Fostering Collaboration Among Remote New Hires

My remote hires (probably) ramp faster than yours. Here's why: Most remote onboarding means a calendar packed with Zoom meetings and endless Slacks from strangers. No real connection. No clear priorities. No clue how tall anyone actually is. It can feel isolating, especially when you’re new and eager to prove yourself. That’s why I take a different approach at UserEvidence. I meet every new hire in person during their first week. Wherever they live, on their home turf. Every time, it leads to the same outcome: faster ramp-up, stronger confidence, and immediate momentum. I’ve improved this process three times now, cutting out fluff and getting feedback from every person to make it even better for the next hire. They each get a beast of a Notion page that covers: - Key people to meet (and why those meetings matter) - Important docs and links to review right away - A roadmap for their first 30, 60, and 90 days, clearly outlining expectations and where I need them to take ownership From day one, new hires have full visibility into what's working, what's not, and where our biggest opportunities lie. They don't have to hunt for information, either. It’s all there for them: board decks, old marketing roadmaps, past OKRs, and a clear breakdown of the agencies and freelancers we partner with (plus their “superpowers” and how to best work with them). By the end of week one, we’ve already had honest and vulnerable conversations about: - How we can best work together  - Our working styles and weird work quirks to be aware of (we all have them) - What success looks like in their role - Where they want to grow and how I can help We also make time for fun and get to know each other outside of work. Like our upbringing, favorite life stories, and who we are as humans. Work matters, but who you work with matters even more. Building trust right out of the gate makes everything easier.

Starting a new job while remote can suck. Imagine your first day: You get your laptop and login info. Set up all the software and benefits. Lovely HR folks onboard you but it’s all going through the process. You don’t actually meet your teammates though or learn about your work until later. That would feel kinda lonely, eh? 😔 Imagine a different first day: 👋Your manager posted an intro message in the company new hires channel (at Slack, we call this #yay). 📮People from different teams message you offering to chat or welcoming you to the company! ☕️You have virtual coffee invites already. I joined Slack in April 2020. Remote. Didn’t meet anyone IRL for over a year! Yet, I felt welcome and included because Slack’s leadership is very intentional about curating the culture (David Ard Robby Kwok would directly welcome people!) People from across the company DMed me. To my slack colleagues reading this, this might feel obvious. However, a lot of companies are still figuring out hybrid culture - across time zones, cultures and borders 🌎🌏🌍 Today, I try to carry on the torch. Every Monday, I message the new hires in our #yay channel. On lighter weeks, I do 15 min coffee chats. For the ones in NYC, we coordinate office days. We might be in completely different parts of the company and never work together, but that’s also an opportunity to learn something new. It might be just one message or meeting for you, but it can make a HUGE difference in someone’s onboarding experience. So, carry the torch - go make someone’s first day amazing 🔥

I sent laptops to 7 remote hires. 5 quit within 90 days. Costly mistake.  Brutal lesson. I thought I was onboarding them. They felt abandoned. And the data proves I wasn’t alone: 🚫 63% of remote employees say onboarding was inadequate. 🚫 60% feel lost and disoriented after their first week. 🚫 Remote hires take 3-6 months longer to reach full productivity. A laptop in a box isn’t onboarding.  It’s a fast track to disengagement. So I rebuilt our process—and retention jumped 82%. Here’s exactly what worked: 🔥 The Buddy System ✔ Assign a mentor (daily check-ins for the first 2 weeks) ✔ Encourage “silly” questions—zero judgment ✔ Make support feel human, not bureaucratic 🔥 Connection Before Content ✔ Virtual coffee chats before training starts ✔ Executive welcome video on Day 1 ✔ Remote-friendly team social event in Week 1 🔥 Digestible Learning ✔ 90-minute training modules (no info overload!) ✔ Spread onboarding across 3 weeks, not 3 days ✔ Live discussions > passive video watching 🔥 Tech Readiness ✔ IT setup completed before Day 1 ✔ Test systems with the hire the day before ✔ Provide a digital “emergency contact” for tech issues 🔥 Culture Immersion ✔ Virtual office tour with real team stories ✔ Inside-joke dictionary (every company has one!) ✔ Daily connections between work tasks & company mission 🔥 Strategic Check-ins ✔ Week 1: "What surprised you?" ✔ Month 1: "Where do you need more clarity?" ✔ Quarter 1: "How can we better support your growth?” 🔥 Early Wins = Early Buy-In ✔ Assign a small, meaningful project in Week 1 ✔ Recognize their success publicly ✔ Show them how their work makes an impact Remote onboarding isn’t about dumping information. It’s about building confidence, connection, and commitment. Do this right, and your new hires won’t just stay. They’ll thrive. P.S. What’s one thing you wish you had in your first remote onboarding? ♻️ Repost this to help HR teams fix onboarding before it costs them top talent.

I’ve been leading #remote teams for 17+ years, and I know firsthand that building strong bonds within the team doesn’t happen as organically as it might in an office. Remote work makes fostering meaningful connections more challenging—it just does. Stevie Case and I discussed this challenge on my podcast, and here’s what we’ve found works: 𝗙𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗮 𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀. Build an environment where people feel comfortable sharing ideas, feedback, and wins. At SalesRoads, for example, we create opportunities for team intros to encourage connection across departments and recognize individual contributions in creative ways. 𝗦𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗸 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁. Be intentional about creating moments of connection—virtual game days, where the team hangs out and has fun together, or Slack channels like our “Water Cooler,” where people share updates, hobbies, and non-work-related moments. These small efforts help foster a sense of belonging. 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲. Steve also pointed out the importance of in-person retreats or offsite. If it's not feasible, focus on consistent virtual touchpoints to keep the team connected. For instance, I have a virtual lunch with every new hire. Just 30 minutes to get to know them and make them feel welcome. Since the key to feeling connected to work lies in feeling connected to the people you work with, it’s on us to intentionally create space for collaboration, trust, and engagement. What have you found works best for building bonds in a remote team? You can find the episode here ⟶ Sell Like A Leader Podcast #salesteam

Hired anybody recently? How much thought did you give to what their first day might be like? Or are you just assuming your company's onboarding program has it all covered? If you're managing a remote team, you might want to dig a little deeper and make a little more space. The first weeks in a new job are crucial - and if people have a bad start, they'll head for the exit. Remote onboarding tips for managers: * Start with team bonding from day one. * Set up an onboarding buddy to help with the little things. * Organize meet-and-greets for your new hire to connect with everyone they might need to know. * Spend an entire team meeting asking the new person questions and letting them ask questions. * Give people clear targets for their first 30/60/90 - and make sure some of those targets are social ("join 5 social Slack channels"). * Go out of your way to be available for chats, meetings, check-ins, coworking sessions, etc. Remember, you're not just your new hire's boss - you're their connection point to the rest of the organization. Throw all the doors wide open for them and make sure they can find the people they'll need. #onboarding #remotework #managers #culture