With the rise of technology, the world has become a global village. 

One of the most significant impacts of this globalization is the ability to work with people from all over the world. 

Hiring remote employees has become increasingly popular among businesses of all sizes, as it offers access to a wider pool of talent, reduced overheads, and increased flexibility. 

However, hiring remote employees can be challenging, especially if you’re new to it. 

In this article, we’ll provide you with a step-by-step guide on how to hire remote employees that will help you find the best talent for your team.

What is a remote employee?

A remote employee is a person who works for a company or organization from a location outside of the physical office. 

This typically means that they work from home or another remote location using technology such as email, messaging apps, video conferencing and other collaboration tools to communicate and work with their colleagues and complete their job duties. 

Remote employees are becoming increasingly common in today’s workforce, as more companies embrace flexible work arrangements and the benefits of having a geographically diverse team.

What are the benefits of hiring remote employees?

1. Increased talent pool: With remote work, employers have access to a larger talent pool and can hire from anywhere in the world.

2. Lower overhead costs: Remote employees do not require office space, equipment or supplies, which can save businesses money on rent, utilities, and other expenses.

3. Improved work-life balance: Remote employees often have more flexibility in their schedules, allowing them to better balance work and personal obligations.

4. Increased productivity: Remote employees often have fewer distractions and can work in an environment that is more conducive to their individual needs, which can lead to increased productivity.

5. Lower turnover: Remote employees often report higher job satisfaction and are less likely to leave their jobs compared to traditional office-based employees.

Should you hire remote employees?

While your business can benefit immensely from hiring remote employees, you need to consider a few challenges that you might face when hiring remote employees:

1. Communication challenges: Remote work can make it more difficult for team members to communicate effectively and stay on the same page especially when people are working from different time zones.

2. Potential for isolation: Remote employees can feel isolated and disconnected from their colleagues and may miss out on social interactions that are common in an office environment.

3. Reduced collaboration: Unlike an office environment where you’re in the same physical space, collaborating and brainstorming can be more challenging with remote employees, which can affect the quality of work.

4. Dependence on technology: Remote work requires reliable technology and any technical issues can impact productivity.

5. Difficulty managing remote teams: Managers may find it more challenging to manage remote employees and ensure that they complete their tasks compared to managing a team in an office setting.

How to Hire Remote Employees

Hiring remote employees requires a different approach than hiring traditional, in-office employees. Here’s what you need to do:

Create a remote work setup

Before you go about hiring remote employees, it’s important to evaluate your business and set it up for remote work success. You need to set guidelines to be followed for your remote working culture while also ensuring that your employees have the right expectations.

You can answer the following questions to create your remote work policy:

A. Which are the common soft skills every remote employee must have?

B. What tools will they be using for communication and collaboration?

C. How many hours a day are they supposed to work?

D. On what metrics will you be analyzing their performances?

E. What does the remote working culture of your business look like?

If you want some inspiration, you can head to job portals like Linkedin and Indeed and go over the job descriptions of companies looking to hire remote employees in your field. 

Do remember not to copy-paste their job description rather use it as a starting point and see how you can differentiate from others.

Establish an online brand

It’s imperative to have a strong online presence if you want to hire remote employees from across the world. Unlike physical offices where people can get a feel of your working culture, in remote businesses, it’s difficult for potential candidates to understand what their working days will look like.

You may want to attract the best candidates for your job, but remember that they too want to work with businesses that suit their values and culture. Hence, to make it easier for them to apply for your job, ensure you have a website and an active social media presence.

One of the best ways to showcase your brand on social media is by asking existing employees to talk about the new skills they’ve developed and how your business has helped them grow. You can also talk about the best clients you’ve worked with and showcase the results you achieved with them.

Similarly, you can go into great detail on your website talking about your working culture, employment benefits, awards won, clients handled and so on.

Create a remote-friendly job description

To attract remote employees, ensure that you speak to them.

For example, instead of writing ‘Content Writer’ in the job title, write ‘Remote Content Writer’.

Similarly, not every person is cut out for remote work. Hence, you must specify the following skills in your job description that are essential for any remote employee to thrive:

  • Good time management
  • Independent
  • Self-motivated
  • Great organizational skills
  • Clear communication
  • Tech-savvy
  • Proactive

Lastly, ensure that you’re compensating your remote employees well. This is because when you’re hiring remote employees, you’re competing with the ever-increasing number of remote employers who’re also looking for the best talent.

You can also showcase your remote work benefits like employee wellness programs, professional development, home office budget, etc. to make your job description more appealing.

Advertise on remote-friendly job platforms

To scout for remote employees, you need to actively post your jobs on platforms where remote workers hang out. It’s not a one-size-fits-all approach where you go about posting on all the available platforms as that’ll waste your time and energy.

The following are some platforms you may consider:

We Work Remotely

With over 3 million visitors a month, you can hire your next remote employee from here. The only con is that with so many daily job listings, your job post may not reach a lot of relevant people on this platform.

Linkedin and Indeed

If you’re looking for a more streamlined hiring process, you can create a job listing on Linkedin and Indeed and post your job description. You can also ask your fellow connections on Linkedin for references. However, sifting through applications and shortlisting them takes time.

Facebook Groups, Instagram and Twitter

If you’re connected with entrepreneurs, business owners and professionals relevant to your industry on these social media platforms, you can consider posting your job description here. Do note that you need to have a big network in order to find the right candidate. 

Referrals

Referral is one of the best ways to find remote talent for your business. You can ask your existing employees if they’ve any references. On the basis of this, you may also give them a commission on every talent they recommend to you. Do remember that this process doesn’t always guarantee a qualified candidate.

InCommon

Build a fully remote creative and marketing team at a 40% lesser cost with InCommon, a headhunter agency in India that helps you source, vet and hire talents according to your needs.

With InCommon, you get the following benefits:

1. InCommon sources from its existing pool of pre-vetted creative and marketing talents so you don’t have to.

2. Accelerate your hiring cycle by shortlisting 3 talents in 3 days as per your needs.

3. Ensure smooth delivery of your work with talents that are well-versed in English.

Test and screen your candidates

Asking your candidates to share their previous work samples is not enough.

To understand if they’re the right fit for your job, you need to test them in similar conditions.

For example, if you’re hiring a content writer you may want to ask them to write a piece of content in about 300-500 words in your industry within a given deadline. This way, you can analyse the candidates and see if they’re able to come up with the content your business needs.

To automate the screening process and save time and energy, you can make use of online assessment tools like TestGorilla that’ll help you access candidates in your role. You’ll find plenty of online tools like these that can test the real skills of the candidates and qualify them for the next round.

Conduct virtual interviews

From the candidates that qualify from the previous round, you can schedule a virtual meeting with them via Zoom or Google Meet.

Apart from asking candidates about their hard and soft skills and work experience, it’s also important to understand if they’re capable of working in a remote setting. Some of the questions you can ask are:

1. How do you stay motivated and productive when working from home?

2. How do you communicate and collaborate effectively with team members who are also working remotely?

3. Can you give an example of how you have successfully completed a project while working remotely?

4. Can you describe your home office setup and how it helps you stay focused?

5. How do you manage your time and prioritize tasks when working remotely?

Make an Offer and Onboard

Once you have found the right candidate, it’s time to make a job offer. Make sure to include all the details of the job offer, such as the salary, benefits, and work schedule. You should also include any relevant legal documents such as an employment contract.

After your new hire has accepted the job offer, onboard them as well.

Ensure that you provide them with all the necessary information and tools to start their job, such as access to the company email address, relevant tools like Slack and Zoom and allowances for setting up their remote workstations (if any).

You could also introduce your new hire to all your employees in a virtual setting so that they become comfortable with your team.

Conclusion

Hiring remote employees can be a great way to expand your team and access a wider pool of talent. 

However, hiring remote employees requires a different approach than hiring in-office employees. 

By following the steps outlined in this guide and the tips provided, you can hire the best remote employees for your team and ensure they remain engaged and productive.

Alternatively, you can hire us if you want to save time and money and focus on your business growth instead. As a headhunter agency, we help you build a fully remote creative and marketing team at a 40% lesser cost.