5 Tech Tips to Consider When Working Remotely

It’s hard to believe, especially in the digital age, that a simple change in work environment can have a significant impact on the way we think, communicate and collaborate.

The majority of U.S. employees report having a better work-life balance (91 percent) and increased productivity (79 percent) when working remotely. Globally, 72 percent of full-time remote workers say they are now more productive versus when they worked in an office.

The transition towards remote work is unlikely to slow down any time soon. It is estimated that half of the U.S. workforce will be remote by 2027. Globally, 99 percent of global employees say they would like to work remotely, at least some of the time, for the rest of their career. This is a clear sign to business leaders, especially those of us in the technology sector, that we need to not only prepare people with the right technology, but also offer them guidance on how to deploy it in remote settings.

Here are five best practices that I believe make working remotely a productive and positive experience.

Commit Yourself—and Your Teams—to Video Conferencing

While in the office, many of us fall into the rhythm of taking calls from our desk or dialing-in to meetings from conference room phones. Working remotely provides an opportunity to explore new ways of connecting. Platforms like Zoom provide reliable and clear group video calls, allow users to record the sessions, screen-share and even exchange documents and links during the call. The benefits of video conferencing are clear, especially for a remote workforce. In fact, 94 percent of businesses say video conferencing leads to increased productivity, and 90 percent of employees think video makes it easier to get their point across.

Use Collaboration Platforms to Maintain Company Culture

With a distributed workforce, culture can be impacted. It’s a concern I hear often among business leaders - that the positive and motivating company culture they’ve fostered in-office – could potentially fall by the wayside when employees work remotely. Collaboration platforms such as Slack and Microsoft Teams can help. These tools become the centralized “water cooler” around which employees can interact and foster the same sense of community as they would in person. Business leaders should encourage employees to move away from the sole use of email communications and toward these more collaborative, flexible platforms.

Invest in a Reliable Set-Up

Many remote workers will tell you that having a reliable Wi-Fi connection is vital to their success — nobody likes a faulty video conference. But along with an internet connection that allows for clear, uninterrupted calls, remote workers should consider other technology that enhances their productivity. For example, a pair of noise cancelling headphones could cut down on distractions, especially if others—kids, spouses, roommates or pets—share the household. Wireless keyboards and mice, too, can make for a more comfortable work environment and improve efficiency.

Be Clear About the Use of Business VPNs

This might seem like a small detail, but it’s an important one that can be easily overlooked. A Virtual Private Network (VPN) creates a secure link between a business’ network and employees’ laptops and mobile devices to protect against cyber-threats. Having a VPN is critical for employees who are going to be working from a number of remote locations. What’s most important, however, is not the existence of a VPN, but the use of it. Business leaders should consistently and clearly remind employees that connecting to a VPN is a must when working outside the office.

Make Device Sanitization a Best Practice

Remote workers often bring their devices into a variety of settings and work-spaces making device sanitization critical. Remote workers should consider it a best practice to regularly sanitize their devices per the guidelines from Centers for Disease Control (CDC). It recommends cleaning PCs and printers with an alcohol solution consisting of 70 percent alcohol and 30 percent water. First, they should wear latex or nitrile gloves, turn off the device and remove batteries from external devices such as wireless keyboards. Using a microfiber cloth dampened with the mixture, they should gently wipe the areas to be cleaned, ensuring none of the alcohol solution slips into the keyboard or display panel. Finally, surfaces should completely air dry before turning on the device.

Rather than thinking of working from home as a disruption, business leaders should see it as an opportunity to think through new ways of building successful, productive and happy teams. By empowering workers to use technology constructively, and by seeing the opportunities behind these arrangements, we can create a better business culture in and out of the office.