The still ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has changed the lives of many people and workplaces completely.
Government agencies such as schools and many others have had to change the way they work, for example, many students have had to start attending online classes instead. This is a very sudden and rather challenging change for those involved due to the fact that there were no preparations for online schooling. Not only schools, but workplaces are also affected by the pandemic, one of the major changes is that employees now have to Work From Home (WFH). Most people believe that private businesses should be able to do a better job than government agencies in handling this change because they have the advantage of being more flexible, but Blesssky Connexion (BX) believes that many private businesses still cannot say wholeheartedly that they can deal with this change well.
BX has options for you to utilize in evaluating what you can do more to make sure that the efficiency of your employees Working from Home will not be less than in the office. We believe that if you have fully prepared the necessary equipment for your employees, the efficiency of WFH may even exceed that of working in-office.
Main variables that businesses have to consider in online working through computers or WFH in order to generate the most efficiency.
1. Mobility
This is an important point for WFH because WFH really is just working from somewhere else that is not the office, this can be a co-working space type of cafe or any other place that suits the worker.
The first question is whether the computers currently used in your office are desktops or laptops, because if desktops are mainly used, transportation of said desktop will not be easy, moreover, most desktops does not have a built-in wireless WIFI connection, which will disallow the user to connect to the internet, except for incorporating the usage of external devices.
On the other hand, laptops will provide a much more convenient experience in working from home. BX says that if you are a business that believes WFH is a new way of working, incorporating laptops over desktops in your office should be one of your top priorities. (Reduce costs with renting, Click now)
2. Connectivity
It cannot be denied that internet speed plays a major role in determining work efficiency, if the workspace of your employees has a fast internet connection, it will greatly increase the smoothness in types of WFH that relate to communication or working with other people.
For laptop users, if internet wifi is available, you can start using it immediately. While you may need a wifi USB for desktop users, unless there is a LAN system from a device called Internet Router to the computer already set up.
Sharing wifi hotspot from mobile phones is also another easy way. Though, the downside of using a mobile hotspot is that the connection will not be stable, the main variable that affects this is the fact that there is a large amount of people who are using the same telephone pole. If there are less people, the connection will be faster, on the other hand if there are more people, your connection will be slower, and the further away your phone is from the telephone pole, the lower the chances of the signal reaching your phone, and this may affect the convenience of WFH.
3. Interaction
Do employees need to work at the same time as their coworkers and do they need to use resources at the office? If you consider these variables then you will be able to separate your employees in 3 groups.
1st The independent workers. They are not required to communicate with other people. These people, for example, could be a writer or a designer, as they do not require meetings with their coworkers because their work is built by one person, not a team. This type is easily manageable, since they only need internet connection when researching information or submitting work.
2nd Group workers. They attend meetings or communicate with their coworkers. This includes internet usage and other services, for example;
- Sending emails through Gmail, Microsoft 365, etc.
- Sending files through Google Drive, OneDrive, Sharepoint, etc.
- Attend meetings or communicate with their team through Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Skype, Zoom, etc.
In this case, the workers need a faster internet speed than the first type to ensure that they have a steady voice and video in communication.
3rd Office-resource access-require workers. They need access to, such as, ERP network, opening office bills, or sending emails. The server that provides these services is stationed in the office, which disallows it to be used through normal internet connections. In this case, a secure internet connection is required to access said services, this type of connection is called VPN (virtual private network).
A VPN connection generally needs an additional Firewall installation (if you do not already have it), to connect the computer of an employee working from home to the office servers, and this Firewall will only allow access to the parts that they have been allowed access to. This is to ensure that work from outside the office is monitored as necessary and to prevent attacks from hackers.
WFH has a clear upside which is that employees can maintain a safe distance between each other to reduce the risk of contracting diseases through contact, or working together in a small enclosed space. Moreover, WFH can decrease the cost of transportation. But at the same time, WFH has its own challenges. Even so, if you have a proper plan to manage WFH, it may even increase the productivity of your employees.
Let BX help play a part in making WFH a smooth and efficient experience for your business. Call to consult us or request more information now at 02-6798877 or email us at sales@blesssky.com
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