How Connectivity Has Helped Businesses Adapt to Remote Working

In the face of an ongoing global health crisis, businesses all over the world are turning to remote working to support the economy and keep their companies afloat. Fortunately, rapid advancements in technology have paved the way for easier and hassle-free remote working arrangements.

A lot of people are also excited about 5G, which could take connectivity – and by extension technology – to greater heights. For instance, an article from the World Economic Forum describes how 5G has the potential to open up more possibilities in the global healthcare industry. Transmission lines and terminations promote high-speed data transfer, which is vital for telehealth programs and connected care. In addition to delivering care, a lot of articles that look into the benefits of this next-generation network that promises greater speed and quicker latency have said that 5G can usher in the development of new and improved devices, including those used for communication.

In this post, we are going to examine the different ways connectivity has helped businesses adapt to remote working.

It reduces overhead costs

In order to curb the public health effects of the pandemic, numerous businesses were left with no choice but to close their doors for a while or operate below full capacity. This new setup, of course, has gravely affected the way they generate revenue and profit. To keep operations going despite these circumstances, business leaders are always on the lookout for cost-effective technologies that can help them save money and live through new budget constraints. Fortunately, they can rely on different communication devices and techniques to cut costs. By turning some of your employees into full-time teleworkers who do much of their work using different communication devices, businesses can expect an average real estate saving of $10,000 per teleworker every year. To put that into perspective, take a look at the case of insurance giant Aetna. By introducing flexible working policies that allowed them to shed 2.7 million square feet of office space, the company was able to save a whopping $78 million every year.

It helps you rebrand your identity

Today's world is run by data, thanks to the great number of technologies that accumulate, create and consume data every minute. Since much of the work is done online, remote teams tend to gather more data than their traditional counterparts. This advantage has helped these businesses to be more in tune with their customers’ sentiments, allowing them to closely tailor their campaigns to their clientele’s needs. Additionally, connecting with customers through various social media channels enables companies to become more appealing, especially during these trying times. A recent survey found that consumers consider brands that they have heard more about in the past few weeks as brands that are handling the crisis better than others, and that these brands are able to provide them with some sense of normalcy.

It improves teamwork and communication skills

Nothing is more vital to a business’s operations than communication and teamwork. However, in a remote setup where employees cannot communicate face-to-face and have no social cues and body language to rely on, issues deriving from miscommunication and misinterpretation cannot be helped. Luckily, connectivity has enabled professionals to use different messaging platforms that can provide steady and easy communication with their colleagues. Some applications like Slack, which saw an explosive growth following the boom of flexible working, boast tons of useful features that completely revolutionized office communication. Aside from allowing users to organize conversations, create different channels, casually chat and engage in voice calls and video conferences, the app also integrates over 1,500 other apps, making it easier to access, organize and share files and automate tasks. Users can even integrate games into different channels to enhance teamwork and uplift morale.

Even before professionals were forced to work from the comforts of their own homes, remote work had already been the talk of the town due to its numerous benefits. The ongoing crisis merely sped up the adoption of what is seemingly the future of work. To make sure that your company is ready for a substantial increase in remote employees and is able to bridge the gap in productivity between the “in-office” and the “at-home” employees, consider getting help from experts who can provide you with strategic projects fit for your short-term and long-term needs.