Most businesses and clients who are thinking about recruiting new talent are nervous about doing the whole recruiting and onboarding process on a remote basis. These worries are only natural, given how it’s such a big decision with most having concerns that they won’t get somebody with the right cultural fit and the challenges that come with onboarding them remotely and making them settle and generally, keep their morale in the team high. But with everybody that can work from home being urged to do so for the near future, this is something we have to come to terms with.
Recruiting Remotely
There’s no disputing that the situation we’re currently in has made recruiting new team members that more daunting, at least practically that is. Still, there are a significant number of candidates who are more than qualified and are available out there.
To successfully recruit remotely, all you need to do is alter your mindset and get creative as well as maintain the fundamentals of a standard recruitment process.
Have an idea of what you’re looking for – draft a thorough job description
You should be aware that in today’s climate, chances are that you’ll get a large number of applications. Thoroughly plan your recruitment, go over the various stages, and block time in your interview schedule, evaluate with your team and feedback. Draft your questions and, if you prefer, create a task for candidates to finish. Make sure the task can easily be presented across a video call.
Onboarding
Communication & Reassurance
Even at the best of times, beginning a new job opportunity can be nerve-wracking, but for somebody who wants to start a job in these unprecedented times, it can prove to be incredibly stressful. As a talent manager or line manager, it’s essential that you open up communication channels early and offer reassurances about the recruitment process.
One of our candidates who began their new job remotely informed us how their manager had an initial welcome chat with them and then followed with their number and an email, making them aware they can always reach out any time they want.
Help Them With Technology
Without Zoom, Slack, VPNs, laptops, and all other technologies and applications assisting us at the moment, where would we be? For those quiet IT guys, it’s their time in the spotlight. From a technology point of view, do everything in your power to get your starter set-up right away – whether it’s sending products by courier, making sure the internal network is accessible, or providing them with guidelines to the software they’ll be working on.
A Structured Welcome Programme
The structure is essential to everybody right now and when it comes to a new starter, having a well-defined and structured welcome programme in place is integral. Please make sure not to overload them with info at once, but make sure you have a straightforward programme in the first week. This can encapsulate anything from making introductions on a Zoom call to making a presentation on the company’s culture as well as what their daily tasks will encompass.
Keep in contact
Maintain occasional contact with them and make sure they feel comfortable calling you if need be, but don’t to be too overbearing. Show that you can rely on them and don’t have to continually check up on them. At first, set up a regular zoom call or zoom chat with them every day and then less often if you see things are headed in the direction you want.