Hiring a new person to join your team is always exciting. A new employee is a big deal, even if you have a remote team. Because of this, you want to ensure they feel integrated with everyone else on the team as quickly as possible.
Even though this is easier in a traditional office setting, it is not impossible for your remote team. Today, you have access to more innovative technology than ever before, which means everyone can get to know each other – from day one – regardless of how far apart they may be. If you are ready to learn how to welcome new employees, consider some tips below.
Ask Your Current Employees
When it comes to welcoming your remote workers, you should ask your existing employees one of the first things you should do. You can do this by conducting focus groups interviews and leaning into their input about this. This is an excellent start to getting some new ideas, but there are other steps you can also take.
Run Virtual Mentoring Programs
Although there are quite a few ways of making remote employees feel comfortable working for your company, it’s essential to know that starting and running mentoring programs for your remote team is one of the most important. It’s key to onboard, train, engage and develop remote employees to reduce employee turnover. Running a virtual mentoring program with an intelligent matching algorithm can help your business match new hires and current employees with the right mentors, auto-deliver training materials, create an environment of trust, let employees make groups among cohorts and track all the progress on a live dashboard.
Conduct a Company-Wide Video Call
There is a vast difference between seeing someone’s face and seeing a name in an email. You can begin things by scheduling a video call with everyone in your business. This will allow the new employee to introduce themselves to everyone on the team. When you do this, it lets your new employee put a personality and face to a name. This is important as they begin to work with the rest of the team.
If it is impossible to schedule this video call, or if you have a business that is too big, try to schedule smaller team calls. This will let your new employee be introduced to all the departments they will work with regularly. Small steps like this will go a long way in helping new workers feel more like a part of the bigger team.
Invite the New Employee to the Business Social Channels
Many remote teams use speciality software to stay in touch and communicate. It is possible to create channels that are focused on non-work-related topics. Be sure to include new workers in these types of “water cooler” channels. This will help your new workers integrate into your company culture.
If you have not set up any social channels for your remote team to use, you should change that right away. Letting your workers talk about subjects with nothing to do with work will help create that sense of camaraderie, even though they are working remotely.
Schedule a Local Meetup for Your Employees
Just because your business is not local to your latest remote worker, it does not mean there is no one else on your team who is. If you have people working remotely in the same city or town as your new employee, you should ask them to meet up with the new hire. This is an excellent way to ensure they feel welcomed to the team.
You can schedule something simple, such as a coffee or lunch. Make sure the company takes care of the bill. This will help your new employees feel like a team and provide face-to-face time between your remote workers. Any unique opportunity you have to build a sense of community between your remote workers will be something you should take advantage of.
Treating Your Remote Workers Right
When you have remote workers on your team, it is essential that you take the time to ensure they feel welcome and that they feel like they are part of the bigger team. While this may seem challenging, with the tips and information here, you will discover that it is much easier than it looks. Be sure to take the proper steps and ensure your remote workers have the same benefits as your on-site ones.
