Working from home takes planning

Having employees work from home (also called remote work) is a relatively new concept for many organizations. Recent surveys have found that employees who work remotely experience a 25% reduction in their stress levels. It was also reported that 86% of employees say they’re more productive in their home offices. Remote employees tend to save your organization money by reducing property costs and the amount of office supplies needed. 

In order to successfully have an employee work remote there must be a  clear communication, an overall plan and the ability to trust the commitment of your workforce. 

When deciding if your organization should offer the flexibility of working remote here are a few things to think about.

You will need to provide the proper tools & technology

Allowing your employees to work remotely may mean that it is time to update and modernize your technology. This is important for both parties, as remote workers need to easily communicate with the parts of the team that work in-house. 

Updating your technology could mean updating your current software or making sure you have the proper security and backup measurements in place.

You will be leveraging technology to keep your team engaged

One thing that it is important for management to recognize is that with employees no longer working under the same roof, technological tools should be leveraged in a way that keeps your employees engaged and interacting with one other.  

Communication tools such as Slack or Microsoft Teams encourage collaboration across your organization no matter where your employees are working. It is important to take the time to train your employees on these applications so they can be fully leveraged, every day.

You will need cloud-based software solutions

Implementing cloud-based technologies is one of the simplest ways for remote employees who work from home to access and share documents. Some of the most popular cloud based softwares include Google Drive or Dropbox. 

The days of sending each other documents through email attachments are over. Now, these cloud-based softwares are a centralized storage space allowing for greater flexibility and collaboration. No one is left out of the loop, as staff with busy schedules or staff who are working away from the office can use these features to keep up to date with their clients and co-workers.

Have the proper backup & security tactics in place

Remote employees could be working from their home, the airport, a hotel or a coffeeshop. No matter where they are, it’s important to protect your organization’s files and data. Be sure to have an integrated backup strategy in place. 

Take the time to educate your employees about common cyberattacks and security guidelines. Be sure that they know all best practices of how to protect their work and keep their data protected.

Sound like a lot of work to set up? Let us help!

SupportMyMac is offering security+support Remote Bundles to help business owners set up their team to work from home securely. Click here to read more about them.