It is important to give succinct answers tailored specifically to the requirements of the job advertised. A prospective employer will always want a candidate to give an account of themselves. What is advisable is to give a condensed, to the point resume of your key, most recent qualifications, strengths and relevant up to date skills attained, always keeping in mind the job advertised. Show how these skills would meet the exact itemised specifics of the job description.

Review your past experiences at work

Find evidence of desirable skills such as problem solving, self-composure, ability to be an effective team member or ability to multi-task. Employers want a candidate to draw on real life work examples to demonstrate such abilities or attributes. Share examples of setbacks at work which you overcame. Highlight achievements in your past jobs. Be specific about how you added value to the business or maintained composure faced with challenging circumstances or customers.

Show a desire for self-development

To assess a candidate’s self-awareness, employers often ask about weaknesses. This is the perfect opportunity to show a desire for self-development and personal growth. Perhaps there are personal obstacles you have overcome in the past and appropriate challenges you are working towards overcoming now. For example, some candidates may be too hard on themselves and are learning that even mistakes can be a great learning curve.

Demonstrate you are motivated through future goals

This is a chance for you to demonstrate that you are focused and motivated with a sense of purpose. It is best to outline realistic short-term goals as well as longer term vision. Acknowledging how the job applied for could help achieve those goals will establish that the job is more than just a short stop gap until the applicant finds something else.

The hobbies question!

What an applicant does in his/her spare time can speak volumes about his/her values and can be used to further demonstrate traits that are transferable to the workplace. Sporting examples highlight commitment, stamina and being a team player. Creative hobbies can show an innovative, thinking outside the box side to an applicant. Learning a language may show agility.

It is key to show knowledge of the business

Research the business thoroughly- awards achieved, projects completed or underway, mission statements, history, values, testimonials, culture. An applicant who does this shows that he/she is very interested and well versed about the job. It demonstrates that they have intelligently evaluated the business before applying and so have applied from an informed position as a good fit.

Further questions

Ask meaningful questions that are not ascertainable from a quick google search. It could be a futuristic question about the challenges faced by the business or training programmes. Being informed about the industry in which the business operates can lead to more intelligent questions.

With no physical office, it can be more challenging for businesses to create a wholesome start for new recruits from a distance. However, with first impressions being key, it’s vital for businesses to endeavour to simulate virtually the employee’s traditional first day experience and early weeks insofar as possible. It’s also important to make them feel at ease with the concept of working remotely with which they may not be familiar. Setting an empathetic, supportive and positive tone will foster a better sense of belonging, ultimately foster loyalty to the company and positively affect a better adjustment outcome.

Planning is key

It is crucial that the virtual onboarding is carefully planned to every detail to ensure that the onboarding process is as seamless as possible. Planning highlights the value the business places on its employees which will ultimately result in better employee retention. It’s important to provide the new start with the right tools and resources for remote working, including tested IT hardware and a system for fresh recruits to use from their homes. A PDF welcome pack could be digitally sent out in advance of any starting date itemising the protocols and policies unique to your business, effectively communicating the norms, expectations and structure of the organisation. Virtual induction days should be carefully itemised so that the new start knows exactly what to prepare and what to expect in advance.

The challenge of getting to know what it’s like to work in the business

With physical human interactions not happening, it can be difficult for a new start to capture the ambiance and ethos of the business. The culture of the business is woven through everything that happens throughout the business and is part of the fabric of its parts; experienced in the office environment as workers interact with each other and with clients. It is more important therefore to promote the culture, goals and mission of the organisation and to better enable new recruits to feel engaged and inspired and to see how they can fit in with and contribute effectively to this culture and mission.

Meeting with work colleagues

Remote onboarding reduces the opportunities for new starts to spontaneously and informally get to know their fellow workers and to build trusting relationships. The invisibility of team members can be detrimental during this early transition since it is a sense of belonging that make employees want to stay. It’s important to visually connect new employees with existing employees to foster a deeper connectedness and limit their potential to feel isolated. Collaborative technology and digital tools should be used to maximise inter-personal engagement. Introductions should be made gradually, first to the team and then to the whole organisation over time. Team and cross functional tasks could foster further integration and deeper understanding of the business. Regular calls should be made to touch base. A virtual work buddy of similar rank could be assigned to answer and assist with all the questions, knowledge gaps and settling in issues in the early weeks. Be sure to also use collaborative technology and tools to maximise important social engagements.

Monitoring and evaluating the process to iron out any irregularities

It is more important than ever to monitor the virtual on boarding experience. New employees can provide meaningful feedback to further enhance the onboarding experience for other future starts.

Without a vaccine office spaces will need to make changes to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Organisations will have to manage this in a different way, according to the unique and somewhat complex challenges faced by each business. For all employers it is vital that sensible strategies and protocols, in line with Government guidelines, are put in place to ensure the safety of staff, clients/customers and the Public. So, what changes should we expect to see?

Landlords And Businesses Will Need To Reassess Office Layouts And Design

The function of the office is being re-evaluated, it may be used more as a place to congregate for important meetings and socialising rather than a permanent place to work. The physical office is still viewed as an important space to bridge the gap in virtual communication. To enable flexible working, protocols should be kept under constant review as government direction unfolds. Office layouts should be re-designed to facilitate these protocols. It’s vital that each organisation carry out a thorough, in-depth risk assessment and review all work practices that pose a potential risk to spreading the COVID-19 virus. The logistics of adhering to the Government guidelines will need to be carefully planned. Social distancing will mean the employee interaction will need to be considered and safe facilities to offer that necessary social connection will need to be provided. Meeting rooms will need to be rethought with the focus on modern video conferencing software to enable virtual meetings and foster connections within the business and with clients. You may see other design changes to the office space such as desks designed with barriers to encourage social distancing. Kitchens and breakout spaces will need to be rethought with heavier restrictions on usage and hygiene. Temperature readings and daily symptom checks will be incorporated into the office routine as the new norm.

Flexible Working Will Be The New Norm

The pandemic has acted as a catalyst for remote working for millions world-wide, challenging traditional workplace structures. More advanced future technology will continue to bring us even more virtually together, making the remote, flexible, working revolution more of a sustainable option for businesses. A decision may be made, at least for now, for some to remain at home to work. As business leaders you may need to review the working practices of a now more long-term distributed workforce. Training and direction may need to be planned to care for the ongoing welfare of those not in the office. They will be entitled to the same legal and emotional protection as those who are in, in terms of ensuring safe work- life boundaries and addressing the practical, and psychological aspects of working from home. This continued mode of work should not leave them feeling left behind or unproductive.

How Operations Will Be Carried Out Will Change

It’s possible to turn the challenges posed by the COVID -19 into meaningful change! This may be a chance to revaluate the way your business is operated. There may be more cost-effective, efficient ways to run the business. It is important to analyse important, emerging data on evolving consumer trends and habits which could help you re-align your business and find new growth patterns; perhaps capturing new marketplace opportunities and digital customer segments in these new uncertain, global market conditions. This may provide a roadmap that prepares the business more fully for any future, inevitable challenges.

In the past decade there has been a definite shift in societal values towards more socially responsible business practices. There is an increasing expectation from customers, employees and the public, that companies must champion diversity within the workplace and genuinely reflect this in all aspects of their trading life. Australia is a famously diverse country but in more recent years Australian workers are voicing an increased desire to see diversity reflected in work practices. Examining some of the positives of achieving diversity in the workplace, strongly suggests that it may not just be an ethical issue but also makes good business sense, creating limitless benefits.

Diversity fosters more creative solutions

Diversity includes individuals from all different backgrounds; embracing differences which are both visible and invisible, inherent or acquired. It encompasses not just gender, ethnicity or religion but also includes age, sexual orientation, educational achievement levels, values, experiences, technical skills, linguistic background, learning styles and disability. Evidence suggests that having an inclusive, diverse workforce enhances employees’ performance. It’s about leveraging those differences to achieve optimum results. Those businesses which celebrate diversity testify that their employees have become more collaborative, innovative and dynamic and that they have been able to optimise this to better understand their client base. Diverse teams can bring to the table a broad spectrum of knowledge, skills, experience and perspectives which can prove an excellent melting pot from which new ideas can emerge, giving businesses that competitive edge in challenging economic times.

Diversity attracts a better pool of talent

Many millennials value diversity over more traditional perks such as financial remuneration. Employees feel more valued in a business which meaningfully fosters and outworks diversity at all levels of the organisation and more objectively evaluates a candidate’s ability to succeed. This allows businesses to attract the most talented and diverse pool of candidates. Evidence further points to the fact that employee retention is often higher in such businesses which reflect the increased diversity of our more global societies.

Diversity puts us in a position to better reach a more diverse customer base

A diverse workforce allows businesses to be more in tune with the peculiar needs of an international client base or a more diverse customer base at home. A diverse team can better reflect the societies or sections of society with which the business trades. The economic impact of Covid 19 has caused some businesses to rethink and diversify the services and or products they market. Reaching a different target group or market may pose new challenges. Such obstacles may be better overcome by a more diverse team, that collectively can provide more informed insights into the dynamics of specific target groups.