Engaging Remote Workers

Imagine never having to get up, get ready and be out of the house in time to make the train into the office or getting stuck in the traffic jam outside the town centre.  Imagine never having to sit at your desk from 9am until 5:30pm with an hour for lunch, those constant interruptions of phone calls or people shouting over the desk to ask you a question.  Just think of all the work that you could get done if you were able to work from home and just concentrate on the tasks of the day.

Working remotely appeals for a vast number of employers for a number of reasons, including increased productivity, a reduction in travel, energy use and requirements for office space.  But what about for the worker themselves; they may go a whole day without speaking to another person, they may not even leave the house from one day to the next.  They would miss the conversation on the new order that has just come in or the anecdotal conversation about how to handle a prospective client.   Sometimes working from home can be a lonely and isolating experience that needs to be addressed when implementing a flexible working approach.

When you start to work remotely suddenly your days become not about the hours you spend at your desk to achieve your pay packet at the end of the month, but about the number of tasks that you complete in that month and the outcomes that your employer can see for your work hours; no matter when those hours have been achieved.  One comment we hear from remote workers time and time again is that they don’t feel part of the team; they feel forgotten and not as valued as staff that have a physical presence in the office.

This loneliness and remoteness of working from home can in part be solved by implementing the right technology to allow for quick and easy communication, integration of remote workers in teams and sharing of calendars and tasks lists with all staff.  Microsoft Office 365 is one such package that allows Companies to do all this for a fraction of the cost of employing someone in the office full time.

Microsoft Office 365 includes all the tools needed to allow a remote worker to fully integrate and become a member of the team including Microsoft Lync that allows you to see when your co-workers are online allowing you to start an instant message, voice or video call. You can also schedule online team meetings and share desktop presentations with your remote workers.  These videos allow for High Definition and enterprise quality video experience which really is the closest you will get to actually being there in person!

Microsoft SharePoint allows remote workers to keep up-to-date with the latest company announcements, take part in discussion boards and collaborate on team projects. .  They can also set up alerts and workflows to automatically update them on selected information.

Microsoft Exchange is a powerful tool that allows teams to share calendars, contacts and tasks. Remote workers can be added to email distribution lists ensuring that they do not miss out on emails and information that is being disseminated within the office environment.

If you would like more information on remote working with Microsoft Office 365 then please contact EcoBytes. Our consultants can work with your team to ensure your entire remote working needs are met, achieved and exceeded.  EcoBytes are also able to offer remote support via Lync meaning that your remote workers can initiate an online meeting with one of technical staff and share their desktop to trouble shoot any IT problems that they may be experiencing.  To find out more about EcoBytes cloud offering follow this link http://www.ecobytes.co.uk/Pages/CloudComputing.aspx