Build a New-Hire Operations Onboarding Assistant

Before building, write down the questions you've been asked most often by new team members. Common examples:

• "What happens when a trade fails to settle?"
• "When do I need to involve compliance vs. handling it myself?"
• "What's the difference between a DTC transfer and an ACATS transfer?"
• "What does NIGO mean and what do I do with a NIGO item?"
• "How long do most processes take? What are the deadlines?"

Aim for 15–25 questions. You'll use these to test your assistant.

1. In Claude, click Projects → New project
2. Name it "New Hire Operations FAQ" or "Operations Onboarding Guide"

Add your key procedure documents to the project. Also consider adding:

• A glossary of terms (NIGO, ACATS, DTC, T+1, etc.) — if you don't have one, we'll create it in Step 4
• Your department's SLA standards (processing timeframes, escalation thresholds)
• The org chart or contact list for who handles what type of issue

If your firm doesn't have a written glossary, ask Claude to generate one before uploading:

In a regular (non-project) chat, type:

Create a glossary of common financial operations back-office terms for a new hire at a broker-dealer. Include: NIGO, ACATS, DTC, DTCC, T+1, settlement date, trade date, fail, corporate action, beneficial owner, KYC, AML, CDD, EDD, SAR, wire transfer, SWIFT, Fedwire, CHIPS. Define each in 2–3 plain-English sentences.

Copy the output to a text file and upload it to your project.

In the Project instructions field, add:

You are a helpful onboarding assistant for new operations specialists at a broker-dealer.

Your job is to:
1. Answer common questions about back-office operations processes in plain, clear language
2. Explain financial terminology without jargon
3. Describe standard processing timelines and procedures
4. Help new hires understand when to escalate issues vs. handle them independently

Use the uploaded documents as your primary reference. If a question isn't covered by the documents, answer from general financial operations knowledge and clearly note it's not from firm-specific procedures.

Always be patient and assume the user is new — avoid jargon unless explaining the term.

Paste in each of the 15–25 questions you gathered in Step 1. For each one, verify:

• Is the answer accurate?
• Is it at the right level for a new hire?
• Does it suggest when to escalate?

Adjust your procedure documents or add clarifications to the instructions if answers are off.