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Hybrid this. Hybrid that. You probably hear the word hybrid so much recently that the word has started to lose meaning. Either that, or you’re tired of trying to find ways to implement a strategy for hybrid onboarding.
While hybrid recruiting and hybrid interviewing are tough enough, finding a way to successfully onboard new hires in a hybrid atmosphere presents an entirely new set of challenges and obstacles.
The crux of the issue is that you’re attempting to acclimatize the new hire into your culture while simultaneously presenting your vision and mission as a company — all without the handy ability to meet face-to-face. While technology can lessen the negative impacts of hybrid onboarding, it still leaves many questions unanswered.
But before you throw in the towel, you need to focus on the basic idea: combining in-person onboarding with the trust and guidance that a new hire can handle at-home onboarding all by themselves. You just need a little guidance yourself to bring your fresh employee full-circle within a few weeks.
Here’s what you need to do.
Why hybrid onboarding is essentially a two-part process
Micromanagers need the ability to elucidate their thoughts and vision face-to-face while hands-off managers put full faith in new employees to let their remote experience and work ethic shine. To some degree, you’re going to have to pull off both.
Onboarding in person
If you want to make a profound impact on a new hire, the best way is through personalization. Even if you’re hiring several people at once, it’s the personalization factor that welcomes people into the fold. It sets the tone for the future and it makes them feel like they’re part of something bigger — two vital assets, especially when they’re working from home.
That’s what makes the 1:1 meeting such a vital tool in the hybrid onboarding process. Having one-on-one meetings early and often provides a way for you to:
- Get to know the person
- Discuss the onboarding process
- Handle any questions
- Gather valuable feedback
Moreover, the in-person aspect of hybrid onboarding affords a unique opportunity for your new hire to meet coworkers and develop at least a modicum of a relationship with them. This can provide synergy in the future, as opposed to managing a team that’s essentially a set of strangers.
According to a Microsoft study, new hires were 3.5 times more satisfied with their onboarding process when managers took an active role and 20% more likely to feel like they’re making a valid contribution. Those are two vital statistics you can’t afford to ignore.
Onboarding remotely
Before diving into the remote onboarding side of hybrid onboarding, start by asking your new hire how many days they want to work from home or what their personal preferences are. This is another tone-setting mechanism that aligns expectations on both sides.
Once you have a basic idea of what the new hire expects, the remote onboarding process begins. The first step is to decide what you can give to the employee ahead of time. Basic paperwork always falls under this category, but providing training materials, an employee handbook, and other useful information is ideal.
Rather than holding their hand through this process, letting them go it alone remotely sets a precedent for what you expect them to do in a hybrid work arrangement. It also frees up time for you to do your other managerial duties.
The other most critical aspect of onboarding remotely is to provide your hire with the tools for success. Day 1 should already have them ready to go on work software, collaboration tools, messaging apps, video-conferencing software, and all log-in information they need. Discussing etiquette is also preferential, as it lays out the framework for expectation and communication.
Failure to do these tasks only makes the entirety of hybrid onboarding less time-efficient and more of a hassle. Don’t let it happen to you.
The next steps in the hybrid onboarding process
Now that you have a basic idea of what both sides of the hybrid onboarding process should look like, dig a little bit deeper to polish the entire routine. One of the more difficult duties of a manager is conveying company culture to new employees, which is only exacerbated by hybrid work.
To tackle this potentially problematic issue, you need to make a few decisions:
- When you bring people into the office for a meeting or a project, should you bring them in groups or on a more individual basis?
- Should you bring in an onboarding buddy? Several major companies like Microsoft and Google use this approach to answer basic questions, build camaraderie, and allow the manager to handle other tasks
- Should you go the extra mile in terms of onboarding? A buddy and face-to-face meetings are great, but swag or a welcome gift can often endear you to a new hire before they get their feet wet.
- What things can you reasonably expect the hire to learn themselves and what tasks or objectives do you need a more hands-on approach? This facet of hybrid onboarding is entirely up to you, but you can lean on more experienced candidates to handle the workload flying solo.
- How can you build an experience? The office is a place where the intersection of work arrangements, people, and places collide. Replicating this remotely isn’t an easy task, but social interaction at both the office and at home are necessary to create a lively, long-lasting, and enjoyable experience
The final stages of hybrid onboarding
There’s something to be said for watching a new hire finally spread their wings and fly. But done too early, you risk them losing confidence. Done too late and you’re a micromanager.
Set a goal for when hybrid onboarding should end. While most HR experts agree that three months is the sweet spot, use your own judgment and assessment of the individual to determine the best time frame.
Alternatively, use goal-tracking as a way to assess the onboarding process rather than a time frame. Some people can get up to speed quickly and prefer autonomy while others need a bit more guidance.
Maybe the small things count the most
Sure, you want to get your new hire ready to work unabated, unbothered, and untethered. And while work is the most important aspect, coworker interaction, a vision, and company culture are at least equal.
First impressions are tough because you only get one of them. But the more effort you put into them, the better the results. To say the least, small things might just count the most.
Photo by Ivan Samkov from Pexels
Hybrid this. Hybrid that. You probably hear the word hybrid so much recently that the word has started to lose meaning. Either that, or you’re tired of trying to find ways to implement a strategy for hybrid onboarding.
While hybrid recruiting and hybrid interviewing are tough enough, finding a way to successfully onboard new hires in a hybrid atmosphere presents an entirely new set of challenges and obstacles.
The crux of the issue is that you’re attempting to acclimatize the new hire into your culture while simultaneously presenting your vision and mission as a company — all without the handy ability to meet face-to-face. While technology can lessen the negative impacts of hybrid onboarding, it still leaves many questions unanswered.
But before you throw in the towel, you need to focus on the basic idea: combining in-person onboarding with the trust and guidance that a new hire can handle at-home onboarding all by themselves. You just need a little guidance yourself to bring your fresh employee full-circle within a few weeks.
Here’s what you need to do.
Why hybrid onboarding is essentially a two-part process
Micromanagers need the ability to elucidate their thoughts and vision face-to-face while hands-off managers put full faith in new employees to let their remote experience and work ethic shine. To some degree, you’re going to have to pull off both.
Onboarding in person
If you want to make a profound impact on a new hire, the best way is through personalization. Even if you’re hiring several people at once, it’s the personalization factor that welcomes people into the fold. It sets the tone for the future and it makes them feel like they’re part of something bigger — two vital assets, especially when they’re working from home.
That’s what makes the 1:1 meeting such a vital tool in the hybrid onboarding process. Having one-on-one meetings early and often provides a way for you to:
- Get to know the person
- Discuss the onboarding process
- Handle any questions
- Gather valuable feedback
Moreover, the in-person aspect of hybrid onboarding affords a unique opportunity for your new hire to meet coworkers and develop at least a modicum of a relationship with them. This can provide synergy in the future, as opposed to managing a team that’s essentially a set of strangers.
According to a Microsoft study, new hires were 3.5 times more satisfied with their onboarding process when managers took an active role and 20% more likely to feel like they’re making a valid contribution. Those are two vital statistics you can’t afford to ignore.
Onboarding remotely
Before diving into the remote onboarding side of hybrid onboarding, start by asking your new hire how many days they want to work from home or what their personal preferences are. This is another tone-setting mechanism that aligns expectations on both sides.
Once you have a basic idea of what the new hire expects, the remote onboarding process begins. The first step is to decide what you can give to the employee ahead of time. Basic paperwork always falls under this category, but providing training materials, an employee handbook, and other useful information is ideal.
Rather than holding their hand through this process, letting them go it alone remotely sets a precedent for what you expect them to do in a hybrid work arrangement. It also frees up time for you to do your other managerial duties.
The other most critical aspect of onboarding remotely is to provide your hire with the tools for success. Day 1 should already have them ready to go on work software, collaboration tools, messaging apps, video-conferencing software, and all log-in information they need. Discussing etiquette is also preferential, as it lays out the framework for expectation and communication.
Failure to do these tasks only makes the entirety of hybrid onboarding less time-efficient and more of a hassle. Don’t let it happen to you.
The next steps in the hybrid onboarding process
Now that you have a basic idea of what both sides of the hybrid onboarding process should look like, dig a little bit deeper to polish the entire routine. One of the more difficult duties of a manager is conveying company culture to new employees, which is only exacerbated by hybrid work.
To tackle this potentially problematic issue, you need to make a few decisions:
- When you bring people into the office for a meeting or a project, should you bring them in groups or on a more individual basis?
- Should you bring in an onboarding buddy? Several major companies like Microsoft and Google use this approach to answer basic questions, build camaraderie, and allow the manager to handle other tasks
- Should you go the extra mile in terms of onboarding? A buddy and face-to-face meetings are great, but swag or a welcome gift can often endear you to a new hire before they get their feet wet.
- What things can you reasonably expect the hire to learn themselves and what tasks or objectives do you need a more hands-on approach? This facet of hybrid onboarding is entirely up to you, but you can lean on more experienced candidates to handle the workload flying solo.
- How can you build an experience? The office is a place where the intersection of work arrangements, people, and places collide. Replicating this remotely isn’t an easy task, but social interaction at both the office and at home are necessary to create a lively, long-lasting, and enjoyable experience
The final stages of hybrid onboarding
There’s something to be said for watching a new hire finally spread their wings and fly. But done too early, you risk them losing confidence. Done too late and you’re a micromanager.
Set a goal for when hybrid onboarding should end. While most HR experts agree that three months is the sweet spot, use your own judgment and assessment of the individual to determine the best time frame.
Alternatively, use goal-tracking as a way to assess the onboarding process rather than a time frame. Some people can get up to speed quickly and prefer autonomy while others need a bit more guidance.
Maybe the small things count the most
Sure, you want to get your new hire ready to work unabated, unbothered, and untethered. And while work is the most important aspect, coworker interaction, a vision, and company culture are at least equal.
First impressions are tough because you only get one of them. But the more effort you put into them, the better the results. To say the least, small things might just count the most.
Photo by Ivan Samkov from Pexels
