All business owners want to reduce their costs while increasing their business efficiency and productivity. With the kind of technology that we have nowadays, achieving this goal is not that hard. And one of the best ways to do this is by allowing some of your employees to work from home.
Managing a remote team is never easy. It is true that this allows you to hire the best talent from all over the world without increasing your expenses. You can build a healthier, more efficient, and more productive team even if you don’t get to meet in person. But having remote workers also have their own set of challenges.
Hiring the right candidates
Not all excellent employees can be excellent remote workers. It can be hard to find the right fit as remote work is quite different from that done in the office. Aside from the skill and knowledge requirements, you will need to make sure that your workers have the right equipment and discipline to get the job done. This is why you need to learn how to hire the best remote workers to take your remote positions. You should know who exactly you’re looking for, where to find them, how to hire them, and what you can do to keep them.
Loss of business data
There are times when human error and equipment breaking down can cost you to lose business. What you can do is to remind your remote employees to take extra precautionary measures when handling your business data. This can involve the use of anti-virus software, a VPN, and proper handling of equipment. It helps to have a data backup plan that you can count on. There are many online file storage solutions available that allow you to automatically save your data. You can find one that matches your budget, as many offer competitive cloud backup pricing for small business owners like you.
Privacy and Security Issues
Perhaps among the most common issues you’ll need to address asap are privacy and security issues. Since you’re allowing remote workers to work for you, data leaks can happen if you and your staff are not careful. What you can do is to enforce a strict policy that your employees are expected to comply with at all times. Draft a contract and confidentiality agreement along with other rules that will tell them exactly what they can and shouldn’t do. Limit the connectivity of your workers on pertinent business data and always set firm and clear security expectations with your employees.
Employee monitoring
Of course, you have to make sure that your workers are doing their job on your agreed schedule. You don’t want to end up paying your workers with a nice paycheck only to find out that they are not doing their job right or fail to finish their tasks on time. You can use employee-monitoring software that allows you to check on your employees during working hours. Some apps allow you to record their hours of work, the sites they visit, and the projects they work on. These can track the devices you have given them to ensure that they use them only for work.
Forming a remote team comes with its perks. But if you’re not careful, you’ll end up with a team that is not capable of helping you achieve your goals. With this list in mind, you can increase your chances of success and make the most out of your company’s plans to welcome remote workers.
