Working remotely is more popular than ever. Some employees feel more productive when they’re in their own space with fewer distractions. Others prefer it because they got used to the working-from-home routine during the worst of the pandemic and realized they can complete everything they need to from the comfort of their own home.
Whatever the reason, more people searching for jobs these days are looking for employment opportunities that allow them to work remotely. As a business looking to fill positions, you should be prepared for this. Since working remotely is a relatively new concept, you may not know how to address this in an interview, or how to tap into this new group of people looking to work remotely. You, and many others, may be wondering how to recruit remote employees.
If you don’t know where to start, STS Staffing has 11 tips on how to hire remote employees.
How Do You Recruit Quality Employees?
1. Make the Job Listing Specific
Much like you would for an in-office position, it’s important to outline the characteristics you need to see in your remote employee. Describe the necessary experience, qualifications, job descriptions, and a timeline. Once someone goes through all the information in the job listing, you will be well positioned to attract candidates with the right qualifications and skills.
2. Use the Right Job Listing Sites
Make sure you’re listing your jobs on trusted job posting sites. Qualified and experienced candidates are more likely to search for jobs if the site is well known.
3. Hold More than One Round of Interviews
Once you’ve gone through applications and feel like you’ve got some quality applicants, the next step is the interviewing process. Since you’re specifically hiring remote employees, you’ll likely have the interviews over a video call. Hold multiple rounds of interviews so you can get a good feel for who might be a good fit and those that aren’t right for the role. You could also hold the interview with other existing team members so you have more than one opinion on the candidate.
4. Ask Why They’re Interested in Your Company
A good tactic for how to hire the right remote employee is to ask why they want to work for your company. The right candidate will have done their research and back up their reasons with specific examples to your company.
5. Find Out if They Have Worked Remotely Before
It can be hard to get a good read on a candidate when hiring remote employees. One good sign is if they’ve worked remotely in a previous role. They’re likely to have the time management, prioritization and collaboration skills needed for your remote position if they’ve done it in the past.
6. Ask for References
You’d likely do this for any candidate, for both in-person and remote positions. Especially if they’ve worked in a remote position before, it’d be a good idea to reach out to previous employers to make sure they did their last remote job well.
7. Get a Feel for the Candidate’s Personality
Even if they have the right qualifications, you want to make sure they are going to fit in and be a good contributing team member. Sometimes their values might not align with your company’s mission which might not make them the right remote employee.
8. Talk About Your Company’s Culture
As you would in a normal interview, expect candidates to come prepared with questions for you. One might be about the company’s culture. This is really important to most potential employees. Even though you’re hiring for a remote position, how will they fit in and play a role in the company’s culture? Are there other remote employees? How do you ensure remote employees feel included when they’re not in the office every day? Make sure you’re prepared to answer this when hiring remote employees, as company culture is just as important for a remote employee as it is for an in-person employee.
9. Give Employees a Test Similar to the Work They’ll Be Doing
One of the final rounds of interviewing should be a test that resembles a project or task they’d be doing in the actual role you’re hiring for. Give them a deadline for completion, all of the necessary information and see how they do. If they do well and meet the deadline, they’ll be a top candidate.
10. Performance Reporting
How do you measure success? What metrics can you have your new team member report on each day or week? Be sure to clearly outline what key factors and responsibilities this person will need to know to perform their job well. This is particularly crucial when hiring remote employees.
11. Finally, Check in During the Onboarding Process
When you’ve found the right remote employee and wrapped up the hiring process, it’s time to onboard. Since your employee is working remotely, they can’t just turn around to your desk and ask a question. Make sure they know who the right team members are for certain questions. It’s a good idea to assign icebreaker tasks where employees can message the new hire and ask fun questions to get to know each other, or to have an all-team video call.
Are You Feeling Confident in Hiring Remote Employees Now?
STS Staffing can help you find the right remote employees! Now that you know how, contact us to discuss our process, what you’re looking for in a remote employee, and get started on the hiring process.