NEW YORK–-In a remote-work world, human resources departments are rushing to make onboarding feel more human, according to one new analysis.
“It’s never been easy to welcome an employee onto a new team — typically, they get a brief orientation on the first day, and then it’s off to the races as they scramble to figure out how to thrive in their new role,” stated Fortune.com. “But the pandemic has made things even more difficult, with so many Americans starting jobs virtually, logging in the first day and struggling to navigate a new workplace without the benefits of meeting their colleagues in-person. As a result, human resource departments have had to adjust their onboarding programs and learn how to make a new employee feel welcome via Zoom, Teams, and Slack.”
One Simple Idea
Rena Kokalari, senior human resources director at the International Rescue Committee, told Fortune.com the pandemic has forced HR teams to focus on what makes an organization effective,
And it all comes down to one simple idea.
“We’re left with this fundamental reality that people are what make any organization tick. And that we need to take care of people,” Kokaari told Forunte.com.
According to the report, the issue then becomes, how do companies operating remotely engage with their employees from the very first moment they are hired?
“The HR team at NVIDIA, named America’s best place to work in 2022 by Glassdoor, has new hires do all the necessary paperwork before their first day so that the orientation is more focused on company values,” Fortune.com reported. “New employees at NVIDIA receive a welcome note from their manager, and they're paired with a new hire ambassador who’s available to answer all their questions.”
‘The Most Important Thing’
Beau Davidson, VP-employee experience at NVIDIA, told Fortune.com, “The most important thing is making sure that human connection happens. It's a lot easier when we're all sitting together in the same room.”
NVIDIA offers employees both in-person, hybrid, and remote work options. That includes “making sure managers are equipped with knowing how to set up their employees, engage with them, and ensure that no one is left behind,” Fortune.com reported.
The Fortune.com report noted onboarding shouldn’t just be left to a manager — it’s much more effective when employees are also introduced to a point person who can help them navigate their new workplace. This provides new employees with logistical help and also gives them a way to start forming deeper connections with their colleagues, the report added.
At the IRC, individuals are connected with a so-called “lateral buddy,” someone outside of the new employee’s department who can help new hires learn more about the company, according to Fortune.com, which added that this emphasis on connecting new employees with a colleague speaks to the value of fostering connections between coworkers when onboarding.
A Stronger Bond
“If we know about other coworkers who share common interests, then we're able to introduce them to other people who have common interests, and who they may form a stronger bond with more quickly because of those commonalities,” Felicia Joy, adjunct assistant professor of strategy at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, told Fortune.com. “It also allows us to help them with resources that they might not know about that will be helpful for them.”
Both IRC and NVIDIA purposefully tailor their onboarding process to fit the individual preferences of the new employee. At IRC, Kolkari shares onboarding plans with new hires a month before they join, and she’s found it gives them a sense of agency over the experience.