Running a remote business may be a growing trend, but that doesn’t make it any easier. The task ahead involves connecting even better than if you were personally with clients and employers, as well as clients. Trying to make this work and make it profitable is not impossible, and some companies do it really well. Here are three ways to challenge your remote company to find improvements and be more productive.
Looking for growth opportunities can be crucial.
Look for opportunities.
Every company has its blind spots. Looking for growth opportunities can therefore be crucial for your company. It changes the mindset and culture of a place to start thinking proactively instead of reactively, which helps when problems arise. Ask yourself the following questions: ‘Where are the gaps in your company’s pattern? What can employees or customers not do that you would like? What is limiting?’
Lakeside Software, a software and digital experience management company, recently released a report on the state of remote work titled “Digital Workplace Productivity Report 2022.” The report highlights key concerns for remote workplaces, including employee frustration, reduced output and lost productivity. For example, a company can often do more in terms of technology, as employee frustrations can arise from older or lagging equipment, load and response time, etc.
“Not only do many employees feel hindered by their technology in the workplace, but IT teams are frustrated with a lack of understanding of how and when problems occur,” said David Keil, chief executive officer of Lakeside Software, of the findings in the report. “The loss of [54 minutes] per week per employee to IT downtime is a major productivity problem for large enterprises.”
Another key finding from the report is that 40 percent of technical issues in the workplace are left out and not reported to the right channels. This is a huge gap in the failing IT infrastructure and communication with employees, leading to major productivity losses.
Find where your business can move faster.
Maybe your business is running smoothly, but if it could run just a little faster, you’d make more sales. By finding these areas of your business that can be handled not only more efficiently but also faster, remote working becomes less daunting for employees who get stuck in the weeds of a project and struggle to see the big picture.
For example, if you’re in real estate, banking or finance, you know how important it is for both you and your clients to have or transfer money quickly.
Fintech firm Dwolla has assisted companies in recent years with: real-time payments (RTP). Real estate was one of the industries that used RTP offerings during this time. Instead of waiting up to five days for major transfers like escrow and real money, the process for home buyers was completed in about 60 seconds via a secure digital transaction.
Finding spaces like this where the days condense into seconds can save your business weeks of time, which will only mean more revenue in your business’ pocket later on.
Combine resources where possible.
Merging your HR and IT departments probably won’t be a useful use of your and your company’s time. But when we think about joining forces and resources in a company, we think about what will be the most resilient and quick solution to potential problems.
Hybrid and remote workplaces can be vulnerable to many security vulnerabilities if companies aren’t careful. When things break or problems arise, many companies have combined their IT and cybersecurity departments for quick troubleshooting. When problems arise at a company, large or small, the most efficient way forward is to know that your team is working on it and to rely on their combined forces to solve the problem.
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