Remote working is transforming the business horizon completely. More tech-based companies are switching to remote working to cut operational costs and increase profit. National news reports that middle eastern companies are thinking of switching to a remote working style post-COVID. A recent study also concludes that more than 78% of the UAE residents believe 9-5 work timing is outdated and needs to be revised. Apart from this 67.6% of employees have reported improvement in productivity through remote working. However, 41% of the employees have reported that they have been facing technical glitches while working from home. That’s where the new technology comes in.
Forbes reports that not only new technology is going to transform the business horizons, but remote working will also work as a leveling field for all kinds of businesses. Some of the managers in bigger industries greatly relied on others for their work performance. As a result, when remote working was initiated during the pandemic, management could see the difference between independent performers and dependent performers.
According to the Gallup poll, only 31% of an individual has previous experience of remote working. However, by the end of the start of the pandemic, more than 60% of the workforce was shifted to remote working. For the very first time, companies thought of shifting their operations entirely to remote working. With all these changes, the need of the hour was to support this transformation via tech advancement. Soon after, 5G took over, companies shifted to VoIP, more telecommunication companies came into the view and modern communication portals were introduced.
How Remote Working Is Transforming the Business Industry?
Remote working is becoming the new normal. Currently, more than 61% of companies have switched to remote working and this ratio is growing. For the business industry, switching to remote working means more profit and less operational expenses.
Change in Productivity Assessment
Before the pandemic companies were looking for team players without realizing that some people are flying under the radar because their team is performing well. Now after the pandemic, companies are looking for people who are goal-oriented and they can deliver the work individually without any help. This has shifted the performance of Metrix as well. Previously, the task was assigned to the team and divided by the manager. In case of need, most people would simply seek help from peers, in other cases, managers would volunteer for some extra burden. With remote working, tasks are only shared when done, this eliminates the help-seeking behavior and promotes the self-learning behavior. Now with the help of this technique, it is easier for companies to spot people who are not productive or lack self-motivation.
Stimulating Creativity
Within the office workspace, we cannot deny that technology is much better but there is a distraction as well. Most workers like to seek help at an unsolicited time, eventually bringing down the productivity of the team. Remote working has allowed the employees to think in a more creative way within their natural habitat. They are in full control of their external environment, which is the reason their creative side is shining.
Easy Digital Footprint Tracking
Micromanaging is always discouraged by the leaders, primarily because it adds productivity pressure on the employee. However, with the help of remote working leaders are now seeing productivity improvement. This is because management tools are helping them micromanage without making the employees feel conscious about being micromanaged. With these management tools, managers can easily track the login and lout time. They can also see who submitted a document and at what time the document was envaulted or edited.
Staff Turnover Rate
A very important issue that most companies face is the turnover rate. Studies show that longer work hours result in more absentees and leaves. Similarly, strict time slots result in less turnover rate as well. This issue can be solved with flexible timing and remote working option. With remote working options during COVID, the productivity reached its maximum, and turn over rate was good as well. Most people think that this is mainly because during the pandemic options were very limited. People were stuck in their homes and work was their only escape. This can be true, but this can also transform the post-COVID remote working situation.
How Technology Is Changing Remote Working and What You Need?
Remote working requires less effort, but you need to be tech-savvy and smart. As the market is shifting, the tech industry is designing new tools to make remote working effective and easy. Here are some technological advancements that are changing the business horizon.
Improvement in Internet Speed
According to 41% of the employees working from home, internet speed is one of the worst issues that is affecting their productivity. This means that internet speed and connectivity issues can help companies to enhance their productivity as well. Considering this issue, the telecommunication industry is now experimenting with 5G and 6G internet. With the help of 5G internet, the download, upload, and streaming speed will be remarkable. Aljazeera report that 5G will allow you to download an HD movie within seconds. This means fast-speed internet will help us to automate things in a way that will offer complete remote access. Employees will be able to handle and access the machine in the office through the internet without any technical glitch.
Use of VoIP
Remote working is impossible without communication with the team. This is the main reason companies like to set departments and teams so hate everyone working for the same goal can stay connected. With telephone and traditional communication methods, features are very limited, and quality is very low. While working you need something that allows you to communicate through multiple means and doesn’t limit your productivity. To address this issue, VoIP services are recommended. VoIP uses the internet to help you communicate. The voice quality through VoIP is much better and it offers communication through multiple means. You can send in a voice note, edit suggestions through messages, audio calls, video calls, and much more. VoIP also offers conference call and group message options which will help you to stay connected with all your team. Most companies use video conference calls for daily scrum. This helps them to plan the sprint and stay connected with their team.
Use of Integration Systems
Remote working has now made integration the main concern for workers. There is so many different management software available globally. The goal of this management software is to offer task management through automation. However, employees who need to stay in direct contact with the clients can not afford to have multiple management systems for each task. Through simple integration, companies can connect VoIP to their management system. This means you will be receiving pop-ups, voice notes, recorded messages, broadcast messages, contact import experts, and multiple other features. While using multiple management tools, you need to stay aware of what you are looking for and where you will find it. If you want to contact your client, you will have to specifically look for his details and then go through history and other details to deal with him. With the help of integration, every detail will be displayed right away. The Representative just needs to click the number and he will have all the details of the client. Easy and seamless integration of management software with VoIP reduces the handling time and productivity as well.
Improvement in Online Management Systems
Remote working is impossible without CRM and this is the reason more companies are introducing online management systems. According to a recent study, almost 91% of the companies with more than 11 employees use task managers. Smaller companies use subscription-based online management systems however, bigger companies opt for customized task managers. No matter what you choose you will notice that task management systems are getting better every day. Companies are now enthusiastically adding new features and offering customizing options so that smaller companies do not have to opt for expensive options. Instead, they can buy subscriptions and add their desired features according to the need of their company.
Cloud-Based CRM Systems
CRMs and task management systems were usually just limited to the offices. Once you leave the office, your CRM would stop working and there was no data access beyond the premises of the office. Usually, this is done because of privacy and confidentiality reasons. However, with remote working companies are getting cloud-based CRM. With the help of cloud-based CRM employees can access data from anywhere. It is easier for the companies and employees to have a cloud-based CRM because it allows everyone to stay connected and have access to the task details that they need to perform. A cloud-based CRM system is cost-efficient and offers better handling time by offering the same updates for everyone. From downloading installation and running, everything can be done within a few seconds. On the contrary, if companies limit themselves to on-premises CRM systems, they will eventually raise maintenance costs and if there is a technical glitch, this can only be solved in the office. Cloud-based CRM system liberates the user from these restrictions, offering him to get the latest features from anywhere.
