How to Set Up a Remote Employee for Success on Day One

Onboarding remote employees presents some unique challenges. It is essential to ensure that they feel connected and engaged, as each of these plays a key role in both productivity and retention.  

So, how can you create a remote onboarding experience that sets employees up for long-term success? Here are some key considerations:

Get Remote Employees Connected on Day One

Whether remote employees will be working on company-owned laptops and phones or your company has a BYOD policy, it is important to make sure that remote employees get connected on day one. Companies should have policies and procedures in place to ensure that new remote employees can start training and getting to know their coworkers as soon as possible.

Provide Introductions

During the onboarding process, companies should introduce new remote employees to the people they’ll be working with throughout the organization. Imagine you were giving a new employee an in-person tour of the office. Which departments would you take them to visit? Who would you introduce them to? The first-day experience for remote employees should be as similar as possible.

Encourage Personal Growth and Professional Development

Employees who know they have opportunities ahead of them are more likely to feel engaged, and they are also more likely to stick around. With this in mind, companies should encourage personal growth and professional development from the start. While this is important for all employees, it is especially important for those who work remotely and who might otherwise find themselves feeling as though they lack a clear trajectory.

Set Clear (and Reasonable) Expectations

Remote employees can also find themselves feeling unsure and unstable if they do not have a clear set of expectations to follow. While most remote employees tend to prefer flexibility over structure, a certain amount of structure is important for remote employees, their coworkers and the company at large.

For example, if remote employees are expected to be working at certain times or on call during certain hours of the day, this should be made clear. Similarly, if remote employees are free to work on their own schedule as long as they meet their deadlines, stating this as a formal policy will allow them not to worry that they are violating an unwritten rule or failing to meet unwritten expectations.

Cater to Different Working and Training Styles

With in-person employees, it is often easy when individual working and training styles differ. But, with remote employees, this isn’t necessarily the case. Human resources personnel should be cognizant of this fact, and they should ensure that they are taking proactive steps to set up new remote hires for success.

Speak with a Human Resources Consultant at AR Group

Do you have questions about what your company can (and should) be doing to improve its remote onboarding process? If so, we invite you to get in touch. Please call 720-452-3300 or contact us online to schedule an appointment at AR Group. 

Frequently Asked Questions About Remote Employee Compliance

Do remote employees need to sign a non-compete agreement?

If your remote employees have access to sensitive company data, client lists, or trade secrets, having them sign a non compete agreement or Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) is a critical best practice. However, because enforceability varies wildly by state, these agreements must be customized to the state where the remote employee actually resides.

Why should an employer consult an employment contract lawyer for remote hires?

Hiring across state lines introduces complex compliance issues regarding payroll taxes, overtime rules, and leave laws. An employment contract lawyer ensures that your remote worker’s offer letters and employment agreements are fully compliant with the specific laws of their home state, protecting your company from future litigation.

How do at-will employment states affect remote workers?

Almost all U.S. states are at will employment states, meaning an employer can terminate an employee for any legal reason without warning. However, when an employee works remotely in a different state than the company headquarters, the labor laws of the employee’s state generally apply. Employers must understand these local nuances before taking adverse employment actions.