Online onboarding uses digital tools and platforms to deliver onboarding content, help new hires connect with coworkers, and make them feel like they belong. New hires need help connecting with other employees, and this is especially true in a remote setting, said Tracy Browne, vice president of HR at Salit Steel, based in Niagara Falls, Ont. Browne said COVID-19 forced her company to adopt a remote work model, making onboarding more challenging. But replicating in-person onboarding activities helps establish those personal connections. You can certainly take creative approaches to a remote employee grand entrance as well. For instance, perhaps you ask the employee to record a short 80’s-dating-video-style reel by answering virtual team building questions.

• Onboarding remote employees can be challenging, especially if you’re new to the work-from-home world.
• It also encourages a sense of belonging which is especially important since employees will be working from a remote location and not have face-to-face interaction.
• When it comes to getting new employee onboarding right, the stakes are higher than ever.
• You can also provide asynchronous options so that they can follow the process at their own pace.

Also, strive to create informal moments to ensure employees don’t feel isolated. List down the interests and values you expect from employees and explain how the company supports those values. Like other employee resources, you should also ensure the statement is accessible to remote teams.

It’s More Flexible

Encouraging new hires to ask questions and provide feedback can help them feel valued and supported while providing valuable insights for improving the onboarding process. Creating a welcoming environment is essential for successful remote onboarding. New hires are more likely to be engaged and productive when valued and included. With a mobile-first employee experience platform, new hires are empowered to quickly and efficiently complete the necessary onboarding forms remotely, wherever they are and whenever they’re able. Although there are definite similarities between the two types of onboarding best practices, there are a few remote-friendly considerations for virtual onboarding.

• It also means embracing digital transformation for your recruiting and onboarding processes.
• It is important to communicate expectations clearly during remote onboarding for a successful process.
• New employees should have a clear idea of the company’s mission, vision and goals for the future as part of the remote onboarding.
• If possible, assign a mentor or peer to shadow them and help them become familiar with the team’s culture and work style.
• Creating a great onboarding experience isn’t an easy process, particularly when you have new hires for different job roles.
• Sharing goals and OKRs will help them make better decisions and will also help them be more accountable.

Tracking the progress of employee training is important to assure good program implementation and to determine how to overcome knowledge gaps. The changing work climate demands alternative https://remotemode.net/blog/10-best-remote-onboarding-practices-to-adopt/ ways to communicate with our colleagues and going online is the only way to do it. Aside from being cost-effective, it keeps everyone connected with very little effort.

Remote team welcome lunch

A lack of communication is one of remote employees’ most commonly cited issues. Show your remote employees that you genuinely care about connection by jumping into the group chats or virtual lunch breaks yourself. In addition to introductions, the first day of work is a great time https://remotemode.net/ to set goals and discuss your expectations for new employees. The first day on the job should, first and foremost, help new employees feel part of the team. Often, new employees have to wait a certain amount of time between accepting a job offer and their first day of work.

You also need to show them the ropes through orientation, make sure they can effectively fulfil their role through training, and promote company culture through engagement activities. For instance, setting up a dedicated Slack channel for new hires allows them to ask questions and interact with each other and the wider team in a more informal setting. Integrating these tools into the onboarding process not only familiarizes them with essential work tools but also encourages active participation and a sense of belonging. This is the only step you should finish before you start implementing your onboarding process best practices, i.e. hire someone.

Vibe Check episode 5: How learning & growth can impact employee engagement & retention

Managers can also use these milestones to measure an employee’s progress and how they’re integrating into the team. There are various software solutions you can use to onboard your new employees remotely. HR software, for example, can help streamline your recruitment process, including onboarding remote hires. It provides a centralized platform, workflow automation, scheduling, report generation, and data and analytics. A good employee onboarding tool helps you choose the right ‘buddy’ from your team, based on the tasks or the team that a new hire is a part of. It also helps lay out the steps that the onboarding buddy needs to take to effectively introduce the new hire to everything that’s important.