At QCS Staffing, we have such a strong focus on our work culture, so having our team working in the same space and interacting face-to-face has always been really important. Then you consider our onboarding process, which is about showing them this amazing culture we’ve nurtured, ensuring they connect with their new colleagues and feel supported. So when we decided back in June that it was time to think about ramping up the recruitment our first thought was, “Right, how do we do virtual onboarding?”
How we’ve reshaped our virtual onboarding
When anyone starts at QCS Staffing they have a four-week induction and it’s kicked off on the first day with a tour of our office and an introduction to the whole team. But with most of our team working from home, this was no longer an option and we had to put our heads together to think of an onboarding plan that would communicate our culture and replicate, to some extent, the experience new hires would get with our traditional onboarding.
Taking it right back to the beginning, once a candidate has gone through the video interview process and they have accepted the job offer we invite them to the office to pick up their work laptop. Our new starters will receive a call from our IT team to check they’re able to log on from their laptop and to find out if there’s any equipment like headsets and mouse mats that will make their job easier. Although we have other safe ways to get the equipment to them, of the six new hires that we’ve onboarded since Covid-19 all have chosen to visit. It’s been great to give them a tour of their new workplace and help them visualise working there. Because we can’t set up their desk as we’d normally do, we send them off with a welcome pack containing stationary, information on the company, and a QCS Staffing hoodie and mug - because who doesn’t love some merchandise!
It’s really important that any new colleague meets their team before the first day because this is a chance to break the ice and start building relationships. Their manager will also send over a pre-recorded welcome video and it’s little touches like this that help make up for not being able to meet face-to-face.
On their first day, they’ll have an induction with the IT team who will talk them through Microsoft Teams and how to log onto the phone system. Microsoft Teams is where most of the action will happen in those first few weeks. All the inductions will be recorded so our new hire can watch them back, after all, it can be a lot of information to take in. We’re mindful of how tiring a day of video calls can be so the new onboarding schedule has more breaks in the day – giving them a chance to make a tea and digest the information.
Throughout the induction, they’ll meet all the different teams over Microsoft Teams and everyone will get to introduce themselves. The daily check-ins with their manager are a chance to talk about what they can expect from working remotely, share health and wellbeing tips and help the new starter figure out a daily structure that works for them. And because training and development are so important at QCS Staffing, our in-house trainers will arrange Microsoft Teams calls beyond their induction period.
Our biggest challenge
Before Covid-19, a candidate would come to the office and get a feel for the culture. It’s difficult to replicate this because while we can talk about our brilliant culture, how can we validate this? Portraying
our values to new hires has been the hardest thing during the onboarding process but I like to think it’s our biggest success too.
Maintaining the great team spirit
The team are conscious about keeping the culture alive. For example, we still do our round-up meeting with the whole company on a Friday where we share highlights and give shout outs. We’re a really sociable bunch and we’ve made it our mission to make sure that every team member feels supported and we’re reaching out particularly to those who are working from home and living alone. If we’re asking, “Are you okay?” it’s because we genuinely want to know.
Creating a Covid-secure office
As a business, we’re mindful of everyone’s work-life balance and letting the team know that just because we're not in the office they’re not forgotten about. And because we know how difficult working remotely can be, we’ve made our office as safe as possible with Perspex desk screens, a one-way system, masks and sanitisation stations. One of our new starters has completed their onboarding at home because we’ve created a way for it to be done seamlessly that way, and now they’re coming into the office to work. But for colleagues who aren’t ready to return to the office yet, we understand this too and we’ve got everything set up for when they are.
Join us at QCS Staffing
At QCS Staffing, we’re proud of the fun and supportive atmosphere we’ve worked hard to create. And our virtual onboarding programme is proof that you can still capture that team spirit. Find out more about
life at Quanta or if you’re ready to make your next career move join the team.
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