Onboarding in a Hybrid Workplace

Onboarding in a Hybrid Workplace

Onboarding in a hybrid workplace requires adapting traditional processes to ensure new hires feel integrated and supported, regardless of their location. Onboarding is a critical process that can set the tone for an employee’s entire time working at your organisation. However, with the hybrid work model now firmly established across the workplace, onboarding can be an even greater challenge for HR teams. Let’s consider some of the ways in which HR can effectively onboard employees when operating with remote and hybrid work models.

The HR team should aim to create a customised onboarding plan that includes a mix of virtual and in-person elements. A successful hybrid onboarding plan should include virtual orientation, virtual training, virtual team building, and in-person socialisation. HR teams must ensure that every employee receives the same level of training and support, regardless of whether they are working remotely or in-person.

Virtual onboarding is a critical component of a hybridised onboarding plan, and the HR team can leverage technology to deliver orientation and training, provide virtual tours of the office, and facilitate virtual team building activities. HR can also utilise video conferencing tools to conduct virtual orientation and training sessions and may consider the use of virtual reality to provide immersive office tours. Online collaboration tools, such as Microsoft Teams, can be used to facilitate virtual team building. Whether Teams (or similar) calls are organised for the purpose of everyday operations or as a simple virtual coffee chat, scheduling regular check-ins is vital to employee well-being. Getting together over Teams will also enable managers to assess integration and address any challenges. Every opportunity should be taken for remote employees to feel connected and engaged.

Clear communication is an essential in the hybrid working environment. HR must ensure that new employees have access to relevant communication channels and can access information about company policies, expectations, and responsibilities. HR teams should provide new employees with a well-defined onboarding roadmap that outlines what to expect during their first weeks and months at the company. Remember, the first 90 days are crucial to employee retention and onboarding is not a ‘set and forget’ undertaking. HR teams must also ensure that new employees understand how to communicate with their colleagues and managers, both in-person and virtually, with clear guidance on how to engage. Make sure that all employees, regardless of their location, have equal access to social interactions.

Company culture and values are critical elements of a successful onboarding process. HR teams must ensure that new employees understand the company’s culture and values and how they align with their own. Culture and values should be emphasised during virtual orientation and team building activities and in-person opportunities, for new employees to experience your culture first-hand, must also be an element of the onboarding plan. Some companies pair the new employee with a mentor or ‘buddy’ who embodies the values of the organisation. This step helps to ensure the new employee has a sense of belonging and is effectively guided through both remote culture and in-office dynamics.

By blending the strengths of remote and in-person environments, hybrid onboarding can be a smooth process that enhances both employee engagement and productivity.

For over 40 years HCM software provider Frontier Software has been successfully delivering systems to record, manage and analyse your people data. Onboarding tools enable you to create defined plans for different employees with online tracking that ensures information is provided and consumed at the right time to support the new hire. Data is at your fingertips in real time, any time.

Article originally published on HR Grapevine October 2024.