Welcome To The Team, Remotely

With the pandemic stretching on, companies are experimenting with ways to help new hires fit into the company culture in a virtual environment

- Vidya S.

Diageo India considers its factories the backbone of its operations, so much so that all new recruits are taken on a half-day tour of the alcohol maker’s plant to give them a sense of what the company does. It’s a part of their two-day assimilation process where newcomers are brought together under one roof at the company’s head office in Bengaluru. But that was before the pandemic hit.

“When a new hire comes to one of our sites, a lot more than the conversation comes through. They see the factory and get to connect with the company, which is bigger than meeting just the interviewer on Zoom. How to get candidates excited about the company, the culture and opportunity without meeting the person now?” asks Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) Aarif Aziz.

DEEP DISCONNECT

• Studies have shown a direct correlation between employee engagement and their productivity at the workplace

• Humanising the virtual onboarding process remains a challenge, say HR heads

• New hires are taking time to adapt to the office culture in a virtual set-up, thanks to long spells of working in isolation

• Lack of informal, organic connections are forcing a number of them to quit soon after, say experts

• Establishing a connection with teammates and the organisation is turning out to be a key challenge for new employees

WORKING AROUND IT

• Most firms are trying to tackle the problem through frequent virtual catch-up sessions, digital townhalls and online team events involving family members