Fifty-six percent of the American workforce is currently working from home. Chances are you are too.
Despite exciting advancements in vaccines, many businesses aren’t ready to head back to the office. Whether it’s part-time remote work or a fully at-home team, working from home isn’t going anywhere. But even after the world returns to normal, remote work will continue leading innovation in the workforce. Employees will begin to expect it, and employers will see the benefits. But is your business ready?
Let’s take a look at how you can prepare for working from home after the pandemic.
Get the IT for Working from Home
Every construction project begins with the right tools. And entering a world of remote work is no different. You have to have access the best IT for working from home to be successful.
So, what are those tools? Here are just a few:
- Zoom
- Microsoft Teams
- Slack
- VirtualOffice
- Google Drive
- Dropbox
- OneDrive
- Evernote
- Asana
- Trello
- Chanty
- HubSpot
And so many more! While you have likely used some of these already, adding a few more can make it easier for your team to continue working from home even after the pandemic.
Make Working from Better
Only 43 percent of current remote employees have said they would like to come back to the office. That means over half of your employees would like to stay home, but there’s a large number of people who would like to go back.
If you’re considering keeping your team remote, you’ll need to determine how to make working from home a benefit and not a hassle. Find out what employees like and dislike to decide what you can do to make their situation better.
Some team members may need a better monitor or faster Wi-Fi. And others may just want more company-wide meetings to feel connected to the team. Whatever it is, if you can make working from home easier, you’ll have a smoother transition to full-time or part-time remote work.
Improve Your Security
Security, security, security.
With countless data breaches and increasing numbers of phishing schemes globally, digital security has never been more critical. And when you switch to working from home, your team needs to be extra safe online. If you work with sensitive information, this becomes even more important.
On a basic level, everyone should have a complex password protecting their email and computer, but it’s more than that.
Ensuring the safety of your team’s Wi-Fi is a big first step. Ideally, your employees should avoid public Wi-Fi or at least use a VPN. It may even be better to require your team to use a hotspot on their cell phone when not at home.
For managers, outsourcing to a reliable IT firm can ensure that your most important information is protected. IT professionals can remotely create safeguards for everyone on your team without you needing to do anything.
Get the Support You Need
Last March, when people switched to working from home, the most challenging part was getting started. Many employees had never used tools like Zoom and Microsoft Teams.
Now, your team has gotten their feet wet, but transitioning to a long-term remote structure will take some extra effort. And unfortunately, 47 percent of remote employees still say they’ve had at least some difficulty accessing the technology they need to work from home. Remote work shouldn’t be more complicated than working in the office.
Helping your employees make the switch might take some IT training or cybersecurity education. But in some cases, it can also be as simple as showing your employees how remove a kitten filter on Zoom.
Getting ready for this kind of work is time-consuming, though. Consider shortcutting your efforts by working with an IT team that will help you and your employees transition with ease.
Get Ready for Working from Home
Working from home after the pandemic may sound daunting. But with the right amount of determination and IT support, you can make it work.
TenHats can help you get you tech ready. By letting us take care of the difficult IT work and support, you can get back to doing what you do best.
Contact us today to learn more!
