Whether your workplace is remote or not, making a memorable first day for new employees is vital. But how? In this ever evolving digital landscape, there is a lot of noise and information out there about working from home (WFH). So we have culled it down to our top 3 tips for making a remote first day, memorable.
1. Get the ugly work out of the way before day
What is ugly work? Well all that heavy paperwork, policies and procedures etc. is a less than exciting part of onboarding. We know as HR professionals, the importance of this. But, as an employee it can be quite a draining process. So if you have a first day that is already going to be an information overload, get it out of the way before they start. Having someone complete any forms, employee details, reading policies and procedures before day 1, creates a smooth transition into your business. It gives you more time to get any IT or payroll tasks sorted, and gives them some extra time to read any important documents a bit more thorough before starting.
If you can get all the “boring” but important stuff completed before day 1, you will have hours of time left to create a much more memorable and exciting introduction into your workplace.
2. Set up some casual remote meetings
Meeting new people is hard at the best of times. Meeting new people virtually is a whole other playing field. One tip is to get some key people to have casual “coffee catch ups” with your new starter. The people they will work closely with, their direct report and any other key staff in your team. Get them all to prepare some questions/ice breakers and schedule some 5 minute zoom calls to get to know them. Giving your new team member the comfort of some casual conversations will create a much more memorable day.
3. Get your technology sorted
I cannot stress this one enough. Prepare! Prepare! There is nothing worse than having technical difficulties. Before the first day, test your technology. Test to see if your new employees logins will work. Test to see if they can log in remotely. Don’t let all the hard work you have done in preparing an amazing first day fall by simple technical difficulties.
If you want to find out how a software like myjoboffer.com can give you the key tools to create a memorable first day, give us a call. Whether they are remote or not, we have the onboarding solution for you.