More companies are investing in cloud technology to jumpstart their growth. One of many reasons that people are using cloud computing is that it helps them create cohesive remote teams. This is one of the many reasons that more organizations are shifting towards a global workforce.
Cloud Technology is Driving More Companies Towards Embracing Remote Teams
Remote teams are certainly a part of the future of work. There’s no denying that the COVID-19 pandemic has caused the number of remote offices to rise dramatically in the last few years, but the movement to make telecommuting mainstream has been around for decades before then. This helped more organizations realize the potential of utilizing cloud technology.
In the pre-pandemic United States, for example, about 17 per cent of workers were already working from home five days a week or more. This might just be a small portion of the working population, but it’s nothing to scoff at as well. Then, during the pandemic, this ballooned to 44 per cent of US-based workers. These figures are expected to rise even further in the coming years.
Embracing the future of work as early as today is a significant decision for any company. This is where cloud technology will become so important.
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It’s a must to plan this move carefully so that your business and employees can reduce the risks that come with the transition while maximizing its benefits. In order to realize these benefits, they will need to take advantage of cloud solutions. To that end, here’s a guide on how to successfully transition to a remote team from an on-site one:
Invest in the Right Cloud Technology Services
A company must invest in a robust digital work environment to ensure that its remote employees are able to retain or even improve their productivity rates. For the most part, this means that they need to take advantage of the right cloud services and find a reliable cloud hosting provider if they intend to host large amounts of content. This way, despite the physical distance, the members of the team can still collaborate and contribute individually to the company’s shared goals.
Cloud-based collaboration tools for file storage and sharing, project management, and scheduling, for example, can help managers streamline processes and stay on top of the deliverables of every member of the team. A free video meeting application, on the other hand, can play an integral role in helping the members of the remote team connect and communicate with each other.
A number of cloud-based tools also make it easier for employees to communicate. Skype, Happeo, Discord, Slack, Zendesk and Ring Central are some of the best cloud-based tools for boosting communication between employees. The employees must master the use of these digital tools as part of their transition to remote work or during their onboarding process as a part of a remote team.
Come Up with a Remote Work Policy and Plan
Having the right cloud tools is only the first step. It’s of utmost importance for a company to set up rules for remote work before it gives employees the option to work outside the office. The administrators, managers, and human resources team must collaborate and come up with a plan to ease employees into their new work setup. Cloud technology is only useful if it is used properly, so having these policies in place is vital. Microsoft has a template that you can use for your own cloud-based remote team.
This working group can, for starters, determine who is eligible to work remotely and when they’re allowed to do so, how their deliverables and performance will be tracked, and the security measures they should take to protect the systems and assets owned by the business. If the company will be requiring remote workers to use specific tools, the working group can schedule a training period to familiarise the team with the said programs.
Preparing a detailed policy and plan will help the company thoroughly prepare its employees for these future changes and enable it to foster an image of stability during the transition.
Keep Everyone on the Same Page
Building a communicative culture is a must for a company that aims to benefit from a remote work setup. The leaders of the business can guide employees by making serious efforts to keep everyone informed of the step-by-step process of transitioning to remote work.
Perhaps the company can provide a website, brochure, or post that will serve as an official source of all details that an employee may want to know about the upcoming changes. Maybe there are training sessions that they should attend or certain platforms they should sign up for by a particular date, for example.
This way, the company can avoid confusion or miscommunication while transitioning to telecommuting. The habit of communicating clearly and consistently should be retained and further enhanced once the business has completed its transition to a remote office.
Prepare People and Lead Them with Empathy
Not all in-office management styles translate well when carried out in digital and remote workspaces. A company that is making a transition to remote work, then, must brief its managers on how a non-face-to-face work setup changes the dynamics between their team members. It’s especially important to learn how to lead a team with empathy even if its members aren’t physically present in the same room.
Managers must get used to relinquishing control and trusting their team members more, as they won’t always be there to check on their remote employee’s work in real time. Throughout the transition process, the business must work together with its managers and refine its recommended management style so that it’s better suited to remote work.
It’s also a good idea to prepare managers for effectively assisting team members who may be having difficulties adjusting to the new work environment. This, in turn, will give them the tools they need to motivate their struggling team members to slowly but surely adapt to and succeed in a home-based office.
Companies Must Prepare Employees for Remote Teams
Cloud technology has changed the modern workplace forever. One of the biggest advantages of cloud technology is that it has helped improve remote teams.
Deciding to transition from an office-based team to a remote one is a great leap for any organization. With the right preparation, though, your business will be able to slowly but surely ease its employees into a smarter, more efficient work setup where they can remain productive while enjoying a better work-life balance.