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Kosta_Konfucius

Sales Rep

Politicker
Acclaimed Answer
Catalyst
+9

Issues With Starting A Role Remotely

Saw this morning SalesForce's CEO specifically mentioned an issue with new hire productivity. A specific quote when trying to find out why the new hires are less productive is “Are we not building tribal knowledge with new employees without an office culture?”


This quote seems to be starting a discussion on whether remote work is to blame or is it the lack of new hire productivity due to poor management.


I am a huge fan of working remote, but after starting two roles remotely. I do believe the time it takes to fully ramp-up is a lot longer. Since you are missing out on ad-hoc coaching from peers and tribal knowledge. There are some tools I thought I knew how to use, but would be missing a couple steps to access a lot more information quicker.


I can remember within my first 6 months in both roles being asked if I have any questions or if I feel like I am fully ramped. I would always answer similar to "I feel like I am at a good spot, but I don't know what I don't know". Basically trying to say, here is what I do, what am I missing in my daily process. I would say this quote to top performers/peers/managers, and I would usually get a stamp of approval from them saying I am ramped up...... However, there was always a key tool not being used or not knowing how to properly use it.


I see this both being an issue caused from remote working and not the best coaching.


Curious with everyone else starting a role remotely, does ramping up take longer? If so, do you think its more on management or the fact you are working remotely?


Also, will this cause another push for going into the office for new hires?

🥎 Training
👥 Hiring
🏡 WFH
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17 comments

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TennisandSales
Politicker
7
Head Of Sales
I love this question and i really like your point of view.

yes. i think this will push ppl to want to hire in office more. but thats NOT the real answer.

the real reason onboarding can take longer or not be as effective is because management is not thinking it through enough.

They have not committed to understanding what everyone needs to get fully ramped in their role.

i experienced that first hand when i started off and i had 2 demos to listen to. thats it.

knowledge transfer was SUPER slow. now it would still have been slow in person, but its for sure amplified when your working from home.
Kosta_Konfucius
Politicker
3
Sales Rep
Absolutely, lots of companies have new hires do a co-hort training where its really just a kool-aide drinking contest, where very little day in the life examples are given.

That's where I see the first step to make onboarding better, but can see leadership reading the quote from salesforce quote and just moving employees in office
CuriousFox
WR Officer
5
🦊
I've been remote the majority of my sales career. It's poor onboarding management.
GDO
Politicker
1
BDM
Me too. The one time I onboarded in the office they just wasted a lot more time
antiASKHOLE
Tycoon
4
Bravado's Resident Asshole
I think it could be situational, but overall I would say that it would take longer.
coletrain
Politicker
3
Account Executive
Poor management IMO.

It seems to be a common "blame those lower on the totem pole" tack instead of taking true responsibility in refining onboarding processes, whether in office or remote.

Also is an excuse to get more in-person employees because businesses have leases and (in the case of Salesforce) newly built skyscrapers with naming rights to fill.
Kosta_Konfucius
Politicker
3
Sales Rep
I am afraid this will be just another reason to have employees go back in
coletrain
Politicker
2
Account Executive
Such a common way to do it then providing no value when the employees actually go in
ChumpChange
Politicker
3
Channel Manager
Remote employee here. It's situational and you're takeaways are valid. Onboarding at a remote company is arguably the biggest drawback I've seen versus an office environment. It just feels disconnected unless you're on a video conference with other team members for the entire time. I would say there's some validity to that sentiment. However, I would say within 6-8 months you should have a firm understanding of your core duties and the internal dynamics of your company. This is where the advantages of being a remote employee swing back. There's no perfect setup.. each one has its own set of drawbacks.
Kosta_Konfucius
Politicker
2
Sales Rep
I think for training, if you are going to be onboarding remote employees, it definitely needs a re-vamp.

For the class training in a co-hort style, it can't be majority drinking kool-aide, and talking about why the company is amazing and our product is so much better than everyone elses. It has to be a lot more day-in-the-life

Also Direct Managers need to be a lot more hands on not as reliant on the peers training the new hire. This might cause them to be micro-managers, but if it can be short-term just for the first couple of months, I think it might make sense.
CadenceCombat
Tycoon
3
Account Executive
I noticed that training / ramp is not as effective for me personally.
Sunbunny31
Politicker
2
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
I think it can work IF the company is prepared AND the employee is familiar with remote work and what's entailed.

Example: I came into a new company two years ago and ramped up fully remote. It worked because I had a dedicated Sales Ops person who had a structured two week plan that included demos, SC time, meetings, etc., and had me learning the company's tools in addition to process and learning the solution. Because I've worked remote for years, I didn't also have to learn how to work remotely; I had familiar spaces and a well-trained family.

So it can work, but it does take some level of experience. I had to know what to ask, which would be hard for someone new to the industry or to the type of selling that I do. Basically, I didn't have to learn too many different things and could rely on a skill set I already had.

I saw Benioff's comments, and I think he's struggling with ways to make sure that all hires, remote or not, are part of the company and are pulling their weight. It sounds to me as though he's trying to find ways to make sure everyone is getting ramped up properly.

Honestly, if people can't find ways to be productive working remotely, then they're not good candidates for remote work, at least not at first. I know a lot of my peers, who are good workers, do significantly better in an office. I also cannot imagine the challenge of onboarding someone fresh out of college, new to work/the industry/the tools/the processes and having it be 100% remote.
Pachacuti
Politicker
2
They call me Daddy, Sales Daddy
I have worked remote for the majority of my career. There are times I wish I could go into an office sporadically but overall I am happy working remote. Sure there is a work aspect of company culture I miss out on, but it’s been my experience that most company cultures are not too envious.

There are issues of productivity which are legitimate, in my opinion. It’s hard to just grab someone for a meeting, when you and that other person are both remote.
punishedlad
Tycoon
1
Business Development Team Lead
I've worked a few remote roles, and 100% agree that it lengthens ramp up time. Companies hiring remote reps should, in my opinion, give those folks a longer runway.

One of the companies I worked for used Workramp for training, which I thought was definitely helpful for learning industry knowledge and starting to learn some of their processes.
1nbatopshotfan
Politicker
1
Sales
Onboarded a new remote employee today. Their computer wouldn’t connect to our network and they weren’t able to do a single thing. Overnighting a new computer.

Remote on-boarding has a few challenges!
Lambda
Tycoon
1
Sales Consultant
The way of selling remotley has been something I have tried for about 2 years now, the numbers just arent the same, people want that personal interaction
it's a different world, possible but different
EatingPandas
Opinionated
1
AE
Management problem. It will 100% be “solved” by forcing everyone back rather than taking the time to understand how to better onboard people.
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