Image by StartupStockPhotos from Pixabay

By Emma Williams

2020 is like no other year before. It has been marked by one global enemy – COVID19. It turned people’s worlds upside down overnight. Most employers had to give work from home a try whether they liked it or not. Employees had to put special effort into juggling private and professional lives. Their plates have never seemed fuller than throughout this year. Since it doesn’t seem like the pandemic is going away anytime soon, as a business owner, you need to equip your business with some smart tools to survive this global pandemic. Take a look at our suggestions.

File management system

Remote employees don’t have access to what is commonly known as the file room. This means they can’t leave their desk and walk over to a room full of files and find what they need. Without access to relevant files, employees can’t do their job right. For this reason, the first and one of the most important steps you should take is to establish a great file management system. Today, there are many file management tools to help you upload and keep all data safe in the virtual file room. There are at least two advantages to this system. Firstly, your personnel no longer has to create paper waste, which means you will be creating an eco-friendly workplace. Secondly, you and your team will have access to all important pieces of information regardless of your location. Therefore, you will be making sure all business operations run smoothly despite working from different locations.

Business communication

The remote staff doesn’t only lack access to files and information. They also lack interaction and direct communication. Without this essential aspect, your team members might feel isolated and start behaving as individuals instead of team players. Luckily for you, there is an easy fix for this problem. All you have to do is resort to some employee app or communicative platform and encourage your personnel to use it regularly. If you have Millennials and Gen Z as a part of your workforce, all the more reason you should rely on smart tools and apps for business communication. Since they spend most of their time on social media and all kinds of apps, there is no reason for them not to take advantage of business-related ones.

Task management

If you have a large team or a few smaller ones, keeping track of their progress on projects and tasks can be incredibly hard. All the more so when they work from home and you can’t walk over to their desk and check-in in person. However, the right smart tool can help you stay on top of things in your small business despite the pandemic and unusual working conditions. Namely, tools such as Asana or Basecamp, allow you to give out assignments, track their progress, leave comments and notes, and help out when your staff gets stuck. More importantly, because of tracking features, you, as their superior, can jump right in and help out at any given moment. Also, staff members can work together, interact, and deliver their best work despite working from different home offices.

Video conferences

Without direct communication, employee productivity can diminish rapidly as well as their engagement. If you don’t want to add more problems to an already long list caused by the pandemic, you should resort to an effective video conferencing tool. Such tools are the best solution for allowing employees to communicate face-to-face with their coworkers. Additionally, they can do wonders to their team spirit and keep it alive despite long-distance professional relationships. The best part about these tools is that they allow you to schedule, attend, and record meetings. If an employee misses out on an important video conference for whatever reason, you can still keep them posted by sharing the video recording. It would be like they attended the meeting all the way!

Time trackers

Generally, employees have a hard time focusing on work when they work from home. Their home offices are usually set up in communal areas in their houses and apartments. Rarely anyone has enough space to separate themselves from other family members. For this reason, they get easily distracted by non-work-related activities taking place around them. What you can to help employees get their efficiency back on track is to encourage them to use time tracking apps. These apps help both employees and the employer. At the end of a workday, an employee receives a report. By analyzing those reports, the employee can determine what type of tasks take the most time to complete. Employers, on the other hand, can use this information to assign tasks more suitably in the future and keep employees productive at all times.

Conclusion

The only way your business can defeat the enemy in the shape of the pandemic is by taking full advantage of smart apps day in day out. This way you ensure your business’ smooth sailing through stormy seas.

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Emma Williams is an Australian writer with a master‘s degree in business administration, who has a passion for anything lifestyle and design related. She spends most of her time redecorating and participating in house projects. As a great nature lover, her biggest pleasure is spending time in a small cottage by the river. Follow her on Twitter at https://twitter.com/EmmaWilliams204.