Be sure all existing employee documentation is digitized and hosted on a company intranet for easy access. Many companies use an intranet or internal wiki to maintain digital documentation of projects, successes, failures, and culture outside of day-to-day operations (at Owl Labs, we use Notion). Ryan Malone, CEO and Founder at SmartBug Media, says cultural marketing plays a pivotal role in understanding what type of family employees are joining. Moving to an earlier stage, you can demonstrate your culture to candidates early on, for example, at the interview stage or through your careers page and prepare them beforehand. Share glimpses of your daily virtual work life through posting photos and videos, and allow new hires to get a sneak peek into what a working day looks like at your company.
This breakdown in communication can have a knock on effect on productivity. The ability to have meetings no matter where the participants are is transformative to an organization. Just as you would have in the office, organize a virtual welcome lunch remote onboarding best practices so everyone can get to know the new teammate. To enjoy the full experience, have lunch delivered to everyone and share an actual meal together, virtually. And when they do, there’s a good chance the new hire will start their job working remotely.
remote onboarding tips and best practices
A welcome package creates a connection between the new employee and the company. It includes resources to help employees acclimate, including training materials. For remote onboarding, the welcome package should include any physical resources they need, such as laptops.
But even so, with the right attention to detail, you can engage your new remote employees even before they start working for your company. Livestorm can help you build a rapport with new team members and make them feel supported through live virtual meetings. You can also track new employees’ progress by checking the analytics dashboard for pre-recorded employee onboarding videos. A remote onboarding checklist will help employees accomplish tasks during their first weeks without the need to reach out to you every five minutes. This checklist will contain a series of remote meetings, training sessions, and interviews they’ll join during the week. This can include creating an individualized onboarding timeline, assigning mentors, and providing targeted learning materials and resources.
Establish strong relationships across the organization.
It should also educate the new hire about the company’s culture and create a sense of transparency and camaraderie. When they’re able to get familiar with your team and your business, they can feel more connected to the work they’re doing––something that can feel challenging the first few days on a remote job. But when working remotely, you don’t usually have the same stresses-–but that doesn’t mean it’s an easy process. When you’re starting off remotely, you can feel disconnected from the team, even if you’re using the proper communication tools. Follow our 6 steps to remote employee onboarding and learn how to make the most out of a remote work environment.
Schedule regular check-ins to discuss their work progress and learn any issues they might have come across. You can also make it an opportunity to obtain feedback from them on how they are adapting to their new work role, learn about any training requirements, and discuss future plans. While many teams have shifted towards working from home, companies have found themselves interviewing and hiring new employees remotely. There will always be a gap between a new hire’s start date and when they reach peak productivity, but measuring that timespan can get complicated in remote work.
Days 1-30
Danica suggests booking a consultation with your Knowledge and Learning, People Operations, and Onboarding teams before onboarding your first new employee. Their experience will be invaluable in defining a smooth and effective process. Here are a few additional things to keep in mind for new remote employees who are unable to get to HQ when they first start. Otherwise, contractors should go through the same onboarding flow to learn the culture of the company, the contents of the company handbook, and where to find necessary information. If possible, provide contractors with similar benefits as well, such as health insurance as paid time off, to make them feel valued and respected.
- Deel’s global experts provide the best world-class experience for your global team of employees and contractors.
- Your onboarding strategy begins when the employee accepts the offer, not on the employee’s first day.
- Or, if you and your crew use video games for team bonding, you can ask your new hire to create a character and introduce the new player into the roster.
- Open, honest communication is important for any manager-employee relationship but is especially crucial in a remote setting.
- During your call, the group can play team building games online, or you can engage in casual get-to-know-you discussions.
It involves providing necessary tools, explaining company culture, and facilitating connections with team members. To onboard an employee on the first day of remote work, you should first check that all paperwork is in order. Next, you should ensure that the employee has access to all applicable programs, set up logins and passwords, test the software, and give demonstrations if necessary.
Prevent a negative experience
But don’t forget that you’re still onboarding in general – this how to build a new onboarding process guide and this onboarding new hire checklist will help you succeed. If your company is not tech-savvy, you’ll need to invest some extra energy to lead the “tech way” – at least in the beginning. First off, do a thorough research to find what kind of software and tools you could use to onboard new hires successfully, and learn how they work. Opt for platforms that seem easy to use, match your business requirements, and integrate well with other platforms you’re planning to use. Use this list to find the tools you’ll need to communicate with remote employees virtually, such as a video-conferencing solution, and manage essential onboarding steps (e.g. completing HR paperwork). While your existing employees only have to learn the name of the new teammate, your new hire has a whole company’s worth of names and titles to learn.
Let them know who their team members are, who they will be reporting to, and who they should reach out to if they have any questions. 1 in 4 employees quit jobs during the pandemic due to a desire to work from home, according to a survey by Conference Board. Even now lockdown measures have eased in most countries, people may prefer to work remotely to accommodate their personal needs and caring responsibilities. Once we’ve looked at the key challenge of remote onboarding below, you’ll find tips on how to welcome a new team member virtually.