The Professional’s Playbook to Virtual Onboarding
Joining a new company virtually isn’t as daunting when you have the right tools
Most of us have experienced the nervousness of being the newbie as we try to find our place in an organization. Desperate to blend in to make it less obvious you’re new, yet praying that enough patience is extended to you, so you have sufficient time to learn the ropes of the new role. It used to be quite a daunting process, and I experienced this firsthand at my first post-college job a few years ago.
However, over the last 2 years, the nature of work has shifted dramatically.
Remote and hybrid work has become a more prominent part of our workplace dynamic, and understandably so. Yet it also presents its own unique challenges for newbie employees being virtually onboarded into an organization. I began my first full-time role as a Product Manager during the height of the pandemic, so I know how different virtual and in-person processes can be.
My first few weeks as a new hire felt like I was drinking from a fire hose while simultaneously doing a handstand. I was trying to absorb as much information as I could about the company, its culture, my role and the people I would be working with. There was also the added pressure that virtual onboarding presents — zoom fatigue, sitting for long hours and even forgetting to have lunch. It took me a while, but I got the hang of it. This article aims to share some of the tips I found helpful on my journey, so others can onboard more smoothly.
Here are a few pointers to take note of:
1. It’s okay not to know everything
Spoiler alert — no one does! Coming into a new organization can feel daunting (hello, impostor syndrome?). It is important to remind yourself that you were recruited for the role because the recruiting team saw your potential and was willing to bet on you. As a new employee at any level, no one expects you to know absolutely everything on the first day, month or even within the first year. Take your time to learn. Being curious and inquisitive will help you get to action much quicker than pretending to be a know-it-all would. This should take a bit of pressure off you and allow you to do what’s important at this stage — learn.
The first six to twelve months at any company should be a learning phase (and if you work at a company like mine that is constantly evolving, chances are the learning will never stop). Of course, there were immediate things I had to learn, like the company’s culture, but there were also more subtle things, like who the influencers are or who has the ear of leadership. I call this “reading the zoom”, a practice that is hard in the virtual world but is probably much easier in person. You just need to keep your focus on learning and learning quickly.
2. Find some work buddies
Being an omnivert, I wasn’t too thrilled about not meeting my colleagues physically. It meant that I couldn’t have “watercooler chats” or grab lunch with a colleague, reducing the avenues to organically make meaningful connections. The extroverted part of me thrives on human interaction, and not being physically present with my team and colleagues was pretty hard for me. It also didn’t help that many people had their cameras off during zoom meetings. I was forced to use my imagination to create faces for many of the people I interacted with.
If you are joining the company as a recent graduate, there will likely be other graduates joining at the same time. Thankfully, some folks joined the company around the same time I did. We were able to help each other with questions and resources, and that practice of helping one another still goes on today simply because we joined the company at the same time. I went a step further to create a slack support group for product managers who joined at the same time as I did, and we share ideas, answer questions and even have virtual happy hours when we need a breather from all our tasks.
A great way to set yourself up with these connections is by taking advantage of your colleagues’ calendars. Put in time in your shared calendars to have fun. Socialize. Take advantage of communal office activities. And if your office doesn’t have too many of those, find time to create some outside of work. Thankfully, I work in an organization where social interaction is valued, so we frequently organize mixers, games and other social events to build our social bond. These events became avenues to get to know people in a much more casual environment. I also joined some awesome communities of inclusion for women, black employees and other resource groups like Toastmasters.
If you work in a company where these structures have not been set, try volunteering to plan one for your team. People value social interaction, and I’m certain they would love to participate in fun, team-bonding gatherings.
3. Set expectations and boundaries early
Begin the conversation with your manager early about what the expectations for your role are. This will help you prioritize accordingly, and your priorities will inform your boundaries.
Boundaries are just as important at work as they are in pretty much every aspect of our lives. In the era of zoom meetings, where one meeting bleeds into the next, it can be challenging to find time to pause and reflect. Figuring out how to keep things balanced while optimizing your efficiency is an essential skill in this increasingly virtual age.
A worthwhile practice is to carve out a pre-set time for lunch or decide the specific hours within which your meetings can be scheduled. This will help you optimize your performance while leaving you with time to do the things that are important to you. Other practical methods might be scheduling 25-minute meetings instead of 30-minute meetings, so you have 5 minutes between meetings to synthesize, take a bathroom break or have a snack.
Understand that your time at your organization is a marathon, not a sprint, so that you can pace yourself. Learn the difference between drive and overdrive so that you don’t burn out. These are just a few ways you can be kind to yourself and protect your physical, social and mental health. Safeguarding your own wellbeing is essential, and it will guarantee that you bring your whole and best self to work each day.
Virtual onboarding doesn’t have to be scary or daunting. You can use the tools you have to transition smoothly into your company. Interestingly, as the official date for returning to the office draws closer (for now), I find myself cherishing the benefits of remote work culture all the more. I have even started to doubt my ability to work from the office five days a week. I like working from home — the opportunity to spend more time with loved ones, eat meals from my own kitchen, stick to a morning routine and go on short walks during the day — but I also understand the benefits of working from the office.
In-person, hybrid, or fully remote? Regardless of what the future brings, I’m learning how to live, adapt and find joy in the moments of each day.
