Onboarding is a critical mechanism that is attracting less attention than it should due to many organizations' unwillingness to adopt a virtual experience—but hastening the implementation of an onboarding platform tailored for digital use should be a priority.
Fremont, CA: With the effects of 2020's COVID-19 pandemic still raging through the global workforce, hiring in the current environment can be both challenging and unfamiliar. This has prompted many companies to shift their focus from considering virtual workplace implementation to aggressively implementing virtual solutions to keep their teams online and linked even in unprecedented circumstances. With the mechanism in flux and its future uncertain, one crucial area has been largely overlooked: onboarding.
Onboarding is a critical mechanism that is attracting less attention than it should due to many organizations' unwillingness to adopt a virtual experience—but hastening the implementation of an onboarding platform tailored for digital use should be a priority.
Why Onboarding Matters
Onboarding is an organization's opportunity to incorporate new workers into their organization and assist them in adjusting to corporate culture as smoothly as possible. This process is critical not only for new employees in their daily tasks but also for their overall impression of the company. If their presentation is haphazard or nonexistent, they will be less inclined to see the value in their work and stay for the near future.
Designed for Virtual Consumption
When it comes to virtual workers, consistent onboarding can be challenging, but the process is no less critical because the experience is not done face-to-face. Indeed, it is becoming increasingly necessary as workers attempt to integrate into a workplace through a virtual environment where they know no one and may be unfamiliar with the virtual workplace in general, resulting in dissatisfaction and frustration in both the short and long term. It is not enough to send an email or a video with details to new workers as part of their onboarding process.
The modern onboarding process should never consist of a single email or phone call but rather of an interactive process tailored to digital consumption.
This includes introducing informal "breakout sessions" via Zoom and encouraging new hires to speak up and participate in the discussion, as well as developing a curriculum that informs workers about the organization, their jobs, their team, and the technologies they will be using as quickly and efficiently as possible. This does not imply hastening the process but rather creating a process that is deliberately designed to keep workers engaged.
