The seismic shift in how, where and when we work has seen many companies switching to remote working during Covid-19 and often struggling to adapt their entire business model (as well as coming off mute when they speak).
Many companies have continued to grow to come out of this crisis stronger, so my interest was piqued by a new report released today containing onboarding insights from new hires made in 2020 since the start of the pandemic.
Among the many surprising findings from Dr. Brooks Holtom, Professor of Management, McDonough School of Business, Georgetown University, Dr. Elora Voyles Assistant Professor of Industrial/Organizational Psychology at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and David Niu, Founder and CEO of TINYpulse who commissioned the work, is the conclusion that new hires are saying they’re fine, but their behavior suggests they’re not.
The report finds there was a 34% drop in peer recognition for new hires onboarded in 2020 versus 2019, and the culprit is the ‘isolation’ of working remotely since new hires are not as connected with their teammates as they say.
Niu: “Organizations only get one opportunity to make a first impression on a new hire. That's hard enough to coordinate before COVID-19, but I surmised that it must be much more challenging in a remote world. I didn't see any research out there that touches on both the attitudinal feedback plus the behavioral feedback. That's what got me excited about digging in.”
Part of the issue is that few companies were prepared for bringing on new team members in this way.
Holtom: “The pandemic has forced organizations to adapt in real time to very challenging circumstances. We were keen to understand what is happening inside of organizations and then being able to help leaders be more effective in motivating high performance and maintaining strong mental health for employees.”
The work involved analyzing over 100 organizations that onboarded more than 500 new hires between April and September 2019 and comparing that data with the same organizations onboarding nearly 500 new hires between April and September 2020. The companies involved are all U.S.A.-based, including technology, construction, health, manufacturing, marketing, retail, FMCG, financial services, government and non-profit.
Voyles: “Given the unprecedented stress and changes due to COVID-19, it was surprising to not see a difference in new hires’ onboarding experience when comparing 2019 to 2020 data. It certainly makes me wonder if new hires are not aware of the impact that the pandemic is having on their work behavior or if they are hesitant to open up about pandemic-related challenges.”
So, what is going on here? An emerging hypothesis from the work is that new entrants are having a harder timeconnecting to intangibles such as company values than in more tangible elements of their company experience (e.g., processes, procedures, or systems).
Holtom: “My expectation is that other intangible, but important, aspects of culture are also suffering (e.g., meaningful connections to colleagues).”
Even further, the research shows that new hires are 20% less attached to company values, which is alarming as the future of work looks increasingly remote.
Voyles: “Besides virtual work creating distance between employees, the adjustment to work from home can increasestress and test boundaries between work life and home life. The combination of increased stress and blurring of work life and home life can make it more challenging for employees to feel engaged and attached to company values.”
The research also highlights solutions that leaders can take, like paying attention to your organization’s mission and values and investing in a mentoring program.
Niu: “Companies had to adjust almost immediately to a remote onboarding world. So over time, as they are more familiar and learn what works best for them, I believe the experience will be better for new hires. Also, it's nearlyimpossible to fully replace face-to-face interactions. The substitutes will get better over time; however, after COVID-19 passes, I believe more organizations will augment remote workforces with in-person gatherings.”
The research clearly points towards the identified trends ‘worsening’ in 2021 if companies do not react. Companies can’t afford to ignore this – they need to tackle it now with a structured program of team and personal support.
Holtom: “I think organizations absolutely must attend to social factors to maintain morale in the coming months that will continue to be filled with uncertainty. Efforts to monitor social relations, emotions, expectations will all be importantas leaders seek to create confidence in their workforce that they care and will have their best interests at heart in the coming weeks and months.”
Voyles: “Emphasizing organizational values and mentoring employees have always been considered ‘nice to have’, but these practices are now indispensable for organizations that are working from home.
When COVID-19 hit, organizations had to immediately learn how to work remotely but didn’t consider how it would impact onboarding new hires. So, what can a company learn from this? The research points to five simple methods to reinforce company values:
- Focus on reiterating your company values during all-hands meetings and emphasizing the real-life experiences of team members who have demonstrated those values
- Cite examples of values in action in company communications (e.g., newsletters and video briefings)
- Include values as tags that can be added to recognition (Cheers)
- Reward individuals who live out company values externally to customers and internally to colleagues
- Create a mentoring program for new hires to ensure you support them during their journey.