Employers should understand that flexible hours for employees with small children may allow them to be more productive at various times of the day or night. (Photo: Evgeny Atamanenko/Shutterstock)

Right now, companies around the world are doing their best to operate remotely whenever possible. The insurance industry is no exception. Yet how prepared is the industry for transitioning their entire operations? The answer could mean the difference between business as usual and business in turmoil.

Particularly when it comes to onboarding new employees, operating virtually takes planning. Employee retention for those companies that emphasize their onboarding is significant — a GlassDoor research brief reveals that organizations with a strong onboarding process improve their new hire retention rates by 82%.

Related: What are the most desirable attributes in a remote workforce?

That's a big deal, especially considering the widening talent crisis currently plaguing the insurance industry. Given that in all industries, nearly 20% of employee turnover happens within the first 45 days, insurers, in particular, should be focusing on building stronger onboarding processes.

The cost can be substantial. Companies lose 20% of new employees within a year, according to statistics provided by UrbanBound.

According to the Center for American Progress, replacing one executive can cost a business up to 213% of his or her salary.

Yet the benefits of a strong onboarding process are myriad. Companies with an onboarding process realize 54% greater productivity from their new hires, and companies with onboarding processes of the longest duration report 34% faster proficiency rates, according to UrbanBound statistics.

The remote onboarding difference

Yet even if your organization's current onboarding process is a good one, there is little chance of it translating well in a remote workforce environment. Without the traditional face-to-face meetings, mentoring and office environment, remote employees can feel isolated rather quickly.

Likewise, traditional training methods are not going to work when it comes to training. Whereas your new hires could be observed easily and given a course correction where necessary, workers training remotely can miss the opportunity to be given immediate feedback before habits become ingrained. Also, communication between you and your new hires may not be adequate in a remote setting, and you may not realize your employee needs to hear from you more often.

Another challenge brought on by remote work: distractions and limitations of your employee's work environment. Many people working from home, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, are sharing their space with other family members, or they simply don't have a place in their homes that is quiet and distraction-free.

All of these factors that are unique to remote work environments mean that your existing onboarding process may fall short in making sure your new employee becomes productive within a reasonable amount of time. That shortcoming can translate into increased failure rates, which could impact your organization's retention rates for new hires.

Logistics to consider

Then there are the logistics. To make your remote workforce's onboarding and ongoing work performance successful, your organization should be adopting the equipment, software and policies necessary to allow your employees to train and onboard remotely.

What equipment will your remote worker need? How will they log on, and what internet connection and antivirus requirements must they have to keep them productive and your company's information safe? What tools will they need to collaborate with colleagues and management?

From where will they be working? Talk with your new hire to assess their work environment. Now is the time for your organization to adopt flexible work hours, as employees with small children may be more productive at various times of day or night. By focusing on outcomes instead of the traditional nine-to-five shift, your company can help each new hire define their ideal work hours, which can result in higher productivity.

Also, remote access adds a heightened level of cybersecurity risk that can be alleviated with a few simple steps. What files or systems does that employee have to access? Make sure only those employees needing to be accessing sensitive information can do so. Restrict it for all other employees. Also, institute a process for changing passwords frequently. Moreover, make sure your new employee understands your policies on internet use, particularly that personal devices may not be used to conduct business nor download, store, or send company files and information.

Another consideration: how you will train your new employee. The most critical factor in the success and productivity of your new employee is how effectively they are trained and how easily they can interact with other employees. Are your current training methods easily deployed in a remote environment? In what ways do they need to be modified so that your employee can be more self-guided? Are your training processes online? Now is the time to restructure or replace your training materials and methods to better accommodate online learning.

Also, who will run the virtual training sessions? How will your new hire be evaluated, and by whom? Have you set specific training outcomes? Make sure training includes a way to see your employee's results, such as exercises that you can access easily online. And be sure to help your new hire set career goals that include training needs to reach those goals.

Successful onboarding

With the groundwork in place, your remote onboarding process can be established. To get the most out of your remote onboarding process, you should have a few key elements in place.

Onboarding contact person

From the moment your remote employee is hired, your organization should designate one contact to oversee the success of your worker's onboarding. The designated contact — typically a hiring manager — will be in charge of introducing the employee to his or her colleagues. The contact also serves as the main point of contact during the new employee's transition period.

Designated mentor

For more in-depth oversight, assign a mentor to your new employee. The mentor can help with answering questions, offering guidance on work processes, and teaching the soft skills that training will not cover — time management, collaboration, networking, conflict resolution — as well as pass on the knowledge the mentor has gained over his or her career. Ideally, mentors should meet virtually with new employees regularly, checking in with them each day.

Another aspect involves the implementation of shadowing as part of the onboarding process. New hires should shadow employees in their department, but also employees in other departments to get an understanding of how the company operates and how their role augments the overall operations.

Virtual team-building process

Shadowing helps build teams, though shadowing alone is no substitute for a sound team-building process. Your organization should conduct regular team meetings to build and maintain a cohesive team feeling. Weekly team meetings keep everyone connected and abreast of current and upcoming projects, and allows managers the opportunity to recognize good project outcomes and completions and make the entire team aware of milestones.

Those milestones should include the same perks your employees are used to in traditional office settings. Virtual birthday celebrations, retirement gatherings and celebrations of personal achievements are just as necessary to your team feeling connected virtually as in an in-house setting. Managers can use weekly meetings to welcome new hires and help them get to know their colleagues.

Employee nurturing process

In fact, for the first 90 days at minimum, your organization should make a concerted effort to help your new hire feel supported and embraced as part of the team and the company culture. That can be achieved by shadowing different team members, setting up weekly touch-base meetings with human resources and managers throughout their probationary period. Weekly meetings are a great time to make sure employees are adjusting well. They also allow your managers to address any issues that may arise.

Ongoing remote success

Creating successful remote employees is more than manageable. Virtual operations require a shift in how you approach every aspect of your business, including how you onboard new hires. Knowing how each process translates to a remote setting, your organization can restructure the details to make sure remote workers are getting the training and support they need to succeed.

By paying attention to where the gaps are in your existing policies, you can avoid costly employee attrition, and reap the benefits of a stronger, more cohesive workforce. In an atmosphere of steep competition and a shortage of qualified candidates, a strong onboarding process can be the game-changer your organization needs to remain competitive.

Sharon Emek, Ph.D., CIC, is the founder and CEO of Work At Home Vintage Experts (WAHVE), an innovative contract talent solution that matches retiring, experienced insurance, accounting and human resource career professionals with a company's talent needs.

Read more: 

• Your remote workforce: Tools and processes for a smoother transition
• Successfully shifting hiring and management strategies for the remote workforce
• Work-from-home apps are on the rise; can you guess which is on top?