Hiring Process And Onboarding Virtually During COVID-19

The coronavirus pandemic has brought the world to a virtual standstill and has millions of us at home. COVID-19 also presents an unprecedented challenge for recruiters — interviewing new candidates, hiring and onboarding them. Keeping these challenges at bay, many companies have turned to virtual hiring as an alternative to traditional hiring.  

Ritika Khanna, HR – Head at Skeps talks about how virtual hiring looks like at Skeps.

Ritika Khanna, HR – Head at Skeps talks about how virtual hiring looks like at Skeps and what practices are being followed to keep the recruiting funnel moving during this uncertain time. 

What process are you following to onboard new candidates?

The most crucial step taken is to conduct virtual induction and onboarding of candidates on the date of joining. The whole process takes place through virtual meeting rooms (Zoom, Skype, etc.) and online documentation. Skeps was practically paperless from the beginning, so it is an easy transition from a process perspective. 

How does a candidate’s Day – 1 look like at Skeps these days?

It is a complete work from home for all our candidates. The leadership has offered the biggest help in making the entire process effective and welcoming for the new joiners. From conducting virtual induction sessions to introducing the team, all possible measures are taken so that the new joiners feel connected with their team members. 

Are you getting any concerns from candidates who have been offered a position?

As an organization, we are making sure that those who have been offered a position with us are at ease, and get a first-hand experience of our employee centricity. We completely understand that the candidates who are already serving their notice with the current organization may feel unsure if the offer they have from the next organization would be honored. To ease such candidates, we have follow up calls to assure that their offer still holds. We are making sure that they join on the committed date. 

Are your candidates facing any other concerns due to the lockdown in the country?

Some organizations are not able to release their candidates due to the inevitable situation. We are giving them more time. Also, we are constantly in touch with such candidates to address their queries. 

Are there any current open positions and how will you continue hiring despite the recession?

We have a very optimistic approach towards the situation for, this is not going to change much as far as hiring is concerned. We have always believed in virtual hiring and that philosophy has proven very beneficial to us at this time as we remain unaffected in terms of our recruitment process.

We also spoke to a few of our new hires who have been a part of the virtual hiring process at Skeps. Let’s hear about their experiences.

Rupesh Kumar

“It was a nice and unique experience for me. Coming from a finance background, working from home was never an option for me. But Skeps has offered me an opportunity to work from home and it’s altogether a different experience for me. After a week into this – I don’t think remote working is anyway difficult – thanks to the amazing Skeps’ virtual joining process which made it a cakewalk for me.“

Udyan Sharma

“At Skeps, virtual hiring was very easy for me. All the conversations happened over video calls. On the day of joining, I was overwhelmed with the active contests going on for the entire team to keep work from home exciting.“

Himanshu

“Virtual joining was a new concept for me. From onboarding to induction to introduction to the team, everything happened over zoom calls and it was a one-of-its-kind experience for me.“

Looking for an exciting opportunity? Check out Skeps' careers page.

The article was first published here.