The COVID-19 pandemic has forced an unprecedented number of individuals to work from home and the business landscape has shifted to adapt to their needs. The relationship between employers and employees is transforming rapidly with the advent of 4-day work weeks and remote-only businesses. This scenario presents both problems and opportunities for all businesses.
Organizations and their HR departments have had to rethink their onboarding procedures due to the increasing prevalence of hybrid workplaces and remote employment. The lack of direct physical contact with coworkers and supervisors can intimidate new employees. It can be tough to get to know an organization’s culture and the environment if you don’t meet face-to-face. When you don’t get a chance to get to know your coworkers, it’s easy to feel like an outsider in your new position.
However, with suitable methods and technologies in place, businesses can assure a seamless and effective onboarding process. Your new hires will feel more connected to their positions, teams, and your company if they are properly onboarded. If you want your new hires to be happy and well-adjusted to their new responsibilities, here are some remote onboarding tips and remote hiring tips you can use to make the most of the onboarding process for remote employees.
Remote hiring and remote onboarding best practices
Research shows that 31% of new employees leave within six months after starting a new job. Your company’s attrition rate and long-term growth could be significantly improved by ensuring a seamless onboarding process for new employees. Here are some ideas for onboarding remote employees in more depth:
Digital signatures for online contracts
Documentation during onboarding can help resolve disagreements, provide resources when necessary, and answer critical questions about a company’s operations. The new employee will likely be required to sign some paperwork as a precondition to employment. It’s a good idea to use virtual documents when you can’t use physical documentation. Legally binding electronic signature services, such as DocuSign and HelloSign can help.
Provide tools to get the job done, without delays
You should offer your new remote personnel the necessary gadgets such as computers and mobile phones a few days ahead of time. . It’s time wasted and the company’s image may be impacted too as a consequence. Keep an eye on non-delivery days like weekends and holidays so that you can choose premium shipping services that ensure fast arrival.
Make induction easier to manage
The productivity and sense of belonging of a remotely professional, especially a new hire, can be jeopardized by isolation. A distant worker cannot participate in team-building activities that foster communication and camaraderie. As a result, remote inductions necessitate a virtual introduction. The entire team can participate in short video conferences and individual meetings with supervisors. You may make meetings more engaging by using an ai powerpoint maker to craft informative introductory presentations for the participants. A team’s structure, objectives, and passion can all be communicated through these introductions. Slack or Google Chat are great options for sending a “welcome to the team” message to all new hires as well. Once they’ve met their coworkers, encourage the new employees to build a rapport with their coworkers in the rest of the company.
Introduce them to the responsibilities of their new positions
Your remote hires’ onboarding and acclimatization are slower because they are not in the office. They will be more comfortable if you plan and organize meetings with agendas, video links, and other supporting resources. You need to ensure that they are familiarized with all the people, and procedures they will need to complete their tasks properly. A clear strategy for the first 30, 60, and 90 days should be developed in conjunction with the new hires so that everyone is clear on what is expected of them in their roles.
Initiate more honest conversations
New employees may be reluctant to ask questions via email or instant messaging since it is more difficult to establish rapport and feel at ease in a virtual setting. As a result, being proactive and discussing an onboarding plan in advance is essential if you want to know exactly what to expect. You may want to create a checklist for your new remote staff that breaks down tasks and goals by day or week. Such a checklist will encourage a more transparent guide to set and meet expectations.
Onboard in small batches
Small-group onboarding and training are great ways to save time and effort when onboarding and training new employees. It also helps your new hires feel like a part of the team. Small batches of new employees can be brought up to speed in this manner. New employees can get to know each other better in a smaller group.
Take a listener’s perspective and act on them
When it comes to managing a remote team for the first time, you’re likely to face some challenges. For each new remote employee, you should ask for honest feedback regarding the process and how it worked or didn’t work for them. New employees’ onboarding can be improved with the help of the information the new hires provide you.
Encourage a sense of community
Although it may not always be realistic, you should attempt to incorporate remote employees into your team activities whenever possible. They will feel a sense of belonging by just receiving an invitation. In addition, try to throw in informal conversations and fun ice-breakers in your business sessions. For instance, you can request your senior personnel to reach out to the new hires, introduce themselves, and create a rapport. Employees that work remotely but are content, cohesive, and feel connected are valuable assets to any business. Do this and your company’s productivity will rise, employee morale will improve, new employees will flock to the company because of word-of-mouth recommendations, and the company’s culture will deepen.
Remote hiring and you
Hire the best
Limiting your recruiting to a specific location might severely limit your options. Remote hiring platforms are a terrific method to improve workplace diversity with several benefits. Companies can reach rural communities or connect with talent irrespective of where they are located. The option to hire from a bigger talent pool without compromise can free you from the challenges of acquiring the best talent. All in all, remote hiring and onboarding allows you to build a truly global team with the perspectives, ideas, and creativity of people from all over the world.
Optimize costs
Remote onboarding can save you the cost of expensive on-location orientation programs. Dedicated trainers for each new employee? That’s a thing of the past. You can provide virtual training and online learning through a dedicated portal for your employees. Another advantage of remote hires is that it saves money on office expenses like new desks or workspaces – all you need is a decent internet connection and the necessary tools for new personnel.
Flexibility gain
Flexibility has become a norm for workers in most businesses since COVID-19. According to USA Today, working from home saves an average of $4,000 per year. 80% of workers believe remote choices help manage their mental health better. According to an Upwork survey, 68% of recruiting managers feel remote work is easier now than it was at the start of the pandemic. Remote hiring empowers you to seek out recruits that are looking for flexibility and convenience which traditional hiring cannot provide.
Hire and onboard employees with HackerEarth
If you don’t have the time to go through a series of interviews, you can use hackathons and coding assessments to evaluate possible employees. It’s cheaper for companies to locate and hire top-notch talent right where the action happens. Hackathons and coding assessments inspire creative problem solving, drive innovation and build brand exposure.
Hackathons are also a great means of ramping up employee engagement while encouraging teamwork. HackerEarth, a remote hiring platform, is a great resource for companies to conduct hackathons and coding assessments with ease. With HackerEarth, you can create a leaderboard for each code assessment to quickly and easily identify the best developers to hire for open positions. These events allow you to build very accurate code assessments even with very limited technical knowledge.
At HackerEarth, our mission is to help organizations of all sizes adopt strategies that help you evolve. Our unique approach can help you accelerate your growth while eliminating bottlenecks. Get in touch with us to learn how you can benefit from remote hiring and onboarding for your business.
