What is it like to be 100% remotely inducted with a new employer??

Neil McLeish joined OneFile during this unprecedented period when our office is 100% closed and everyone is homeworking.

I asked him to write about his experience so other's could learn about what went well and any advice for if they are going to have to go through something similar over the next few months.....

Social distancing NOT social disconnecting

Neil's expectations

This was (and still is) a novel situation. We, as a society, have not had to deal with anything quite like this before. I can only relate to a global event such as this, from memories of stories told by my parents about the second world war. That was a rather different situation in many ways, the most prominent two differences being the war-footing and technology. Britain was used to fighting wars and had mechanisms already in place for directing society. Today’s technology means that communication between satellite offices and home-offices is as convenient as being face to face and in many ways, can actually be more efficient.

So, as I had not had any prior experience of remotely starting a new role with a new employer, I didn’t really have any expectations and was eager to see how things panned out.

How did it go?

I believe that it went rather well. There were some very small teething issues with getting the VPN connection running but that didn’t actually take much time to resolve and once it was sorted, I experienced no further connectivity issues.

The standard induction process had to be adapted. The meetings which would normally be help face to face, were conducted via Teams and were as near to a face to face experience as one could get, without actually being in the same room. I don’t think the distance detracted too much from the overall experience.

All of the information I needed to get up and running with what I was tasked to do, was delivered without any problems and there was always someone on hand to give me guidance when I needed it.

I was even sent a welcome to the team card through the post which I thought was a really nice personal touch.

Naturally, I was not able to meet everyone in the company, which I would have done had the induction been done in the office. However, might the drip-feed of meeting people be a more effective way of remembering who I have met, rather than meeting everyone in the first couple of days and that possibly being an information overload? In truth, I don’t know the answer to that and there might not actually be one.

I would say that the only adverse effect might be that there is not yet a feeling of total immersion in the company. Is that an overarching effect of self-isolation?  Is it just that I have not often moved companies – my last tenure being 5 years and the one prior to that being 13 years? Again, this might not be straightforward to answer as there are a number of variables at play.

All I do know is that my new colleagues have been outstanding in their efforts to make me feel welcome and part of the team and their efforts have worked.

Advice to other employers needing to remotely induct new starters

In short, I would advise that you prepare as much as possible.

My work laptop was delivered to me a few days in advance and information was sent to me about who would call to help me get set up and started.

A schedule had been devised, so that I would be engaged with the team at regular intervals. I knew what I was meant to be doing or who I was meant to be meeting and when.

Remember that this will very likely be as strange to the existing team members as it is for the new starter and they should also be given whatever support they feel they need. Additionally, remember that each individual will be coping in their own way – some deal with change more easily than others and those who have trouble with it need supporting.

Be aware that things might not go to plan (in fact, expect that they won’t!) and remember that as this is a novel situation, glitches are not a reflection of your team’s abilities.

My advice to other remote new starters is more or less the same; prepare yourself mentally that things are going to be different to what you are used to.

Stay in touch with your new colleagues and remember that they too may be finding this a little tricky to deal with.

Be aware that things might not go to plan (in fact, expect that they won’t!) and remember that as this is a novel situation, glitches are not a poor reflection of your new employer.

We are, after all, all in this together.