Starting from home - remote onboarding at empower®

3 min read
April 28, 2022

The pandemic shift to the home office has also changed the onboarding process at most companies. Remote onboarding became inevitable in many professions. Working in the office was no longer an option or came with major restrictions.

Thus, many new employees were trained in their home offices, like Guido Dust at empower®. Guido joined the company in January 2022. Over 14 weeks, he was able to familiarize himself with the company and his area of responsibility in sales as part of the official onboarding process. We can now look back on his personal experience with remote onboarding and take away some tips.

remote onboarding  Guido Dust

"The open and friendly nature of the colleagues contributed to a very pleasant environment and context," Guido says today.

The first day

Guido's first day at work began in the office in Cologne, with the fantastic view from the 39th floor of the Cologne Tower. To Guido's delight, first contact with his boss and some colleagues was possible despite pandemic restrictions. All his work equipment could be set up on-site. There was no introductory information before the first day, but he reports that he did not miss it either. Above all, he remembers the personal welcome by the boss in the office as particularly positive. All the colleagues who were onsite were very friendly and helpful and made his start easier.

For many people, the first few days in a new job are a challenge, with a lot of excitement and pressing questions. It is essential to welcome newcomers openly and supportively. That can happen in person in the office, as Guido experienced, but it can also happen online. Also essential, a new employee needs to be equipped with everything they need to master their start stress-free.

Thematic introduction

Over the next few days, the induction process took place entirely online. Guido received all important information in a presentation with additional videos and other helpful sources.

His colleagues had prepared detailed videos to convey content that would otherwise have been shown and explained in person. He particularly liked the video material and the appreciative, open manner in which it was handled. Guido says: "If the content of the videos had been taught in person, I wouldn't have been able to watch them again and again when something was unclear." Guido was able to enjoy an advantage that was only possible with remote onboarding. Technical problems were never an issue.

Carefully prepared online resources made onboarding easier for Guido. Links and sources of information can be accessed and consumed much more easily in a digital introduction than in a one-time on-site lecture. Working from home in their own time actually enhances the familiarization process.

Getting to know colleagues

An important factor when joining a new company is the colleagues. For optimal collaboration, employees must first get to know each other. Personal interactions that usually take place during a lunch break and at the coffee counter are a challenge in a digital setting.

Guido was introduced online to a different aspect of the team’s work by each colleague as part of the induction plan. Explanations of specific work processes at empower® were combined with getting to know the team in a relaxed manner. "The open and friendly nature of the colleagues contributed to a very pleasant environment and context," Guido says today. "Of course, it is different to see colleagues in person every day and to have a lunch break together with them. But considering the general conditions, which were unchangeable, the onboarding worked out very well and I liked it a lot."

homeoffice remote onboarding
About remote onboarding

In a highly digitized company like empower®, remote onboarding is easy to implement. Of course, direct, personal contact with colleagues cannot be completely replaced online. But for Guido, joining the team was still a complete success. Getting to know each other took a little longer, but still went well, he says.

The online process also has several advantages, such as the reproducibility of the presentations. "I think a lot of things run in a more structured way. Also, you have a few more minutes every day because you don't have to travel to and from work." So the usual advantages of a home office and remote working also enrich the onboarding process.

Guido Dust has successfully established himself as a team member at empower®. "The personal contact on site would certainly have been good, but professionally I missed absolutely nothing." As long as the preparation is right and newcomers and companies approach the process with an open mind, everything can run smoothly. That's also Gudio's tip for remote onboarding: "Get involved, it went well for me."

Sounds interesting? Here's more on the career opportunities at empower®.

New call-to-action

 

Subscribe to our newsletter