How to make your business thrive while working remotely

Is your company ready to face this deep period of change? Here is how to make the transition to remote work a success.

Remote work is the new normal, here is how to get started

With the coronavirus continuing to wreak havoc on stock markets and global economic growth slowing, everything points to an imminent recession.

For business leaders this scenario can be very stressful, all the more so because many of them are still struggling to adapt to the new remote working model the pandemic imposed on them.

In this article we will show you how your business can not only survive, but thrive and grow during a downturn.

Making the transition to a remote model work

The first step is to lay a solid foundation for the future of your business by successfully transitioning to a remote workforce. This way of working was always inevitable, but it is now being forced by a global pandemic.

There are four goals to hit for your company to operate effectively while remote.

• Take care of your staff's mental health
• Maintain effective communication
• Protect all of your data
• Keep productivity levels high

Let us break each one down.

Take care of your employees' mental health

The coronavirus is a source of stress for employees and employers alike. With so much uncertainty and such a radical change in working model, your staff will worry about job security, which can be very damaging to mental health.

Here are a few ways to address the problem.

Make your staff feel secure

As a leader, you need to make your employees feel safe and protected at all times. The best way to do that is to keep them informed.

Send regular email updates about changes in the company. Make your plans for the business perfectly clear and call out each step of progress. This is your chance to prove yourself as a fearless leader in full control of the company and of your staff's livelihoods.

Virtual coffee breaks with employees

Encourage your staff to organise virtual coffee breaks. You can make sure that team members who usually sit together stay connected over video. It also helps guarantee that your usual internal communications stay sharp and effective.

Make sure remote colleagues separate their workspace from their living space

It can be hard for remote employees to mentally detach from work. Once the day is over, their environment stays the same. Encourage your staff to set up their desk in a room dedicated to work, so that leaving the room feels like leaving work behind.

Keep a routine

Routine matters a great deal, especially in difficult situations. It sends the subconscious message that life is still moving forward. Encourage your staff to wake up at their usual time and follow their working routine, starting and finishing at the usual hour.

Take regular breaks

Remote employees do not have to commute, so their daily activity drops considerably. Physical exercise is very important for mental health, so organise a daily stretching session for the whole team over video. Interactions like these keep morale up and help company culture thrive.

Maintain effective communication

A breakdown in communication is a sure way to paralyse a business. Beyond staying in touch with staff over chat and video, your people also need to be able to collaborate seamlessly.

Here are some strong project management options:

• Trello
• Asana
• Monday.com
• Phabricator

Keep all data secure

You need to equip your remote workers with a VPN. A VPN encrypts all the internal data your workers access, which prevents data breaches.

Here is a list of VPN options:

• ExpressVPN
• Surfshark
• IPVanish
• NordVPN

Keep productivity levels high

With your staff's mental health taken care of, your employees should return the favour with highly productive work. You can cultivate productivity further by putting a time-tracking solution in place.

Time-tracking software follows employee activity to quantify their productivity level as a percentage, calculated from the type of websites and applications accessed and the level of keyboard and mouse activity.

Rolling out this kind of solution should encourage your staff to stay focused on their work rather than getting distracted by their surroundings.

In the end

The coronavirus outbreak has permanently changed the working landscape. Companies have to adapt to these changes quickly and effectively. That is the key not only to surviving, but to thriving and even expanding your business at the dawn of an uncertain future.