April 22, 2021 2 min read

Get to know Gecko: Remote work and onboarding

Onboarding is one of the most vulnerable periods for employees, so we have to ensure them our organisational, technical and social support ...

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Lučka Žunič , Marketing Assistant

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… if we manage to do that, we’ll create a good foundation for our colleagues to be pleased and successful at what they do.

Like the complexity of the onboarding itself is not enough, the pandemic has brought forward additional challenges. Last year our team got bigger for 10 employees and their onboarding happened to be almost entirely remote. Remote onboarding has its own specific challenges and it requires to be planned out carefully. We outlined some of the essential findings and concluded them in 5 key points:

  • Set clear expectations. The goal is to help new hires find their own place within the organisation and encourage them to contribute to creating the added value. With this approach we’re also going to boost their motivation and get them engaged.
  • Ensure a systematic and well structured learning process. We soon realise this is not very simple, because it can be related to our “past sins” regarding the way we handle documentation, organisational schemes, reports, policies, strategies etc. If we have this stuff arranged we can confidently say bravo to us!
  • Buddy is always a must. We have to make sure that new hires have someone, who is not their direct manager but a colleague, who can see the bigger picture and is there to help them with everyday challenges. We could say a buddy is someone who is always there to make a new employee more comfortable at work.
  • Well structured virtual onboarding is crucial. The process has to ensure newcomers enough contact and communication with their leader and colleagues so they are not left to themselves. In each moment they have to be aware of their responsibilities and know their manager’s expectations.
  • Consider how you can simplify the onboarding process. Some organisations keep their onboarding information in Excel documents, which is certainly better than nothing. Again the others found themselves a new friend, who is assisting them with the process. To find out how the onboarding is done with Gecko watch the video below.

How does your company handle the onboarding process? We shared our good practices within the project The Heart of Agilcon!