How to Onboard Employees in the Midst of a Crisis

Much of the country has begun to open back up after a protracted lockdown period. As a result, many businesses are already ramping operations back up, including the hiring process. Quite a few companies need to hire people quickly to meet demand.

Yet with the current health crisis posing an ongoing threat, how can you safely onboard new employees in a risk-aware way, without putting the health and well-being of current or new employees at risk?

The overarching answer is to update or adopt a set of tools and policies, including hiring and onboarding procedures that marry the strategic use of technology with the experience and skills of existing staff. Use the following tips as a framework, but make sure you adapt that framework to your company’s unique set of needs and objectives.

1. Stay flexible

Once you’ve selected a candidate for the job, you’ll still need to provide adequate training for the new hire and ensure all the requisite paperwork is filled out and filed properly. You’ll also probably want to arrange some sort of mentor relationship to help your new employee get acclimated to the company’s culture and environment.

Your normal timelines for onboarding new employees will almost certainly be extended now, thanks to the practical realities…