Starting a new legal job remotely? Here’s how to make the best of it
The Covid-19 pandemic has changed everything about our lives, and most notably, the way we do our jobs. Furloughs, redundancies and job insecurity during the Covid-19 pandemic has left many of us unsure about the direction our career is taking. If you’ve managed to secure a new job during the pandemic, well done – the hard part is over! However, starting a new job remotely can be daunting – the lack of face-to-face connection with colleagues can make fitting in with new teams difficult. Here are our top tips to make it work virtually.
Schedule lots of informal calls
Unfortunately, starting a new role remotely means you need to manufacture a lot of the natural conversations that happen with colleagues and teams in an office. It might seem intimidating, but you should reach out to your new colleagues and set up quick 10- to 15-minute one-on-one discussions. You can make the most of video-conferencing services such as Teams or Skype to have that face-to-face connection.
Learn how to communicate with your team
Do your colleagues prefer emails to calls? Does your team have a WhatsApp group for sending GIFs and birthday videos? Does your boss prefer you to give them a heads up before calling? Learning how your team communicates will allow you to become integrated into the team and get things done much faster. When communicating via email, it’s important to reintroduce yourself and remind people who you are, because you won’t get the opportunity to chat over a coffee in the shared kitchen.
Master the technology
It’s likely that you’ll get your laptop and new job tech sent to you in the post, and there won’t be any IT professionals on hand to help you get up to speed. Pay extra attention during onboarding training and take notes so you don’t end up caught out with tech issues. Walk yourself through each new tool — especially the ones that revolve around workflow and communication — and play around with them. You can even search for additional tutorials online.
Keep a note of what you’ve been working on
In the early days of a new job, you’re going to have lots of questions so it’s important to keep a note of these so you can review with your manager and colleagues. Due to the nature of working from home, there is also less likely to be a lot of supervision and check-ins. Taking a note of your accomplishments means you can prove your value to the new team and organisation.
If you need any more career advice, check out our resources:
- view the latest vacancies at Gazette Jobs, where you can sign up for job alerts and upload your CV
- read our comprehensive career development advice
- visit our careers YouTube channel to find videos which cover common career queries
- visit our professional development centre for e-learning resources
- visit our Return, Restart and Recovery Hub for information on how we're supporting solicitors and firms to return to their offices safely
