Company culture is of vital importance for many businesses, both from HR and related standpoints, but it has a tendency to only be considered within the in-person realm. And while establishing a great culture for all physical employees is very important, it’s also vital not to forget about another growing group here: Remote employees.
At WTA, Inc., we’re happy to provide a range of human resources and other services, including recruitment and hiring for various employee types. If your business is one of many that’s increased its reliance on remote workers over the last few years, or even if you were already utilizing such workers in the past, what can you do to improve the culture for those remote employees? Here are several basic themes in this two-part blog series.
Importance of Purposeful, Well-Intended Onboarding
The cultural experience of your company begins for a remote employee during their initial onboarding process. It’s during this time that they’ll get their first real taste of what it means to be a part of your company, and how you treat your employees. Make sure that your remote onboarding process is carefully planned and well-executed, with the goal of making every new remote employee feel like a valued member of the team from day one.
For instance, you may want to consider having a specific remote onboarding team or contact, who can provide support and answer any questions that the new employee may have. You should also make sure to provide all of the necessary resources and materials upfront, so that the remote employee can hit the ground running on their first day.
Finally, don’t forget to check in regularly during the first few weeks or months, to ensure that the remote employee is settling in well and adjust the onboarding process if necessary.
Ensuring Communication and Connection
One of the challenges of working remotely is feeling like you’re always out of the loop, or that your voice isn’t being heard. As such, it’s important to make sure that communication is a two-way street in your company, and that remote employees have ample opportunity to provide feedback, ask questions, and be heard.
Encouraging regular check-ins, whether through video conferencing, phone calls, or even just messaging apps, can help to ensure that everyone feels like they’re part of the team.
Confidence Promotion
Remote employees may sometimes feel like they’re not as valued as their in-person counterparts, which can lead to a lack of confidence in their abilities. As such, it’s important to make sure that you’re promoting confidence in your remote employees, and letting them know that they are just as valuable to the company as anyone else.
One way to do this is to give remote employees opportunities to lead projects or take on additional responsibility. This will not only boost their confidence, but also help them to feel like they’re truly contributing to the company.
You may also want to consider offering remote employees access to company mentorship programs, or pairing them up with more experienced employees, so that they can always have someone to turn to with questions or concerns.
For more on how to improve your company’s culture for remote employees, or to learn about any of our HR or related services, speak to the team at WTA, Inc. today.