Freelance onboarding: how to

Using a freelancer makes it possible to support teams by meeting needs that are often immediate and punctual. These professionals are therefore visiting companies for periods ranging from several weeks to several months. It is important not to leave them behind, at the risk of limiting the success of the collaboration. Why is it essential to take care of onboarding? What are the essentials to successfully integrate freelancers as soon as they arrive? Discover our possible answers in this article.

Summary

1. Why take care of the onboarding of freelancers?

2. The essentials for a successful onboarding

Why take care of the onboarding of freelancers?

Ensuring the success of a collaboration

Like the integration of an employee, the good reception of a self-employed person promotes a climate of trust from the very first moments of collaboration. Indeed, a positive environment reinforces motivation and promotes the level of productivity of a talent. In the same way, it makes it possible to facilitate exchanges and to promote the transfer of knowledge for a better understanding of the business context.

On the other hand, a successful integration builds the credibility of the company since it values the value provided by the self-employed. Even if these talents will not stay with the company permanently, it reinforces their sense of belonging and involves them concretely in the impact of the company.

Ensure the reputation of your business

What about the “after mission”? Did you know that successful onboarding can simplify your next search for freelancers? Indeed, freelancers are professionals who rely a lot on the network. Often linked to self-employed groups and therefore in regular contact with other professionals in their sector, they often share their feedback. You should therefore consider freelancers as ambassadors for your company. There are several Key moments important to consider in order to improve the employee experience.

From a technical point of view, these ambassadors will benefit from a clear vision of your company: internal organization, systems put in place, working methods, corporate culture, points of vigilance... Moreover, some freelancers are so specialized that there are only a handful of them in France, who are regularly called upon for their rare expertise. So we recommend that you do not ignore these points.

The essentials for a successful onboarding

1. Finalize logistics

To be autonomous and quickly operational, a freelancer will need ready-to-use hardware, work tools and software. Here is a non-exhaustive list:

• Access badge
• Hardware: computer, telephone etc.
• Tools: intranet, file sharing, collaborative work, project management, agenda, videoconference, external mailbox...
• Softwares

But you should also not forget to prepare the contract to allow it to be signed on the day of arrival. It is still too often the case that a self-employed person starts his mission, even before the company has signed the contract. However, this document is essential to protect the self-employed person and the company, in the event of an accident at work for example. So be sure to leave no stone unturned to facilitate the freelancer's autonomy and allow him to be quickly operational.

2. Framing the project and clarifying the expectations of the mission

Even before the start of the mission, it is essential to recall the role of the external collaborator and to provide all the information on the company to enable him to understand its context and the framework of the project. You thus offer him a more in-depth overview of the market, industry news, customers, competitors, previous projects related to the mission etc. Moreover, a welcome guide is always appreciated to better understand the history of the company or to highlight the culture of the company.

More specifically concerning the mission, use a brief to take stock of the objectives, the strong markers of success of the mission (similar to OKRs), the scope of intervention, the expected deliverable, the delivery date, etc. In the same way, it may be good to recall the terms of the mission (working method, pace, project team, tools made available, costs possibly reimbursed). Of course, don't forget to schedule meetings with the various project stakeholders. This will facilitate the start of the mission and will make it possible to support this external collaborator until he is fully autonomous.

3. Appoint a referent

Who will provide all of this information? The referent, of course. As human resources are not always integrated into the integration process for freelancers, it is often the members of business teams who act as references in the company. However, this does not always mean that they have all the necessary resources to facilitate the integration of outsiders, whether from a logistical point of view or for the sake of time.

However, the role of the referent is essential in the integration process. This facilitator promotes the link between the project teams and the freelancer. It thus makes it possible to create a sense of belonging in the external collaborator and to create the trust of those who will work closely with him on the project. This is why operational staff are often in charge of this role, but it involves freeing up time on the agenda to facilitate collaboration, especially in the first weeks.

”We have a few references on the team, people we can go see quickly and who we identified right away. We always try to be available at the beginning so that external collaborators feel comfortable and that they are not lost in a complex ecosystem, with organizations that can be difficult to understand.” Jean Giart, IT Director at Clarins

Moreover, the referent could be responsible for collecting feedback from these talents via an astonishment report. This feedback will make it possible to optimize the integration process and optimize it for future arrivals.

4. Integrating freelancers into corporate life

Finally, the last point that companies do not always think about is to actively integrate freelancers into the life of the company. In addition to visiting the locals, for example, take advantage of the first few days to introduce these newcomers to the teams. We mainly think of the project team, but to promote its legitimacy in the company, do not hesitate to extend these meetings to teams close to the scope of the mission and more generally to other business departments. It has already happened that consultants with whom we collaborate tell us that they had spoken with company employees when they were not aware of their presence within the department.

A good, more informal way to promote integration within the company is to organize team lunches. This makes it possible to go beyond the scope of the project, while promoting good understanding between the various collaborators. External collaborators are not always invited to these moments of conviviality, although these events naturally create a link between employees. Some companies have thus wanted to establish these practices by involving them, for example, during company birthdays, afterworks, team buildings or even certain seminars.

Self-employed people need careful onboarding just as much as employees to promote their integration into the company but above all to achieve the objectives that are given to them. If you lack ideas to improve the integration of freelancers, take advantage of their reports of surprise. So, what onboarding process are you going to put in place to build fulfilling collaborations?