Strategies For Onboarding Work From Home Employees

Before you commit to offering work-from-home jobs to future employees, you need to identify the challenges that may arise with the practice such as: 

• A lack of productivity or over-working 

• Lack of camaraderie 

• Communicating company policy and procedures clearly 

• Managing HR paperwork  

• Video conferencing challenges, including fatigue  

• Lack of motivation to talk to other employees  

• Poor training tools and/or structure 

• Unavailability of management  

• Lack of immediate, face-to-face connection  

• Lack of nonverbal cues in conversations 

• Lack of scheduling flexibility 

Employees who have working experience, whether remote or in-office, won’t have any problems with any arrangements as they have an established work style and habits. However, managers should have a clear work style and preferences during the onboarding phase to ensure smooth processes for the employees. 

Understandably, virtual environments provided limited contact between managers and employees. Additionally, employees may have difficulties separating work and home as the boundaries become blurred in the remote setting. 

Managers need to be specific with their expectations during the onboarding process about the structure and boundaries of the work. There are ways managers can communicate these expectations to their employees like: 

• Schedule a daily or weekly check-in meeting   

• Clarify specific hours employees are expected to be online 

• Share standard deadlines for projects and tasks 

• Confirm the most appropriate and reliable communication channels

Implementing applicant tracking software can help with automating and streamlining the hiring process, ensuring that new remote hires are well-suited to the work environment and understand the importance of maintaining balance.

Now that you have found your employees and onboarded them, it’s time to make them feel a part of the organisation. Offering a supportive environment to new employees is more essential than ever before, especially after a global pandemic.  

Here are some considerations to make your onboard employees comfortable: 

1. Send A Welcome Package 

Think about sending a welcome package, organising a virtual lunch on their first day, and inquiring about what would help them succeed in their new position. Ask colleagues to create welcome messages or videos to be sent to the new employee's inbox on their first day. 

2. Recreate In-Office Experience 

Incorporate the small personal touches that employees typically encounter in the office into the virtual environment. Organise informal virtual meet-and-greets from management and announce them during staff calls to provide employees with some valuable face time.  

3. Help Employees Build Connections 

With virtual environments, new employees need assistance to build connections with other employees. Consider pairing them with a peer mentor as a source of support and friendship from their first day at work. 

Establishing an effective remote onboarding experience presents a recent challenge for HR professionals, so it is typical for them to still seek solutions for this. Once you have established a remote onboarding procedure, you can utilise aspects of it to guide how you onboard freelance workers as well. 

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