Virtual Onboarding
Digital onboarding with interactive training, team introductions, and spatial walkthroughs that make remote hires feel at home
A new engineer starts at your remote company on Monday. The current virtual onboarding: a Google Doc with 47 links, a Zoom call with HR at 10 AM, another Zoom call with their manager at 2 PM, and a Slack message saying "welcome!" from someone they'll never interact with again. By Friday, they've completed compliance training but haven't had a real conversation with anyone on their team.
Now imagine this: on day one, the new hire opens a Flat.social link and walks into the team's virtual office. Their onboarding buddy is waiting and walks them through the space. They visit the Engineering zone where their teammates wave hello through spatial audio. A billboard shows the first-week checklist. The onboarding room has whiteboards with architecture diagrams and sticky notes with team norms. By lunch, they've met 10 people face-to-face and feel like part of the team.
Flat.social turns remote onboarding from a document dump into a social experience. Digital onboarding doesn't have to mean isolated onboarding. New hires don't just learn the company; they join it.
Guided Office Walkthrough
Onboarding buddies walk new hires through the virtual office room by room, introducing teammates along the way.
What is virtual onboarding?
Virtual onboarding is the process of integrating new remote employees into an organization through online onboarding tools and interactions. Effective digital onboarding combines structured training with social connection, ensuring new hires understand their role, meet their colleagues, and feel part of the team from day one.
Why Use Flat.social for Virtual Onboarding
Meet Teammates Face-to-Face
Walk up to colleagues and start talking through proximity audio. New hires meet the team naturally, not through awkward video call introductions.
How to Run Virtual Onboarding on Flat.social
- 1Build the onboarding space
Create a flat with an Onboarding Hub (Open Spatial room with training zones and info stations), a Welcome Room (Conference room for presentations), and access to the team's virtual office rooms.
- 2Set up training stations
Place billboards with the onboarding checklist, company overview, team structure, and important links. Create training zones with whiteboards for technical sessions. Add NPC characters with FAQs.
- 3Assign onboarding buddies
Pair each new hire with an experienced team member who walks them through the space on day one. The buddy introduces them to team zones, explains the tools, and answers questions.
- 4Run week one
Day 1: Welcome presentation + buddy-led tour + speed networking. Day 2-3: Training sessions in dedicated zones. Day 4-5: Working alongside the team in the virtual office. Check-ins with the buddy throughout.
- 5Transition to regular work
By week two, the new hire works from the team's virtual office room. The onboarding hub stays available as a reference. The buddy relationship continues for the first month.
Onboard with Connection
Guided walkthroughs, team intros, and training rooms. Build your onboarding space in minutes. Free to start.
Onboarding Stages on Flat.social
How each stage of onboarding works in spatial rooms.
New hires meet the team through guided walkthroughs
Day One Conversations
New hires chat with teammates in spatial rooms from their very first day. Real conversations replace awkward email introductions.
Tips for Onboarding Managers
Making your virtual onboarding effective:
1. Front-load the social. The first day should be about meeting people, not reading docs. Run speed networking, assign a buddy, and walk the new hire through the team. Compliance training can wait until day two.
2. Keep the onboarding hub permanent. Don't delete the space after week one. New hires should be able to revisit info stations, checklists, and resources throughout their first month.
3. Use billboards as checklists. "Day 1: Meet your buddy. Set up email. Complete security training. Attend team standup." Visible progress tracking keeps new hires on track without micromanaging.
4. Schedule buddy check-ins. The buddy should walk to the new hire's zone twice a day in the first week. "How's it going? Any questions?" These 2-minute check-ins prevent the new hire from feeling lost.
5. Include social activities. A game, a coffee chat, a team lunch in the lounge zone. New hires who build social connections in week one ramp up faster and stay longer.
Interactive Training Zones
Whiteboards, sticky notes, and billboards create hands-on training stations where new hires learn by doing.
Tips for New Hires
Getting the most from your virtual onboarding:
Ask your buddy everything. That's what they're there for. Walk to their zone and ask. No question is too small during onboarding.
Walk the virtual office. Visit every room. Introduce yourself to people you haven't met. The more people you meet in week one, the easier everything gets.
Use the whiteboard during training. Sketch what you're learning. It helps you process information and gives your trainer feedback on your understanding.
Join the social activities. The Friday happy hour, the lunch chat, the game session. These aren't optional extras; they're how you build the relationships that make remote work enjoyable.
Virtual Onboarding FAQ
Explore More Use Cases
Onboarding That Builds Teams
Buddy walkthroughs, team introductions, and interactive training. Make every new hire feel at home from day one. Free to start.