Around seven out of 10 employees in the U.S. started working remotely part or all of the time in May 2020, as per data compiled by a recent Gallup Panel. Despite the fact that only one in four remote workers wish to return to work once restrictions are lifted, statistics indicate that remote work has resulted in a productivity slump. One recent survey of the US digital workplace and remote employee experience during the current health crisis has found that many businesses are ill-equipped to support remote workers.
IT Teams Are Failing Employees
The survey, conducted by 1E and Vanson Bourne, looked into employees in eight different industries, finding that IT teams were not making the remote working experience easier. It showed that IT teams need to prepare organizations and employees for the ‘work from home’ enterprise model, which has been forced on so many businesses so suddenly. Currently, around nine out of 10 employees are working remotely full-time. 1E founder and CEO, Sumir Karayi, stated, “In the work-from-anywhere enterprise, endpoint management tools are the central nervous system because the endpoint is no longer just a device.”
Solutions For Home Workers
There are many solutions that can aid the ease of remote work. These include using software as a resource management tool. Project time tracking software, for instance, is an excellent way for business leaders and project managers to minimize the effort and error associated with entering and processing timesheet data across organizations. Aspects such as payroll, client billing, expenses and deadlines can all be tracked so that managers can see the exact stage that each step of the project is at. Time can therefore be managed more optimally, and employees can stick to a strict schedule while achieving their goals in a timely fashion.
Cybersecurity Solutions
Cybsersecurity is another big issue for remote workers, since up to 79% of workers had never worked from home prior to the health crisis. This means they may be using shared WiFi and computers, and many may not have pertinent firewalls, antivirus software, and other protective means to keep cyber attacks at bay. IT solutions include providing employees with training on pertinent software to download, how to set passwords, and how to use encryption, blockchain and other security solutions.
IT Teams Are Lagging
In the survey, 68% of employees said they were interrupted by the service desk; only 31% were able to continue working while matters were being resolved. Around 26% said their work was completely paralyzed while issues were being sorted. Connection was another problem; around 74% said they now felt distanced from their colleagues. More companies clearly need to rely on resources such as Slack, Zoom, and other chat and video conference software.
Research indicates that current tools must be replaced with more modern means of endpoint management solutions, designed to fix the issues that can arise when employees are working remotely. These tools should be fast, autonomic and scalable. Further training is also required for remote workers, who need further training on issues such as cybersecurity software, data sharing and passwords. Technologies such as blockchain can also potentially help speed up processes and guarantee secure sharing of data in many industries.
