Remote work is slowly changing from a luxury to the new norm. At the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, 69% of all Americans worked from home. While a portion of them returned to the office – reluctantly for the most part – proactive businesses are adopting remote work tools as a crucial part of their operations.
If you’re among them, you’re probably wondering which tools can make the biggest impact on your success. Let’s look at a few that every business owner should consider.
1. Collaboration Remote Work Tools
Many business owners believe that a drawback of remote work is the inability to see their team and discuss matters in person. Luckily, there’s an easy way to overcome this issue with a few collaboration tools.
You’ll need a phone system beyond voice calls to ensure your team can communicate similarly to how they do in an office setting. A VoIP can be an excellent choice, as it features everything you need to ensure seamless collaboration.
On top of that, you’ll want to adopt a solid calendar or scheduling platform. It’s best to go with a cloud-based solution so that your whole team can be on the same page and keep track of their progress.
With a good collaboration tool, you can save quite a bit of time and money. Your employees can work on one project without communication snags that create waste. Their productivity can also skyrocket, as they’ll have everything they need to perform at their best from the comfort of their home.
2. Document Management Tools
Working remotely means being paperless, at least to an extent. You’ll likely have to digitalize document management to make sure everything’s in the right place at all times.
Luckily, there are many platforms and service providers that offer cloud-based document management. It’s a cost-effective way to reduce waste and make your processes more streamlined. Plus, cloud document management allows you to restrict access to certain files with higher security. You can rest assured knowing that sensitive information won’t fall into the wrong hands.
Another massive benefit of cloud document management is automated workflows. Instead of waiting until a document reaches a person who needs to approve it, you can have this happen instantly.
Of course, you’ll still have to use paper for certain tasks. In that case, you’ll want to invest in good printers that your remote workers can take with them. There are many capable solutions out there, so choosing one with all the features you need shouldn’t be a problem.
3. Project/Performance Management Software
Assessing your team’s efficiency and providing real-time feedback can be challenging when you don’t share a working space. Also, it takes a lot of trust to ensure that your employees won’t slack off while working from home.
To get a deeper insight into your team’s results, you should take advantage of performance management software. It can give you all the data you need to see if everything’s going according to plan and if there are any bottlenecks to resolve.
When looking into such software, always choose an option that provides detailed insight through a user-friendly dashboard. The last thing you need is a complex program that will give you more questions than answers.
Other than performance tracking, you’ll need a simple and effective way to assign tasks and manage projects. Some platforms offer both management and tracking features, so you might be able to kill two birds with one stone here.
4. Security Tools
Small businesses are among the main targets for hackers. They can be subject to , such as ransomware and phishing. When you add remote work to the mix, it’s normal to have security concerns.
However, this shouldn’t stop you from going remote. You can do a lot to protect yourself and minimize the chances of falling victim to an attack.
The first thing you should do is set online security rules and use endpoint protection tools to enforce them. Such tools can help you restrict access to certain data while still allowing your team to get all the information they need. Endpoint protection also offers total visibility of all connected devices, which lets it respond quickly in case of a data breach.
Investing in a comprehensive VPN (Virtual Private Network) might also be a good idea. It lets you go about your online activity safely and anonymously. Thanks to solid encryption, a VPN can protect your data and mask everyone’s IP address so that nobody can track their activity.
Finally, there’s a high chance you’ll have to send out some sensitive information via email. To ensure that nobody other than your target recipient sees it, you should use email security and encryption tools. It will also protect your business from phishing and other hacking tactics involving email.
Get the Most Out of Remote Work Tools With Managed IT Services
Remote work involves a lot of technology. To set it up properly, you need both your hardware and software to be on point, which comes at a cost. When you add maintenance to the mix, you’ll realize that remote work can call for a significant investment.
The good news is that you can cut all those costs drastically with managed IT services. You can get all the equipment, supplies, and services from one provider, which already makes more financial sense than shopping around. Plus, you can save a lot of money in the long run by ensuring that your equipment is in the hands of professionals.
If you’d like to learn more about managed services in New York, Totowa, Pennsauken, Edison, and Ft. Washington, contact Docutrend today. We’ll assess your needs and provide a tailor-made solution that will help you maximize the benefits of remote work.