As we know it, the working world has changed dramatically over the course of the last two years. Before now, recruiters could assess the suitability of a person for a job by meeting the person face to face. But the hiring process has changed significantly via the world going digital, and hence remote hiring.
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An interviewer is lucky if they could see the top half of a potential candidate through a video call before deciding if the candidate will be well suited for the company or not.
But this digital change has made us reflect on how much we valued first impressions via face-to-face interactions. As interviewees now need to impress recruiters, not via the way that they conduct themselves, but rather, for example, by how they dress, or the natural chemistry built with the interviewer. And this is still no easy task, as Interviewees now need to accomplish this via digital mediums like Zoom calls.
Having said all of the above, it is pertinent that we get some important stuff out of the way before we jump into our top tips on hiring in this new and complex world.
Job Recruiters should keep in mind that the interviewees are most likely just as apprehensive and nervous about this new method of recruiting, as you and your company probably are! And so, you should remember this and account for it when you interview. In other words, recruiters need to make sure that they and their businesses adjust to these changing times.
In addition, a recruiter cannot simply gather information, via an interview, the exact same way as was done before the remote work drive kicked in. There are different ways to gather intel about interviewees and gauge whether or not they are right for a role. For example, you can no longer easily analyze how their body language relaxes or tenses on certain topics. Instead, you should try getting them to talk a little bit more and then analyze how they speak and what they say.
Finally, recruiters should also remember that an interview only shows one side or aspect of an interviewee. As there is a lot more to a person and what they could bring to the table than just whether they answer questions, over a Zoom call, in the right manner.
it is important, in an interview, to take in as much of who the person is as possible to see if they would be the right fit in the role you are hiring for, and also fit in with your company’s team.
And now that this is out of the way, here are our top ten tips for hiring new employees in this remote work-driven world.
Tip #1: Let Your Potential Candidates Pick Their Arrival Time & Interview Slot
This is the simplest and the most practical tip of our bunch, and it has absolutely nothing to do with the actual interview. This tip will simply make things easier for you and your team!
The scheduling of the actual interview can become a rather big time waster when the back and forth begins. “As invited candidate would ask about the time that works for the recruiter, and the recruiter, in turn, would query about the time that suits the interviewee. And so, the back and forth begins,” says Oliver Richmond, a writer at Eliteassignmenthelp and Do My Assignment.
It also becomes even more difficult to book an interview if your candidate has another job or an otherwise hectic work schedule.
These flaws in booking can be both time and energy-consuming—resources that could have been invested in other more productive areas like finding more great candidates for roles that require filling within the business. Moreover, do keep in mind that any time saved is money made at the end of the day.
Tip #2: Ensure That Standards Are Set And That Everyone knows What The Plan Is
The last thing that you want is an unprepared candidate. Some candidates may be unprepared naturally, which could be an easy filter for removing them from consideration.
However, it is important to continuously set your potential candidates up for success. No one is going to do particularly well if they have not been provided with the correct information within the right time frame.
Be sure that the interviewee is made aware, in an ample amount of time, of the right digital platform that will be used for the interview. This will ensure that they have had time to download any app or software that they might need and also get comfortable with the said app.
it is important to make the standards of the interview obvious and laid out in detail before the interview. And so, be sure to inform the candidate of what you would like, for example, that you would want them to have their video camera on. Do let your candidates be aware of anything else that they would need to bring, show, or prepare during the interview time.
The more advanced notices that you give to your candidates on these things, the more information about them that you will see. Additionally, more time is saved during the interview for getting to know the candidate and assessing their suitability for the position.
Tip #3: Keep Them Updated And Reminded
Let’s be honest, even the best of us need a reminder every now and then. Why do you think we set reminders on our phones or alarms? Even when we think we are on top of everything, times and dates can slip through the cracks.
Allow your potential employees the same courtesy as you would allow yourself. Keep them reminded! Try sending out reminders or confirmation emails, in intervals, of when you have them scheduled for an interview.
You could try, for example, weekly or daily reminders. And if you don’t feel comfortable sending emails reminder, then try sending a ‘confirmation’ email. This guise can make candidates feel trusting and excited about a potential opportunity rather than be bothered by an extra email.
Tip #4: Make Sure Your Technology Works!
It might seem like a silly and unnecessary step, but I can assure you that it is not. As much as an interview is your opportunity to assess the candidate, they are also taking the same opportunity to assess you and your company too!
As much as the interview is based around them, it is important that you put in the effort to establish and maintain a good reputation for your business or the business that you represent because even if you can turn a candidate down; they can also turn you down too.
This is why it is so important that your technologies work. For a candidate, technology that does not work can make you and your business appear unprofessional, unprepared, and even uninterested. Putting in the time and effort to make sure you are presenting a clean and polished work front will make a candidate feel as though their time is valued and that you are truly interested in them and what they have to say.
Tip #5: Have A Structure
Just like a boy scouts motto: “be prepared,” every interviewer should have the same mentality before going into an interview. Never go into an interview unprepared or think that you can “go with the flow.”
Being unprepared in an interview will always show, to the interviewee, even if you think that you are good at making it up as you go. Make sure you have read up considerably, for example, on the candidate and their employment history, as a person will almost instantly know if you care enough about the interview to do prep work. It is important that your candidate feels valued and appreciated when they are being interviewed.
Blank ideas/questions are an interviewer’s worst nightmare because it allows for awkward silences, and no one has ever got anything out of awkward silence. This blank situation will make a candidate feel like you are not interested in them, so make sure that you go into the interview with the candidate’s background knowledge, and a structure.
Tip #6: Take Into Account Hurdles That You Might Encounter During Online Interviews
Demonstrative interviews are almost impossible online, as it is extremely hard to replicate in-person interviews in the same way for positions that require a show of skill.
Greta Varsity, a business writer at “Paper Fellows” and “State Of Writing,” noted that, “for some digital and finance careers that need assessment of skills, consider that you might need to get candidates to complete an assessment before an interview or between interview stages.” As this is a great way to gauge what you could have tried to assess in an in-person interview.
Another hurdle that you could come across is not being able to fully gauge someone’s interpersonal skills or body language through a Zoom call. The lack of this opportunity to judge someone’s character or personal likability factor and interpersonal skills should be replaced and substituted with extra research or more referrals to analyze the candidate as much as possible before the hiring decision is made.
Tip #7: Try ‘Showing’ Them Around The Office
Now, once the initial hire is made, the process is far from over. The first 6 months constitute the onboarding process. This can be a difficult period for remote workers due to the fact that they will be working with a new team that they may never meet face to face, as a face-to-face relationship does not exist.
One of the ways that you, as an employer, can help alleviate this is by showing the remote workers around the office where some of their colleagues work. You can do this via Zoom call, taking them on a tour around the office space and surrounding areas.
However, if you do not have an actual office space, you can take your new hire for a virtual tour of all the areas that they will be working in digitally during their job role.
Tip #8: Introduce Them To The Tools They Will Use During Their Job
This may seem like a simple one, but it is so often forgotten. When employers hasten to hire someone to get them into an active job role fast, the employers can often forget to orientate the new hires.
Even just a succinct document with all the need-to-know information can sometimes suffice, but nothing is better than a personal touch. It is so important that your new hire knows that you are willing to invest the time into making sure that they feel as comfortable as possible in their new role.
it is important to make sure that your new hire is properly inducted into, for example, the use of all the essential tools. Do not set your new hire up to fail! If you fail to induct them properly when it comes to, for example, the tools they will be using, you will be shooting yourself and your new hire in the foot.
Make sure they have all the right ingredients for success if you want them to succeed. It can even be a good idea to have someone conversant with the tools to educate your new hires. This can give a better insight as to how the tools are used. And it can also build trust and bonds between co-workers.
Tip #9: Give Them A Buddy!
I know that you may be wondering about this subtitle, and would think, well, we are not kids…. so why do we need buddies?
Well, the principle of the buddy system carries across all aspects of life! It is so crucial to make sure that your new hire feels as comfortable and accepted by the people they would be working with.
One of the hardest things to do in life is to fit in. As Jessica Marin, a recruiter at “Essayroo” and “Lia Help”, stated: “If a new hire feels excluded or unimportant to the people that they work with, the likelihood of them lasting as an employee is very low.” As humans, we are pack animals. We like to run in a crowd, and our need to be validated stems from this. If you are a people pleaser, like me, this rings especially true.
One of the biggest pitfalls for employers when hiring remote workers is to think that they do not need this same kind of treatment. Just because someone has chosen to or is having to work remotely does not mean they do not still have this basic need as an employee.
It is important to treat your new remote worker as you would a regular hire. Try your best to ensure that the buddy you set up for your remote hire is consistently in contact with your hire and that they are checking in on how they are doing. This might even be a great way for you to get some extra insight into how they are doing in their role.
Tip #10: Promote Social Interaction Between Employees
This is slightly a controversial one. Of course, you want your employees to get on well. But you do not want anyone getting on too well and causing problems, and you also do not want a potential bullying situation between employees. And because of the slight risk of both happening, some companies tend to avoid promoting social interaction online outside of work.
However, if you promote social interaction in the right way, this can be a great way to enrich relationships between your employees. People that like and respect each other naturally will work together within a company.
The great thing about people working together because they get along well is that it will naturally increase productivity and quality of work within working hours. It can also help employees to feel relaxed during work hours if they know they are accepted by their colleagues, regardless of their work performance=)
The hiring process is not a piece of cake, and it is important to treat it as the task that it really is. Who you let into your business will make or break it, and just because you are hiring remotely does not imply that your brand or business is not represented by the said hire.
It is crucial to gauge as much as possible about the people that you are analyzing online, just as much as you would for a person you are hiring for an on-site role. Both the initial interview process and the onboarding process of a remote worker should be approached with extra care, as doing this correctly would result in successful remote hires.
Tags: Great remote hire tips Remote employment Remote hire Remote hiring Tips for hiring remotely
