COVID-19 has pushed the world back, and the "new" normal is unlike going back to the office. Everything is running remotely and onboarding a remote worker is not an easy task. Further, onboarding can make or break a person leading to the success of the company. Post the pandemic, at least 1/3rd of companies tend to shift their workforce to become permanently remote. The onboarding process of a remote worker is hugely different from regular workers, and companies must adhere to the rules. Whether you have started with the onboarding process recently, bringing on a new member can be challenging at times.
Below are few tips to keep in mind while onboarding remotely.
Starting with the pre-boarding process
When starting remotely, you might feel disconnected from the team even while using proper communication tools. Likewise, one way of making the new hires welcome is to spend time on the pre-boarding package. This will include a company email and letting the new hire know about the team members.
Please make sure the remote workers have their tools ready before starting
Office set-ups have desks and chairs, but the remote workers will not have an office set up. Besides, set a budget for the remote workers and help them with all the essential equipment’s required. You can send equipment like laptops before the first day of joining. You can also provide employees with a stipend for electricity, supplies, and phone bills.
Sharing of important documents
Present the remote workers with employee handbooks, policies, and documents. Having these resources will help the company to understand the new employee better. Secondly, create creative content videos about policies & handbooks so that they can review at their own pace and get familiar with it.
Preparing a training plan
Have a training plan ready to help the new hires stay on task and not miss out on any essential information. Furthermore, the training plan must be job-specific, and the training process must be specific to the individual's new job. Work with the team to develop training sessions for each job.
Set goals and expectations
While doing the onboarding process, establish clear goals and expectations or areas for improvement. Likewise, make the expectations as defined as possible. You can add the numbers or the measurable tactics so that the new hires can know about the companies' targets. Be open to receive criticism.
When working remotely, it is best to communicate with remote workers. Hold check-ins for the new hires with the individual teams and HR. Before joining, let the employees know about the work they will be performing. Find a balance between checking in with the new hire and avoid micromanaging.
Conclusion
With the right attention, even onboarding remotely will turn out to be good. You can engage the new employees even before starting with the company since they would require time to
fully acclimate to their roles and the company culture. Usually, a good time frame for having an excellent onboarding process is roughly about 3 months minimum but depending on the company it can even last up to a year.
The onboarding process should constantly be evolving to meet the changing requirements of the company and the employees. This can be done by asking and integrating feedback from new team members and making changes accordingly to improve the process for future joiners.
Written by: Girish Rohra Chawla
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