Enforced remote working has permanently changed business thinking
For many, coronavirus has been disruption but for others it has been about survival. Workplaces not safe, demand non-existent. It’s clear we can’t just pick up where we left off and permanent remote working look ever more likely for many businesses.
Remote working is here to stay:
Although COVID-19 is still very much ongoing, businesses have begun restructuring their offices with more remote working as the standard. Twitter, Facebook and Google all confirmed they would continue to allow employees to work from home throughout the rest of 2020.
It is clear working from home will become the new normal with a more flexible and digitally-oriented workplace, with about 25% of small firms having the tools and tech they need to support effective remote working. While many employees are reporting productivity dips, an overwhelming majority want remote working, or at least flexible working in some form, to remain long term.
Firms must respond. If they can’t provide the kind of modern, forward-looking employee experience workers expect, they will lose talent to those firms that can. This will be compounded by the erosion of geographical constraints on the workforce.
A company that unlocks the potential of remote working can recruit talent from anywhere in the world.
Maintaining engagement in a disconnected world:
It is critical for a Team to “feel” connected, as well as work remotely, and it is often overlooked to have some down-time together as a team. A virtual coffee break where things other than work are discussed, really helps a team feel connected.
Staying grounded:
With the social and business landscape becoming remote, an unfortunate consequence has been a collapse of business networking. Given it’s impossible to predict when, or if, business travel will return to pre-crisis levels, business owners have increasingly been buying into Zoom, Teams, Google Meet etc to stay connected. In the coming months, and possibly even years, one-to-ones will be replaced with video meetings, while conferences will be hosted online as virtual events, rather than in-person gatherings.
Pink Connect are geared to support all SMEs during this transition. We have the right tools and services to create remote home working to be the new normal: Office 365, connectivity, VoIP phones, Teams…. Give our IT Team a call, we are here to help on 0345 450 9393 or email us at tellmemore@pinkconnect.com.