Effective Employee Onboarding Process for New Hires in the Post-Pandemic World

The dawn of remote work was just one of the many key workforce changes prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Now that hybrid work arrangements seem destined to become the norm, it is time for companies to adapt their new hire onboarding training to suit this new reality. The five tips below will help you to better welcome and integrate new hires working primarily in virtual spaces.

1. Foster Relationships Within Your Team

Relationship building is a key part of forming a cohesive team, but it can be difficult for people to bond organically when they are not in the same physical space. 

Start by scheduling a quick team meeting on your new hire’s first day and ask everyone present to introduce themselves. Then, follow it up with a series of one-on-one meetings between each of those people and the new hire. Breaking the ice in this way helps your new hire become better integrated into the group. 

2. Use a Mentor System

One of the most challenging things for new hires is understanding team processes and hierarchies. Some new hires hold back on asking questions they desperately want answers to because they do not want to bother a superior with trivial matters.

Knowing who to approach with a question like this can help new recruits feel significantly more comfortable in their new working environment. Help your new hire out by assigning them a patient and more experienced team member to answer the questions that will inevitably crop up.

3. Provide Regular Feedback

New employees also sometimes struggle with understanding what is expected of them in their new role, creating significant performance-based anxiety.

To combat this problem, schedule regular opportunities to give your new hire feedback on their performance. At first, you might do this every week or so. After the employee becomes more confident in their role, you can begin to scale this schedule back.

4. Offer Information on Your Company Culture

In a typical office environment, everything from daily schedules to team dynamics is often learned through osmosis. When a new hire is not exposed to this environment, these contextual elements do not reach them either.

To help remote hires adjust, prepare a written document that explicitly outlines these aspects of the job. Include information such as dress codes for video conferencing, the best times to contact others for meetings or collaboration, and how people on your team generally prefer to communicate. 

5. Highlight the Importance of the New Hire’s Role

Ultimately, new recruits are brought on board to fulfill a function within your team. You know how important that function is, but does your new hire?

This is a common problem for in-person hires as well, but it is even more difficult for those who work remotely. Limited contact with the rest of the team can make it seem like their work has no relation to the bigger picture, making it difficult for them to remain engaged.

Make sure your remote hire knows that what they are doing matters and how it contributes to your organization’s larger goals. Underline the fact that you and their colleagues value their input and expertise. These efforts will instill a sense of pride and confidence in your new employee that will drive them to perform even more effectively at work.

Break Down Barriers for Better Teams

Remote work is not going away anytime soon, and neither are your remote team members. It is worth your time and money to invest in creating new strategies to help these workers find their place in your organization. 

Healthcare consulting firms like The Brooks Group offer educational services such as account management training, healthcare management consulting, biotech market research, and even new hire onboarding training. Contact us today to learn how we can help you refine your onboarding processes to better match the demands of today's workforce.

This blog was originally posted on https://thebrooksgrouponline.com/2021/10/effective-employee-onboarding-process-for-new-hires-in-the-post-pandemic-world/

4 Keys to Driving Sales with Existing Accounts

Effective account management requires a careful balance of maintenance and growth. You must not only do everything in your power to retain the accounts you already have but also seek out new revenue opportunities to help your company expand. 

Both of these tasks require a significant amount of energy and focus from an AM, and the two priorities often compete with each other to the detriment of both. But what if you could serve both functions at the same time? The following four key concepts outline how you can shift your focus away from lead acquisition to make better use of the revenue potential of your existing accounts.

1. Shift Away from the ‘Anti-Shrinkage’ Model

For many years, the main goal of account management has been to avoid losing the customers with whom the firm is already doing business.

While it is always better to keep a customer than lose one, simply maintaining your existing accounts will never produce the growth you need. To do that, you need to add new business to your portfolio.

The most obvious way to do this is to secure brand-new clients you have never served before. However, it might be a better idea to look for new opportunities to upsell to the customers you already have. 

2. Customer Service is for Retention, not Growth

Many account managers assume that providing good customer service will automatically lead to growth opportunities. This is not always an accurate assessment. 

While customer service is extremely important in account management, it does not help AMs secure new business. Instead, its role is to keep existing customers happy with the services they are currently receiving.

A happy customer might be more inclined to purchase services from you instead of a competitor. The trouble is that if your company had something to offer that customer that they knew they wanted, they would already have purchased it. Unless something changes, that customer is unlikely to decide to become a greater source of revenue. Therefore, deliberate and effective upselling is important in order to generate more revenue from happy customers.

3. Leverage the Power of Customer Improvement

Instead of focusing on customer service, it is more useful to shift your attention to a different target: customer improvement. 

This model turns the idea of customer retention on its head by turning existing customers into new sources of revenue. Under a customer improvement strategy, your task is to suggest ways that the customer might grow or improve their business and let them know how your company can help them do it. As an example, for healthcare accounts, this might involve promoting a new and promising drug or therapy. 

If it is done tactfully and founded on solid evidence, customer improvement can benefit both you and your customers. You will secure the additional business you need, and they will gain access to a new tool that they can use to propel their organization's growth as well.

4. Improve Your Account Management Skills and Supports

To successfully implement customer improvement strategies, you will need in-depth knowledge of both your customers’ needs and the latest developments in the field. Pharmaceutical market research companies or other healthcare research groups can help you acquire the information you need to identify the products and services that are most likely to interest your accounts.

Further, it never hurts to have additional sales or customer service training during a significant undertaking like this. An extra round of strategic account management training can sharpen your skills and give you the confidence you need to make the most of this new approach. 

Bringing Effective Customer Improvement Strategies to Life

Customer improvement and similar upselling strategies are the cornerstones of predictable sales growth. Capitalize on your existing sales relationships first and you will quickly see how powerful established trust can be.

Healthcare consulting firms like The Brooks Group work with organizations to provide employee onboarding training, refresher training, and more. Contact us today to hear more about our account management training options and how we can help you better serve your existing clientele in the healthcare industry.

This blog was originally posted on https://thebrooksgrouponline.com/2021/10/4-keys-to-driving-sales-with-existing-accounts/