Victoria explains. “It’s about creating something new that works in a remote environment.”
Wear 5 hats at once while still crushing your onboarding goals
In today’s leaner teams, HR pros often juggle multiple roles—HR partner, experience coordinator, onboarding manager, and more. Victoria’s approach? Simplify and prioritize.
“You can’t do it all,” she says. “Focus on the moments that matter most. What high-standard elements can’t be compromised? What’s good enough for now?”
The future of onboarding: Authenticity over perfection
The future of onboarding isn’t about adding more bells and whistles. It’s about simplifying and humanizing the process. For Victoria, this shift isn’t a step back—it’s an opportunity to deliver real, meaningful experiences that meet employees where they are.
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Read the full transcript below:
Welcome to the Employee Onboarding Podcast, where we dive into the best onboarding strategies and practices from top HR professionals and thought leaders around the world.
In our latest episode, Erin Rice, the People and Operations Specialist here at Process Street is joined by Victoria Cooke.
Victoria is the Manager of People and Culture at Happy Money, a fintech company committed to transforming financial well-being.
With a rich background in event planning and workplace experiences, including her time at WeWork, Victoria has a unique perspective on blending organizational culture with HR strategies.
Here’s what we’re going to cover in this episode:
- Introducing Victoria Cooke
- Victoria’s journey into HR
- What makes a great onboarding experience?
- Adjusting to remote onboarding
- Managing multiple responsibilities in onboarding
- The future of onboarding
- Creating the “wow” moment for new hires
Introducing Victoria Cooke
Erin Rice: Welcome to the Employee Onboarding Podcast, where we unpack great onboarding ideas and best practices from the world’s top HR practitioners and thought leaders.
At Process Street, that starts with our mission to make work fun, fast, and effortless for teams everywhere.
My name is Erin Rice, and I’m the People and Operations Specialist here at Process Street. Today, I’m joined by Victoria Cooke, the Manager of People and Culture at Happy Money, a fintech company.
She previously worked at WeWork, leading events and workplace experiences. With a degree in organizational leadership, Victoria has combined her background in events with experience in HR to design thoughtful, people-centric programs and strategies.
Today, Victoria is joining us from Los Angeles. Welcome, Victoria! We’re so glad to have you.
Victoria Cooke: Thanks, Erin! Happy to be here. Excited to chat about all things onboarding.
Icebreaker: What brings you joy?
Erin: Before we dive in, I like to start with an icebreaker. What has brought you childlike joy recently?
Victoria: I love that question! Childlike joy is something we could all use more of. Recently, I set an intention to try something I’ve never done before—something just for fun, not because I have to.
I took some beginner dance classes and looked like a total fool because I had no idea what I was doing. I live in LA, where many people are actually trying to be professional dancers. Meanwhile, I’m just this HR girl out there trying to have fun.
But I stuck with it, and it’s been super fun. No pressure, no expectations—just pure fun. It’s been a great serotonin boost. So yeah, I’d say my beginner dance classes.
Victoria’s journey into HR
Erin: That’s amazing! I bet a lot of people wouldn’t normally be confident enough to jump into something like that. So, let’s get into what we came here for—employee onboarding. I’d love to hear how you got into HR.
Victoria: It’s been quite a journey, and definitely not a planned one. I kind of fell into it.
My background is in events and experiences—both large-scale and small, intimate ones. When I left college, I thought I’d be an event planner for the rest of my life. I loved all the details that went into planning in-person experiences.
I studied organizational leadership, so technically, I’m using my degree, but no one in my program ever mentioned HR as a career option, even though it totally aligns with what we studied—organizational behavior, leadership philosophies, management. Not once did anyone say, “Hey, check out HR!”
Then the pandemic hit, and events were suddenly illegal. I had to pivot. I joined Happy Money to manage virtual experiences and events. Thankfully, they took a chance on me because virtual events weren’t big until about four years ago. Not many people had that experience.
Over the past four years, I’ve transitioned fully into a People and Culture role. I’ve fallen in love with creating employee experiences and building a workplace culture that treats people well—as individuals, not just numbers.
What makes for a great onboarding experience?
Erin: That’s an incredible journey. What would you say makes a great employee onboarding experience?
Victoria: A great onboarding experience blends empathy and creativity. It’s about truly understanding your employees’ perspectives and finding fresh ways to engage them.
One of the biggest mistakes companies make is failing to recognize when the onboarding experience actually starts and ends. Many think it begins on Day One, but really, it starts as soon as the employee signs the offer letter. That’s your pre-boarding phase.
During pre-boarding, many companies drop the ball. They don’t engage new hires until a few days before their start date, but those weeks leading up to Day One are just as important.
I compare it to event planning. The experience doesn’t start when someone walks into the event—it starts with the invitation and all the communication that follows. Similarly, an offer letter is like an invitation to your work party.
And onboarding doesn’t stop after week one or even the 30-day check-in. I’d argue a successful onboarding experience lasts at least three months, if not longer, depending on the role and company.
Adjusting to remote onboarding
Erin: That makes total sense. How would you say moving to remote onboarding has changed the experience?
Victoria: It’s a completely new environment. The mistake I see a lot of companies make is trying to take their in-office experience and replicate it on Zoom.
Sitting behind a screen at home is totally different from walking into an office filled with coworkers. Remote work requires more thought and intention. You need to design something entirely new.
We’ve done a lot of experimenting. One of our guiding principles is, “Try something new, fail, and learn.” We’ve tried virtual coffee chats with executives, curated welcome boxes, and custom Zoom backgrounds.
We even make personalized Slack emojis for each new hire to introduce them to the team. These small touches help create a sense of connection and inclusion.
Managing multiple roles without burning out
Erin: There are so many moving parts in onboarding. How do you manage it all?
Victoria: Tools like Asana and Slack workflows help a lot, but the reality is that times have changed. At one point, we had a robust onboarding team with 10+ people involved. Now, teams have slimmed down significantly.
I wear a lot of hats—HR business partner, onboarding coordinator, employee experience manager. It’s about prioritizing. What’s non-negotiable? What’s good enough for now?
Looking ahead: Onboarding’s future
Erin: Where do you see onboarding going in the future?
Victoria: It’s all about simplification and prioritization. Focus on high-impact moments.
The goal isn’t to create a perfectly polished experience. Sometimes, a scrappier, more human approach works better. New hires don’t know what the process used to be—they only know what they experience now.
Creating the “wow” moment
Erin: What’s the “wow” moment you aim to create for new hires?
Victoria: It’s not flashy gifts or presentations. The real “wow” is when, 30 days in, new hires realize the company is exactly what they were promised.
Consistency builds trust. Trust is the foundation for everything—employee engagement, collaboration, and culture.
Victoria: Thank you so much for having me, Erin!
Erin: Thank you, Victoria! This has been great.
The post Beyond Day One: Creating an Onboarding Experience That Sticks with Victoria Cooke first appeared on Process Street | Process & Project Management Software.
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