Top Tips for On-boarding A New Employee Remotely

Employment is still happening, and new hires are still important to the growth and development of companies. How do you on-board employees remotely? How do you make this an enjoyable experience for them? 

Here are some tips and tools to make sure that your remote employees have a thoughtful on-boarding experience.

Paperwork

It is now so easy to gain signatures and make contracts legit with applications such as DocuSign and HelloSign. These are lifesavers for remotely signing paperwork.

Equipment, IT, logins

You must make sure that new employees receive their IT equipment either on the start day or just before: please don’t let this show up late.

Keep an eye on weekend and bank holiday days. Most courier companies are delivering, and you can ship/courier most products within 5 working days.

You can also use a next day delivery courier. And, if you are super trusting, you can ask your new employee to order their preferred IT set from companies such as Amazon; it is easy to set up a business Amazon account.

Make sure their IT equipment is easy for them to either remotely set up or your IT person can gain access to it, and that they have all necessary logins and passwords to get working.

Care package - including HR

Whatever you provide your new hires with, make sure that you put together a package which makes them feel part of the team. Company literature, team profiles, your mission and values etc. A Zoom introduction meeting to your values with a new recruit is also very beneficial to making someone feel remotely part of the team. You want to make sure they feel included in your wider team.

Do have a HR section which would include policies, benefits etc.

Virtual meetings

You need to make sure that your new employees are part of your team. They are going to miss a crucial part of the culture. So, make sure they have plenty of time to interact with team mates. We suggest you it make it a goal in these times to over-communicate. We are all familiar with the tools we can use such as Zoom, Google Hangouts, Microsoft Teams. Make sure you stress how important these meetings are and allow everyone to chair a meeting.

Training

This is crucial to any new employee. They will need to understand how you and your company works, even if it is remotely. These sessions should be your normal on-boarding, which will include IT systems, expectations of employees, any sessions you feel that they need to make enhance their skill sets. Make sure you are delegating these sessions and if some are provided via a handbook or on-line then make sure you or a team member are made available for any questions or assistance.

Appraisals

Given the remote working this is key to ALL team members, so they know they are on track. You can provide constructive, supportive and motivating one on ones.

Socials!

OK so you can’t go to the pub after work for a few drinks or do your summer 'away day' or team building event. BUT you can do these remotely and make them fun. It may not always be realistic, but if you can do think of some fun activities you can all do. Casual gatherings, such as team quizzes, competitions, simple lunch date, or casual happy hour or just a simple hour or so 'get together'. Just sending the invitation is a great gesture and will make your team feel connected.

The personal touch

Make a conscious effort to show remote employees they are still very much part of the team even though you are all working from home.

Be personal and reach out to them, ask them directly how things are going and communicate with them about other subjects that aren’t just related to their role. Make it clear to them that your 'virtual door' is always open.

Take a little extra care

On-boarding has its challenges and more so when it is remote, so make it your priority to build inclusion. Your goal is to make everyone feel like they’re a part of the team, and that you’re always available for them. The first few days learning new systems and processes is always hard, and without a neighbour to ask 'how do you do that again' it will be tricky.

If you show your new hire that you and all your current employees are available, and do everything possible to make the new arrival feel part of the team, then all will be great and you will see the rewards of a happy and engaged team.

For any assistance or advice on the above please call Justyne 0203 303 0476 www.prfutures.co.uk